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    File a Workers' Compensation Claim Petition

    File a petition to establish that an employee is entitled to benefits for a disputed work injury.

    File a claim petition

    File a Workers' Compensation Claim Petition

    A workers' compensation claim petition is filed by the injured worker with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry's Workers' Compensation Office of Adjudication. The petition should include details about the injury, its date, and information on wages and lost income. Ensure you follow instructions on the Bureau's website, confirming proper notice to your employer. Use the Workers' Compensation Automated and Integrated System (WCAIS), an accessible online tool available 24/7, to file the petition.

     

    Petition Filing and Hearing Process

    For important information on the petition filing and hearing process, click here.

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    Frequently Asked Questions

    Use this guide to help you understand the Workers' Compensation claim process.

    If an employee sustains a job injury or a work-related illness, the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act provides for your medical expenses and/or wage-loss compensation benefits until you're able to go back to work. Additionally, death benefits for work-related deaths are paid to your dependent survivors.

    Benefits are paid by private insurance companies (also includes third-party administrators), the State Workers' Insurance Fund (a state-run workers' compensation insurance carrier), or self-insured employers.

    A workers' compensation claim petition is filed by the injured worker with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry's Bureau of Workers' Compensation. The petition should include details about the injury, its date, and information on wages and lost income. Ensure you follow instructions on the Bureau's website, confirming proper notice to your employer. Use the Workers' Compensation Automated and Integrated System (WCAIS), an accessible online tool available 24/7, to file the petition.

    File a claim petition immediately after receiving a rejection from your employer's insurance company. If there is no response, you can file 21 days after reporting the work injury. Quick filing is crucial to securing the owed money, as it expedites the process of scheduling a hearing with a judge to decide your case.

    Yes, you can file a claim petition on your own, but the assistance of a lawyer may be beneficial to oversee the process and minimize errors or omissions. Mistakes in the submission can lead to denials based on technicalities. A lawyer can help ensure your case reaches a hearing.

    During the hearing, you'll need to provide testimony about the injury, prior medical issues, relevant facts, and medical evidence. 

    Contact us

    Helpline voice telephone numbers:toll free in Pennsylvania: 800-482-2383 local and outside Pennsylvania: 717-772-4447 Hearing impaired individuals, or those who have difficulty speaking, may contact the PA Department of Labor & Industry’s Bureau of Workers’ Compensation by dialing 7-1-1 and providing the relay service with the bureau’s phone number 717-772-4447.

    Call us

    For general questions, you can call BWC. Hearing impaired individuals can contact BWC by dialing 7-1-1 and providing the relay service with BWC's phone number.

    Call BWC

    By mail

    You can send questions or paper applications to: Workers’ Compensation Office of Adjudication 1010 N. Seventh St, Suite 202 Harrisburg, PA, 17102

    Email us

    You can email questions to BWC.

    Email BWC