Getting hurt on the job in Maine is stressful, and the first few days matter more than people realize. Maine's workers' compensation system pays for medical care and replaces part of your lost wages when a work-related injury or illness keeps you out of work — but only if you meet some early deadlines. Here's what to do first, and how the rest of the process works.
What to Do First
Do this right away after any workplace injury in Maine:
Get medical care. If it's an emergency, go to the ER or call 911. For non-emergency injuries, tell whoever treats you that this is a work injury.
Tell your employer — in writing if you can. For injuries on or after January 1, 2020, Maine law requires notice of the injury to your employer within 60 days of the date of injury (39-A M.R.S. §301). Older injuries follow different windows: 30 days for injuries from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2019, and 90 days for injuries before 2013. Report it the same day if at all possible. Notice can be given to your employer, to a corporate official if your employer is a corporation, to an employee your employer has designated to receive accident reports, to your general superintendent or the supervisor in charge of the work, or to any doctor, nurse or other emergency medical personnel employed by your employer to treat employee injuries and on duty at the work site. Note how narrow that last channel is: telling an offsite clinic your employer sends people to — even the company's regular occupational-health provider — is not by itself statutory notice under §301. Tell the employer too.
Make sure a First Report of Injury is filed. Once your employer has notice or knowledge of an injury that costs you a day's work, the employer must report it to the Workers' Compensation Board within 7 days (39-A M.R.S. §303). After that, the employer or its insurer must either begin paying your lost-time benefits within 14 days or send you and the Board a written Notice of Controversy explaining why the claim is disputed.
Keep copies of everything — medical notes, the injury report, and any letters from your employer or its insurer.
Flag this now: the 60-day notice deadline is separate from — and much shorter than — the deadline to formally file a claim (below). Report the injury immediately, and don't rely on an exception when you can simply give notice on time.
If You Are Already Past the Notice Deadline, Read This Before You Give Up
A late or imperfect notice does not automatically end your claim. Maine has a separate statute, 39-A M.R.S. §302, that spells out several ways a worker can still proceed:
Your employer already knew. The statute says plainly that "want of notice is not a bar to proceedings under this Act if it is shown that the employer or the employer's agent had knowledge of the injury." If your supervisor saw it happen, or you told a manager, or the employer otherwise knew about the injury, the missed notice deadline is not the end of the road.
An inaccurate notice usually still counts. A notice can't be thrown out for an inaccuracy in stating the required facts unless it is shown both that you intended to mislead and that the employer was in fact misled. Getting a detail wrong is not fatal.
Incapacity and mistake of fact pause the clock. Time during which you were unable to give notice because of physical or mental incapacity — or during which you failed to give notice on account of a mistake of fact — is not counted against the deadline.
Death. If the employee dies within the notice period, an additional 3 months is allowed for giving notice.
These are real, statutory protections. If you're past the deadline but one of them may fit your situation, contact the Board or a Worker Advocate (below) before you assume your claim is dead.
Maine's Workers' Compensation Agency
Maine's system is run by the Maine Workers' Compensation Board, the state agency that administers claims, resolves disputes, and enforces the workers' compensation law (Title 39-A of the Maine Revised Statutes). Its official website is maine.gov/wcb, and its resources for injured workers are at maine.gov/wcb/employees.html. The Board's central office in Augusta can be reached at (888) 801-9087 (toll free) or (207) 287-3751; TTY users can call through Maine Relay 711.
Who Is Covered in Maine
Maine's coverage requirement is broad. Under 39-A M.R.S. §401, every private employer with employees — including an independent contractor who hires and pays employees — must secure the payment of compensation, either by buying a workers' compensation policy or by self-insuring. There is no minimum employee count that lets a private employer with employees skip coverage entirely. State and local governmental employers must secure coverage as well.
Some narrow exceptions and waivers exist, including:
Domestic service in a private home.
Certain seasonal or casual agricultural and aquacultural laborers, where the employer instead maintains a qualifying employer's-liability insurance policy and meets the statute's limits on the number of laborers and hours worked.
