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6:6 min
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27 Feb 2026
Video Summary
Voluntarily resigning during an active workers’ compensation claim is generally discouraged because it can severely undermine your legal leverage and financial stability. If an employer is accommodating your medical restrictions and you choose to leave, insurance carriers will likely deny disability benefits, arguing that you have unjustifiably refused suitable work. This decision often leads to a lengthy litigation process that can take a year or more to resolve, leaving the injured worker without any steady income. Furthermore, quitting transfers power to the insurance company, as they no longer face the ongoing cost of weekly checks while your case remains open. Legal experienced suggest that while workplace frustrations are common, it is vital to consult an attorney to address these challenges rather than quitting. Ultimately, walking away from a job typically reduces the settlement value of a claim and adds unnecessary layers of complexity to the recovery process.
Transcription of the Video
(Clark Speaks): I’m Clark Speaks, the catastrophic injury lawyer. Welcome to The Verdict. I’m here with Brian Grosser. Brian, during the pendency of a workers’ compensation claim, sometimes people feel frustrated. They can’t choose their own doctor, they feel frustrated with delays, and they feel frustrated with lots of different things during the process. Sometimes they just want to quit and wash their hands of the whole thing. Is that a good idea? Should they quit?
(Brian Grosser): In terms of the impact on your case, I would say no, that’s not a good idea. Here is why: if you were to quit during the pendency of your claim and the employer was accommodating your restrictions, the insurance carrier is not going to start paying you. They are going to argue that you unjustifiably refused suitable employment, meaning that the employer was accommodating the restrictions and you chose to quit on your own. Because that was a voluntary decision on your end, it’s not going to trigger the insurance carrier paying you benefits at that point.
(Brian): You jeopardize your income. Unless you can find a job somewhere else, you receive nothing coming in. You are injured, you receive nothing from the employer, and you receive nothing from the insurance carrier. They are not going to voluntarily pay you because you voluntarily quit. If you are on restrictions, we can still make an argument that you are disabled, but you’re going to have to start actively looking for work elsewhere. We have to show that after a period of time—likely at least a couple months—that you haven’t been able to locate work because of your restrictions. We can still make that argument, but that takes time.
(Brian): The insurance carrier is not going to voluntarily agree to start your benefits just because you haven’t found a job in three months. They’re going to make us file paperwork in order to have the Industrial Commission tell us that you’re owed the money. You could file a Form 23, which is a telephonic hearing that takes about 30 days, but they will likely punt it to a full evidentiary hearing. All clients need to be cognizant of the timeframe for litigation. If you’re not receiving payment, litigation goes for 9 to 12 months. You’re not going to receive a decision until about a year after you file your hearing request.
(Brian): If you quit your job and the insurance carrier is not willing to start your benefits, you might go a year without receiving any type of payment. It’s a big risk. When you talk about the impact on the value of your claim, one of the larger leverage points you have is receiving weekly checks. You are costing that carrier every week that this claim stays open. If they aren’t paying you any money, they know they won’t have to pay you for at least a year, and they will wait you out because this is a weakness for you. You don’t have the leverage; the leverage is on their side.
(Clark): So it sounds like by quitting your job, you’re adding a layer of complexity, delaying the process, and also reducing the value of your claim.
(Brian): Absolutely. The flow of benefits and money to you from the insurance company provides the leverage you need to settle your case. They want to shut that valve off as quick as they can by sending you back to work, saying you don’t need surgery, or having you quit. We have seen situations where employers put people in night shifts or uncomfortable positions in the hopes that they might quit. There are things we can do to address those tactics, and it is usually better for the person to work through those challenges with their attorney rather than just walking out.
(Brian): Quitting is almost inevitably going to be detrimental to your case value because it is not going to lead to a voluntary payment from the carrier. You’re going to have to litigate that to start those benefits. Sometimes there are more important things than money, such as your mental or physical health, but you need to consult with your attorney before you make this decision because it can negatively impact your claim.