Death Benefits, Survivor Benefits & Burial Benefits Under The Illinois Workers Compensation System.
Death benefits are workers compensation benefits for surviving family members (i.e., primary beneficiaries such as spouse and children under the age of 18) of an employee who is killed or dies in an accident at work. If there are no totally dependent parents, death benefits may be paid to persons who were at least 50% dependent on the employee at the time of the employee’s death.
When an employee dies in an accident at work, the worker’s family members and dependents not only have to cope with the loss of their loved one, but are faced with, among other things, possible funeral and burial costs, medical bills for emergency treatment of the decedent, and lost income and wages.
Death benefits are intended to help surviving family members and dependents of the deceased employee and include:
- Burial benefits
- Survivor benefits
Burial benefits for injuries resulting in death occurring after February 1, 2006 are $8000. Survivor benefits are generally 2/3 of the deceased employee’s gross average weekly wage during the 52 weeks before the injury, subject to certain minimums and maximums. In certain workers compensation cases, survivor benefits may be increased with cost-of-living adjustments. If the surviving spouse of the deceased employee remarries and there are no eligible children at the time of remarriage, the spouse loses his or her right to further death benefits, except that he or she will be entitled to a final lump sum payment equal to two years of compensation.
If you are a primary beneficiary of an employee who died in an accident at work in Illinois, a workers compensation death benefits attorney or workers comp lawyer may be able to help you and your family recover death benefits, including burial benefits and survivor benefits.
If You Are A Surviving Family Member of An Employee Who Was Injured At Work, You May Be Entitled To Workers Compensation Death Benefits. Contact A Workers Compensation Lawyer.
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