An owner of at least 20% of a corporation's outstanding voting stock may waive coverage for themselves in a written statement, if the Board finds the waiver was not a condition of employment.
Certain family members (parent, spouse, domestic partner, or child) of a sole proprietor, partner, or LLC member employed by that business may similarly waive coverage in writing, subject to Board approval.
These exceptions are technical, and the employer carries the burden of proving one applies. If you're unsure whether you're covered, ask the Board rather than assuming you aren't.
Maine is not a monopolistic-fund state. Employers buy coverage on the private insurance market or qualify to self-insure with the approval of Maine's Superintendent of Insurance (39-A M.R.S. §403). There is no single state fund you're required to file against.
The Deadline to File a Claim
This is the deadline that can end a claim for good. Under 39-A M.R.S. §306, a petition for workers' compensation benefits is generally barred unless it is filed within 2 years after the date of injury, or within 2 years after your employer files the required first report of injury — whichever is later.
There are important extensions:
If benefits have actually been paid on your claim, the deadline to file a petition extends to 6 years from the date of the most recent payment.
If the injury was established by a Board decree, report, or agreement of the parties without benefits being paid, the deadline is 6 years from that decree, report, or agreement.
Death claims: generally within 1 year after the death or 2 years from the date of injury, whichever is later, but no later than 6 years from the date of the last payment.
The statute also excludes periods when the employee is unable to file due to physical or mental incapacity, and allows for late filing based on a mistake of fact as to the cause or nature of the injury.
Because these rules have moving parts, don't calculate your own deadline from memory — contact the Board or a Worker Advocate (below) to confirm where you stand.
Occupational Illness: Your Clock May Start Much Later Than You Think
If your claim is for an occupational disease — an illness caused by exposure at work, such as an asbestos-related disease, work-related hearing loss, or a condition that develops slowly from repeated exposure — the deadlines above run from a different date. This matters enormously, because a worker who counts from the day of exposure can wrongly conclude they are years too late.
Under Maine's Occupational Disease Law (39-A M.R.S. ch. 15), the "date of injury" is the date of incapacity: the date you become incapacitated by the disease from performing your work in the last occupation in which you were injuriously exposed to the hazards of that disease (39-A M.R.S. §606). Section 607 then applies the ordinary notice, claim, and petition rules of §§301–307 using that date of incapacity in place of the date of injury.
In plain terms: for a latent disease, the 60-day notice clock and the 2-year filing clock generally do not start on the day you were exposed years ago. They start when the disease incapacitates you from that work. If you have been told — or assumed — that an old exposure is too old to claim, get that checked before you walk away from it.
Medical Care: Who Picks Your Doctor
In Maine, your employer initially has the right to select your health care provider (39-A M.R.S. §206). If your employer designates a provider, you generally must treat with that provider for the first 10 days of treatment.
After those 10 days, you may choose a different provider by notifying your employer of the change. After that, you generally cannot change providers more than once without approval from your employer or the Board — and once you begin treating with a specialist, you generally can't switch to a different specialist in the same specialty without prior approval either. Your employer can challenge your choice of provider, and that dispute goes through the Board's mediation and hearing process.
Wage Replacement Benefits
For injuries on or after January 1, 2013, benefits for total incapacity are two-thirds (2/3) of your gross average weekly wage, subject to a state maximum (39-A M.R.S. §212). Benefits for partial incapacity are two-thirds of the difference, due to the injury, between what you earned before the injury and what you're able to earn after it (39-A M.R.S. §213).
Waiting period: compensation for incapacity is not payable for the first 7 days of incapacity. But if your incapacity continues for more than 14 days, compensation is allowed from the date of incapacity — so that first week gets paid retroactively (39-A M.R.S. §204).
Firefighters are an exception. The same statute provides that firefighters must receive compensation from the date of incapacity — there is no 7-day waiting period for them, and they do not have to stay out more than 14 days to be paid for that first week. If you are a firefighter and your first week was withheld as a waiting period, raise it.
Maine sets a maximum weekly benefit that adjusts annually and is tied to the state average weekly wage; it is not a fixed figure that stays the same year to year. Ask the Board or your employer's insurer for the current-year maximum rather than relying on a number you find elsewhere.
