Death benefits are benefits that are paid to your beneficiary in the event that you are killed at work, or paid to you if your loved one is killed while working. Many companies provide a death benefit that is above and beyond the optional life insurance you may elect when you select optional benefits. This death benefit will be paid to a beneficiary of your choice and does not require you to pay an additional premium for it. You typically do not need to be enrolled in an employee health or life insurance plan in order to receive death benefits. How Are Death Benefits Determined? If a death occurs as a result of a single incident, then it is relatively easy to determine when death benefits should be paid. If the death resulted from long-term exposure to a hazardous workplace environment, then it may be much more difficult for your beneficiary to collect death benefits from the company and an attorney can help your family. If you have a degenerative disease caused by a workplace hazard, an attorney can help you or your beneficiary receive the death benefits he or she deserves. If your spouse dies at work, you might be entitled to the death benefits. An employee will typically select his or her sole or split beneficiaries at the time of hire. How to Receive Help For Your Family Deaths due to long-term exposure to hazardous materials can be hard cases to prove. Having the assistance of an attorney who has experience collecting death benefits can be very beneficial. An attorney may be able to help you negotiate with the company and file a suit if necessary in order to collect benefits on behalf of a loved one. Here's a little more information on how to start the workers' compensation filing process.
