No matter how experienced you are, there’s always a danger when working with heavy machinery. Even when you follow all of the safety guidelines, there are variables outside of our control that can cause accidents.

You may have heard last month about the death of a local Fayetteville construction worker who was tragically killed during the flooding from Hurricane Matthew. He was driving a construction vehicle along the banks of a river while repairing a sewer line, when the earth along the water gave way, and caused his vehicle to tip into the water.

While nothing could have been done to prepare for this scenario, it’s always best to follow safety protocols in order to minimize the risk of injury. Make sure you are wearing proper safety equipment, and always be aware of your surroundings.

It’s good to know that if you are injured at work as a result of a natural disaster (for instance flooding), that injury should be covered by workers’ compensation. Work-related deaths are also covered under workers’ compensation. The death of a loved one is a difficult time no matter the circumstances. The last thing you need is to have to wade through the nuances of a workers’ compensation claim. Let an experienced attorney help guide you through this difficult time.

If you or someone you know has been injured at work as a result of a natural disaster, be sure to contact an experienced attorney at Oxner + Permar for a free consultation. With more than $275 million in awards and settlements, our attorneys have the experience to get you the benefits you deserve.

At Oxner + Permar, we’re always looking for opportunities to give back to the community. So this month we thought we’d spotlight a couple of the charities that we support. They’re wonderful causes, very deserving of attention.

The first charity we’re highlighting is NC MedAssist. NC MedAssist is a great program devoted to helping North Carolinians be able to afford the medical care that they need. Even with health insurance, certain medical treatments and medicines can be very expensive. That’s why NC MedAssist is devoted to ensuring that everyone has access to the care that they need.

They believe that no one should have to choose between purchasing food or affording medication. One way they help is through their Free Pharmacy Program. The current eligibility requirements for this program are:

• You must be a NC resident
• You must be living at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level
• You must not qualify for Medicaid, Veterans Administration, or private health insurance.

NC MedAssist also has a senior care program that works to provide alternate options for seniors whose Medicare Part D prescription benefits run out during the year.

Their Over the Counter (OTC) Medicine Program provides free OTC medicines to families in need — it’s essentially like a food bank but for medicine!

To find out more about any of these programs or about how you can contribute, visit the NC MediAssist website. This is a really great program that’s close to our hearts. We sponsor one of their giveaway days every year, and we encourage you to get involved if you’re able!

If you’re able to contribute to NC MediAssist, we invite you to visit their website to find out more about how you can get involved!

At Oxner + Permar, we’re devoted to ensuring our clients receive the best service possible. To us, this means that you get our full time and attention. We’re not the kind of attorneys who make you wait a week before we get back to you. We take your calls, listen to your questions and concerns, and do our very best to keep you informed during every step of your workers’ compensation claim.

Your time is valuable to us, and we know that dealing with a workers’ comp claim can be stressful. We don’t want our clients anxiously waiting for an attorney to make time to answers to their questions. That’s why, if you call our office, and don’t get a call back by the end of the day, lunch is on us! We’ll send you a gift card in the mail.

In the off chance that we’re unable to return your call on the same day you reach out to us, we’ll make it up to you! We don’t want you to feel like your time isn’t valued, or that you’re just one of many clients in our system. All of our clients are important to us. Every one of our attorneys takes great care with each case they take on.

We welcome questions! If you need answers, or would like to check in with your attorney, feel free to give us a call. Our team of experienced attorneys is here to help you.

Living on the coast of North Carolina has so many benefits. There’s the wonderful weather, diverse wildlife, and proximity to the beach. Even with all these positives, things aren’t always bright and sunny. Hurricanes can pose a huge threat to infrastructure and safety. While we always do our best to be prepared for such disasters and recommend that people don’t work when conditions are bad, sometimes injuries are inevitable. So what happens if you’re injured at work due to a natural disaster? Are you covered by workers’ compensation?

The good news is, yes! Workers’ compensation will cover you in the event of a natural disaster at work — and also in cases of workplace violence and terrorist attacks. Workers’ compensation is intended to protect you from just about any kind of work-related injury, and while injury from these scenarios might not be part of your everyday job, you are exposed to them because you are at work.

If you or someone you know has sustained an injury due to a natural disaster while at work, don’t hesitate to contact an experienced workers’ compensation attorney. Our goal is to partner with you every step of the way to make sure that your rights are being protected and that you’re receiving the benefits that you deserve.

If you’ve been injured at work, be sure to contact one of our experienced attorneys for a free consultation.

I recently had a client ask me, “What’s so special about Board Certified attorneys? Aren’t all attorneys board certified?” Interestingly enough, not all attorneys are Board Certified. Board Certification has nothing to do with certification to become an attorney. It is, in fact, an additional achievement that an attorney can strive for.

In order to become Board Certified, an attorney has to have a certain amount of experience. They have to have been practicing for at least five years in the area that they’re practicing. For instance, you wouldn’t be considered if you’d spent four years practicing family law and only one year practicing workers’ compensation. After they meet their experience requirements, they can apply to become board certified.

Their work will be reviewed extensively, and finally, they will have to take a day-long written examination. The idea behind Board Certification is continued education. The attorney must be committed to proving that they’re willing to continue learning and studying their field.

Attorneys who obtain Board Certification have to renew their certification every 5 years. This ensures that even once becoming Board Certified, an attorney’s education will continue.

So when you hire a Board Certified Workers’ Compensation specialist, you know you’re hiring someone who has been thoroughly vetted and is well educated in their field. You can bet that attorney is willing to work hard and tirelessly to make sure that your case is given the proper attention, and that a fair outcome is obtained.  At Oxner + Permar, we’re proud to say that we have seven Board Certified attorneys on our team.

If you have any questions about what it means to be Board Certified or about your workers’ compensation claim, don’t hesitate to give us a call for a free consultation.