How Long Do DBA Claims Take To Settle

As one of the best Defense Base Act Attorneys in Florida, we often get asked how long do DBA claims take to settle. Unfortunately, there’s no straightforward answer to this question, and the average timeframe will depend on various factors.

To help resolve your confusion, we’ll go over some of the factors that may influence how long do DBA claims take to settle, and provide you with some tips on expediting your claim.

What is the Defense Base Act?

The Defense Base Act is a federal law that provides civilian employees working in American military bases outside the U.S. territory with workers’ compensation. DBA also covers civilians working under contracts with the government on projects regarding national defense or public works.

Public work here refers to making any construction projects or fixed improvements made for public use of the United States or its allies. Furthermore, this also includes operations and contracts regarding national defense. 

Under the DBA, all employees are eligible for disability benefits if their injury occurs during employment, regardless of whether or not their injury occurred during working hours. These benefits include payments for both temporary and permanent total disability and death.

The total disability amount is two-thirds of the average monthly wage with an upper limit of approximately $1.8k per month. With a partial loss of earnings, employees are eligible for a 50% benefit that is based on the difference between post-injury and pre-injury wages. This only covers the period of disability.

When it comes to death benefits, they amount to half of the deceased individual’s average monthly wage, with the addition of two-thirds of the average monthly salary of their dependents. The current upper limit is approximately $2.9k per month.

If the deceased individual was married, the surviving spouse will generally receive twice the amount of the deceased person’s average monthly wage. 

There is no minimum rate under DBA, rather, all rates are annually adjusted for inflation. 

What to do if your initial claim is denied or delayed

In a perfect world, injured workers would receive compensation and medical care right away. Yet, DBA insurance carriers are infamous for delaying, denying, or minimizing DBA claims in an effort to save money. 

For afflicted employees, this can be devastating as they’ll have to survive without their benefits at the time when they need them the most. This is why if you run into any problems in the claims process that lead you to think about how long do DBA claims take to settle, you should hire an attorney. 

An attorney specializing in DBA claims will work diligently on your behalf and help you file your claim documents, obtain medical records, collect witness statements, and prepare the case to convince the insurance carrier you should receive your settlement as soon as possible. 

Here’s what an attorney will help you with:

1. Requesting a conference

If you do not seeing a positive resolution of the claim with the insurer, your attorney can file an LS-7 form which is a request for intervention with the US Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs. This schedules an informal conference, where the governmental agency examiner will issue a recommendation to the insurer. 

The company providing DBA insurance can agree with the recommendation by the examiner or deny them. 

However, you still have legal recourse even if this happens. 

2. Requesting a formal hearing

If the insurer refuses to budge by denying the recommendations from the government,  your attorney can file an LS-18 form which requests for your claim to be moved to the administrative law judge for a formal hearing. 

Sadly, this process will take a while and it may take months for the judge to docket the case. In other words, your hearing will occur after a few months. 

While you’re waiting, your attorney will start the process of discovery, take deposition, and schedule functional capacity evaluations that may bolster your claim. 

What happens after a hearing?

Even if the administrative hearing goes well, it may take the administrative law judge a few extra months to file a written order. 

There is also a possibility that the insurance company may settle the claim with you in the time being in a Defense Base Act mediation. This is a meeting between parties attended by a third-party mediator who will be tasked with settling the claim. 

All in all, if you’re trying to figure out how long do DBA claims to settle, it’s really impossible to make any predictions, and the time frame may vary from a month to over a year in extreme circumstances. 

Sadly, some DBA insurance companies will fight tooth and nail to make injured workers whole again, until they’re taken to court. This is why you'll also need someone on your side, fighting for you.

Hire attorneys at RITE to expedite your Defense Base Act claim

Despite the fact that your control over the claim is limited, an experienced attorney has the skills and expertise to push the claim forward. Sadly, many attorneys are simply unfamiliar with the DBA process or don’t have enough time to handle claims properly and resolve them in a timely fashion. 

Contact the Law Offices of RITE as soon as possible, and you’ll receive a team of experts who have helped many individuals receive favorable Defense Base Act settlements. In fact, one of our main areas of specialty is the Defense Base Act, so by signing up with us, you get to collaborate with the only bonafide DBA experts in North Florida.

We started our law firm because we believed the fine citizens of Florida deserve a law firm that has enough resources to support tough cases, while also being small enough to care for its clients. 

Call (904) 500-RITE (7483), or send an email to info@rite4justice.com and expedite your claim now!

Note: 

The information in this blog post is for reference only and not legal advice. As such, you should not make legal decisions based on the information in this blog post. Moreover, there is no lawyer-client relationship resulting from this blog post, nor should any such relationship be implied. If you need legal counsel, please consult a lawyer licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.