Tag Archives: surveillance

Surveillance drones: Coming soon to Nebraska workers’ compensation?

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Last summer Brody posted about the possibility of drone surveillance in workers’ compensation cases in Nebraska. Some new developments lead me to believe that drone surveillance of injured workers in Nebraska may be coming soon.

The first development is the fact that Amazon has patented its delivery drones for aerial surveillance. This technology is intended for home security but it could easily be transitioned for surveilling injured employees. Granted, technology companies tend to oversell their technological innovations, but Amazon plans on starting drone delivery by the end of this year.

I would assume that Amazon drones would be based at their fulfillment centers (warehouses). Amazon recently opened up a warehouse in Nebraska at the intersection of I-80 and Nebraska 370. (Amazon trucks and vans have proliferated in Lincoln recently) That location could make it easy to open up drone surveillance in metropolitan Omaha.

Some states have attempted to legislate against drone surveillance. But I suspect that providers of drone surveillance will argue that state laws regulating drone surveillance would be preempted by federal law. Though the issue hasn’t been addressed by the United States Supreme Court, a majority of jurisdictions have held that the Federal Aviation Act (FAA) preempts state workers’ compensation fee schedules that regulate air ambulance charges.

Could federal regulators step in to prevent drone surveillance in workers’ compensation cases? Even assuming that intervention would survive a court challenge, it would seem unlikely for now. The FAA is an agency of the Department of Transportation. The current Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao previously served as Secretary of Labor in the George W. Bush administration. As Labor Secretary, Chao was not considered to be worker-friendly.

The best way to limit drone surveillance would be through federal legislation. That doesn’t seem likely so long as Elaine Chao’s husband remains Senate Majority Leader. (#draintheswamp) But again, if Amazon is going to be a provider of drone surveillance they are going to have bi-partisan clout to stop efforts limiting drone surveillance. Amazon already provides computing services to the Department of Defense.

But there is a federal election coming next year. If you are concerned about the weakening of workers’ compensation laws and the growing influence of Amazon, support  candidates who share those concerns. (Veiled endorsements by Jon Rehm, do not represent the views of the firm or its other partners or support staff)

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

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Are surveillance drones watching injured workers in Nebraska?

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An eye in the sky watching injured workers?

Nearly 7 years ago, I wrote a blog about employers and insurance companies using surveillance of injured workers to fight paying workers’ compensation benefits in hopes of finding any reason to reduce or deny an injured workers name. Recently, our Plaintiff lawyer colleagues in other states have noticed use of drones for video surveillance of their clients.

I have not personally experienced “drone surveillance” of any of my clients yet, but I am sure the insurance companies will soon find a way to follow suit in Nebraska. In discussions with other workers compensation lawyers throughout the country, other lawyers have that mentioned insurance companies have used drone-surveillance against their clients in multiple states.

Is drone surveillance even legal? Well, that might depend on what state you live in. However, the FAA does have guidelines on the use of drones and restrictions of how those drones may be operated. Some surveillance tactics may run afoul FAA rules.

Also, many states have enacted their own laws to protect citizen’s privacy from drone-use and cameras. Here are a few examples:

Arkansas forbids the use of drones to invade privacy

California forbids the use of drones to invade a person’s privacy and to record anyone without his or her consent.

Texas Code Section 423.002(a) lays out specific situations in which drones with cameras may be used and insurance surveillance is not one of them.

Virginia makes it a criminal misdemeanor if drones are being used to harass if given notice to desist.  

Florida also prohibits a person from using a drone to record someone if such person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, with the presumption being that someone has a reasonable expectation of privacy if they are on their own property. 

While it is good that states are acting to protect privacy from the intrusion of aerial drones, there may be a legal fight over whether federal rules should preempt state laws about drones.

While aerial drones may be used to sniff out workers’ compensation fraud by employees, I doubt they will be effective in stamping out the larger problem of employer and provider fraud in workers’ compensation.

In summary, while I have not seen it in Nebraska yet, it is a possibility that some day drone surveillance will be used here. However, given all of the regulations (along with the cost and conspicuousness of drones) it is doubtful that drone surveillance would be used. If it is used, Nebraska may have to enact some laws similar to these other states with regards to drone use.

 

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in Fraud, Nebraska, surveillance, Workers Compensation and tagged , , , , .

Your employer knows you but does your lawyer?

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Is your employer using surveillance?

Many employers or the workers’ compensation insurance companies will go to great lengths in order to avoid paying for an injured worker.

For example your employer will scour your past medical records for any tid-bit that might show a preexisting injury to give even the slightest reason to deny your claim. In addition, employers and insurance companies will often go beyond simply looking to your past medical records for a reason to deny your claim. In addition, they may look to deny your claim through the use of surveillance. As a result, it is imperative that you know what they might be looking for and also that you let your lawyer know everything (especially the unfavorable stuff) about your claim.

It is not uncommon for adjusters or defense lawyers to hire private investigators to follow you around without your knowledge

Video Surveillance

It is not uncommon for adjusters or defense lawyers to hire private investigators to follow you around without your knowledge. The investigators will hide for hours and take videos of you in public places hoping to catch some footage of you lifting something beyond your restrictions or engaging in an activity that your doctor might see as questionable given your injury. Although perfectly legal, these investigators often take hours and hours of video footage in what would seem like semi-private places or moments: weddings, grocery store, swimming pools, parks, getting in and out of your car, even your own yard. Most courts will even allow such footage as evidence in a workers’ compensation case.

Online Surveillance

Similarly, many employers and insurance companies have taken to the internet in search of another way to deny you workers’ compensation benefits. Blogs, message boards posts, and even social media websites (Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc.) could all be fair game: this includes past or present postings. Continue reading

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in Workers' Comp Q & A, Workers' Comp' Basics, Workers' Compensation and tagged , .