More Information on Clincher Agreements

Why employees consider a clincher agreement?

For many workers, once it becomes clear that they have reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) (that no further treatments will improve their health), it makes sense to start thinking about their long-term position. Some of the reasons workers consider lump-sum payments are:

• Plain and simple – the worker gets to control the money.
• The worker can’t rely on the 2/3rds of your wage weekly checks, which only come once per week. It is more advantageous to have a lump sum, so the funds can be invested, or used for a business, so that the family can be taken care of, and for other reasons personal to the worker.
• If the injured worker dies at any point, his or her checks will stop and so will all future, potential medical treatment. A settlement usually converts a significant future portion of the future checks and medical treatment the employee would receive to a lump sum of cash, which cash can be saved, invested, and passed on to one’s heirs. 

The disadvantages of a clincher agreement

• If your condition gets worse than you expected, you can’t go back and ask for additional medical benefits. This is why it is critical that you and your attorney work with your doctors to fully understand your medical prognosis.
• If you are out of work and unable to obtain an alternate job within your restrictions, you may run out of the clincher money. 

The amount you receive will be discounted to reflect the idea that the lump sum can earn interest over the time you normally would have waited to get your payments.

If, as we’ve pointed out before, you are receiving any unemployment compensation pay, you will lose the right to claim those benefits.

How is the amount of the lump sum payment determined?

The answer depends on your type of injuries. The basic types of injury categories in North Carolina are:

• Permanent and Total Disability. This type of settlement is reserved for workers where it is clear you will never be able to return to work due to:

 

• • Your injuries from a workplace accident
  • An occupational disease
  • Your combination of skills, ages, and injuries means you can never expect to work again even if you are retrained
  • You have one of the categories of injuries that North Carolina considers to be permanently disabling, brain damage, paraplegia, or quadriplegia.

 

If all these criteria are met, you will be entitled to checks of 2/3rds of your average weekly wage for the remainder of your life.  

• •  Extended Compensation Application for extended compensation at 425 weeks.  This is a separate category of injury where your injuries are so severe that you have lost your entire residual capacity to work. This can come from any type of injury, but you must prove that you cannot work and you cannot file for extended compensation until you reach 425 weeks of compensation. If granted, the Industrial Commission may grant you benefits beyond the typical limit of 500 weeks for your weekly checks. That being said, even if granted, the defendants may, from time to time, challenge your ongoing rights to receive benefits beyond the 500 weeks, by forcing you to again prove that you remain disabled.
  •  Temporary Total Disability. For most employees, workers who are placed in this category are entitled to up to 2/3rds of the average weekly wage for up to 500 weeks. This type of settlement commonly entered by workers who have the ability to engage in some kind of work, but are unable to return to their pre-injury job.  Workers must prove that they are unable to find suitable work with these restrictions may seek a clincher agreement.

 

• Permanent Partial Disability Settlements, or ‘ratings only’ settlements. This category is for employees who can return to work but not the same job or same pay as before the accident or occupational illness. The amount of your weekly benefits is based on an impairment rating and your type of injury.

 

 

• Partial Incapacity Settlements. Some workers who achieve maximum medical improvement can return to work but at a lower pay. They are generally entitled to the 2/3rds of the difference between the lower current pay and higher pre-accident or pre-occupational disease pay. Most workers, except those with very old claims, are entitled to this sum for up to 500 weeks.

 

• Death Benefits to Survivors. If a worker dies, the spouse and/or other relatives may be entitled to long-term benefits which can be paid in a lump sum. An experienced work injury lawyer can explain what benefits are allowed including the costs of the funeral and who is entitled to the benefits.

How are future medical bills addressed in a clincher agreement?

 

It is typically not advisable for a worker to settle his or her workers’ compensation claim if the worker has not reached maximum medical improvement. Additional surgeries, treatments, and therapies may improve your condition. They can be quite expensive. You shouldn’t forfeit the right to get as healthy as you can by having the employer and insurance company pay for that treatment. Then again, each and every case is different. 

You may feel, for instance, that your skill set will enable you to obtain an alternate job where you can find health insurance which will likely cover future costs, in which case, it may make sense for you to examine settlement. 

Once workers have achieved their maximum health, some may not need additional medical care – for example, if they broke a bone and the bone has healed. Many workers, however, will need continuing health care to prevent their condition from getting worse. This is especially critical for workers with occupational diseases which often worsen with time. Workers with chronic injuries or other physical injuries may need constant help. If a worker needs a prosthetic, the prosthetic may wear out with time. The cost of medications must be part of the overall clincher settlement agreement.

There is always some risk in settling your case if you need more medical care. An experienced workers comp attorney can help you make an estimate as to what your future medical bills will be.

In any event, once it is determined that a full and final settlement of your case may be advantageous, your attorney will help calculate your future medical costs related to your injury by first estimating our life expectancy. This can be done by relying on certain statutes in North Carolina that actually provide the average life expectancies for both males and females each year across the State. 

Are there other issues to consider in a worker’s compensation clincher agreement?

One complicated problem is how your Medicare benefits and Social Security benefits are figured since many workers may be eligible for both Medicare and workers’ compensation benefits if they have a lifetime disability or were older when they first applied for work injury benefits. This is typically handled through something called a Medicare Set-Aside Arrangement or MSA. Basically, if you are a current Medicare recipient or if you are on Social Security Disability, you cannot settle your workers compensation claim without taking into account Medicare’s interests. 

Also, if you’re going through a divorce, you’ll need to review your marital rights with a family lawyer.

North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Attorney Joe Miller Esq. has been fighting for injured workers in North Carolina and Virginia for more than 30 years. He is highly respected by his legal peers and former clients. He’ll fight to get you every dollar you deserve. He’ll contest any effort by the employer to terminate or reduce your benefits. Call attorney Joe Miller today at 888-694-1671. or use my contact form to schedule an appointment.