If You Pass Out At Work Is It Workers Comp?

Many Illinois workers’ compensation laws are pretty black and white.  If you are traveling for your job and get injured in a car accident it’s a case. If you are drunk at work and fall down and hit your head, it’s not a case.  There are plenty of other examples that are pretty clear cut in determining if you have a case or not.

On the other hand, there are plenty of gray areas when it comes to job injuries in Illinois.  One such area is if you pass out at work.

Many people believe that if you are hurt while at your job that it’s a work comp claim.  That alone is not enough.  You have to show that something about the job, other than just being there, contributed to you getting hurt.

In general, if you faint while working and get hurt, we’d want to know why that happened.  If it was too hot, that would likely be a case. If you have a history of fainting, it most likely wouldn’t be a case.  If you were just standing and the next thing you know you were on the ground, it’s probably not a case.  If you are six feet off the ground on a ladder and faint, you’d probably have a good case if you were injured.

So why does someone who is on a ladder or scaffold or other elevated platform have a case if they faint and fall to the ground?  The answer is that being up high puts them at an increased risk of injury.  Their job duties make it more likely they will get hurt. If you faint in your chair, nothing is going to likely happen to you. On the other hand, if you pass out from ten feet in the air and can’t break your fall, it’s very likely you will suffer a serious injury.

When it comes to gray areas like this, facts matter. Fumes might make you fall over and that could be a case. Passing out from stress is probably not a claim.

Bottom line is that if you do faint at work, it might be a case and it might not be.  You can bet that if you do get hurt that way the insurance company will look to deny it.  Them denying it does not mean you don’t have a case.  It’s just standard practice.  We are happy to talk to you for free to see if you have a good case or not and help you make a decision from there.