There are several factors that determine how long you have to file a workers’ compensation if no benefits have been paid.
Notice
Notice is required when you believe, or you have been told by doctors, that you have a work related injury. To receive Minnesota worker’s compensation benefits, you must show you provided notice of the injury to the employer, or that the employer had actual knowledge of the injury, within 180 days as allowed under Minnesota Statute §176.141. This does not require that you fill out any paperwork or a First Report of Injury, but instead that you provide notice either verbally or in written form.
If notice was not given timely, the claim may be barred.
First Report of Injury
If any benefits have been paid in the past, then the injured worker would be able to bring a claim at any time during the life of the claim. This means that an injured worker can bring a claim at any time for workers’ compensation benefits if those benefits continue to remain open.
If no benefits have been paid, then the question turns as to whether a First Report of Injury has ever been filed with the Department of Labor and Industry. If a First Report of Injury has been filed, then the injured worker would have three years from the date of injury to bring a claim. If the claim is not brought within those three years, then the injured worker would be forever barred from bringing a claim.
If a First Report of Injury has NOT been filed, then the injured worker would have six years from the date of injury to bring a claim.
