Workers’ Compensation Death/Survivor Benefits Attorneys

Each year, thousands of employees die in work-related accidents, including construction accidents, auto accidents, and falls. Illinois workers’ compensation law allows employees to receive compensation for a work injury without filing a lawsuit. When a worker dies while on the job, their family can make a workers’ compensation claim and receive death benefits (for medical costs and lost income), but they cannot sue the employer for negligence. However, there is often a third-party on the job site that may be liable for the injuries suffered by the employee, and which is not the employer, that you can sue to recover damages including pain, suffering, loss of normal life, loss of consortium and more.

That’s where Nelson & Nelson comes in. Our fatal work accident attorneys conduct a full investigation of the incident and determine who is at fault in order to give you the opportunity to be compensated fairly for your loss. Contact us for a free case evaluation.

What Death/Survivor Benefits are Available to Beneficiaries?

Like all workers’ compensation benefits, death benefits are subject to certain minimum and maximum limits. Death benefits are paid for 25 years or up to $500,000, whichever is greater. A workers’ compensation lawyer can guide you through the complicated process of collecting death benefits.

Workers’ comp death benefits in Illinois include:

• Payment of all medical bills
• Funeral and burial expenses capped at $8,000
• Additional monetary amount, typically around 66% of the employee’s gross average weekly wage during the 52 weeks before the work fatality

Who Can Obtain Workers’ Compensation Death/Survivor Benefits?

The deceased worker’s spouse and children under 18 years old can receive workers’ compensation death benefits. If there are no primary beneficiaries, totally dependent parents may be paid death benefits. If the decedent had no totally dependent parents, the death benefits may be paid to those who were at least 50% dependent on the worker at the time of death, which may include step-children, partially dependent parents, or partially dependent siblings.

The dependent family member has to prove that they are financially dependent and to what extent, while minor children and spouses do not have to prove anything.