Longer-Term and Permanent Disability
For injuries on or after January 1, 2020, partial-incapacity benefits generally run for a maximum of 624 weeks, after which benefits may be extended in cases of extreme financial hardship. Durational limits, permanent impairment thresholds, and benefits for permanent losses depend heavily on your exact date of injury and on medical findings in your case. Ask the Board or a Worker Advocate how the rules apply to your specific claim rather than assuming a number you read applies to you.
If Your Claim Is Denied
If the insurer disputes your claim (by filing a Notice of Controversy) or you disagree with a decision about your benefits, Maine resolves disputes through a structured process before it becomes a courtroom fight:
Troubleshooter — a Board Troubleshooter contacts you and tries to resolve the disagreement informally.
Mediation — if that doesn't resolve it, the case goes to mediation with a Board mediator.
Formal hearing — unresolved disputes go to a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge, who issues a written decision.
Flag this deadline: to appeal an Administrative Law Judge's decision, you must file a Notice of Intent to Appeal (Form WCB-240) with the Board's Appellate Division within 20 days after you receive notice of the filing of the decision, along with a copy of the decision (39-A M.R.S. §321-B). The Board explains how to do this without a lawyer on its Appellate Division filing page. A party who disagrees with the Appellate Division may then seek review by the Maine Law Court, which also runs on a 20-day clock (39-A M.R.S. §322). Miss these windows and you generally lose the right to appeal.
Where to Get Free Help in Maine
Worker Advocate Program — a Workers' Compensation Board program providing free legal representation to injured workers who qualify: the injury occurred on or after January 1, 1993, you participated in the Board's troubleshooter program, the dispute wasn't informally resolved, and you have not hired private counsel. Advocates attend mediations and hearings and negotiate on your behalf. There are five advocate offices around the state:
This article is general legal information about Maine law, not legal advice for your specific situation. Deadlines and details can turn on facts unique to your claim — confirm them with the Workers' Compensation Board.
Frequently asked questions
How soon do I have to report a work injury to my employer in Maine?
For injuries on or after January 1, 2020, within 60 days of the date of injury under 39-A M.R.S. §301. (Injuries from 2013 through 2019 had a 30-day window, and pre-2013 injuries had 90 days.) Report it immediately if you can - this deadline is separate from the longer deadline to file a formal claim with the Workers' Compensation Board.
What if I missed the 60-day notice deadline in Maine?
Don't assume your claim is over. Under 39-A M.R.S. §302, want of notice is not a bar to proceedings if the employer or the employer's agent had knowledge of the injury - so if your supervisor saw it happen or a manager was told, a late notice may not sink the claim. The statute also excludes time when you were unable to give notice due to physical or mental incapacity or failed to do so because of a mistake of fact, allows 3 extra months if the employee dies within the period, and says an inaccurate notice is still valid unless you intended to mislead AND the employer was in fact misled. Contact the Board or a Worker Advocate before giving up.
When does the clock start for a work-related illness or occupational disease in Maine?
Not on the date of exposure. Under Maine's Occupational Disease Law, the date of injury is the date of INCAPACITY - the date you become incapacitated by the disease from doing your work in the last occupation where you were injuriously exposed (39-A M.R.S. §606). Section 607 applies the ordinary notice and filing rules of §§301-307 using that date of incapacity. So a latent disease from an old exposure, like asbestos illness or work-related hearing loss, may still be timely even though the exposure was years ago.
Who picks my doctor after a work injury in Maine?
Your employer initially has the right to select the health care provider, and you generally must treat with that provider for the first 10 days. After 10 days you may choose a different provider by notifying your employer, but you generally cannot change providers more than once without approval from your employer or the Board.
How long do I have to file a workers' compensation claim in Maine?
Generally 2 years from the date of injury or 2 years from the date your employer files the required first report of injury, whichever is later. If benefits have been paid on the claim, the deadline extends to 6 years from the most recent payment. Other rules apply to death claims and to workers who couldn't file due to incapacity or a mistake of fact.
What happens if my employer's insurer denies my Maine workers' comp claim?
The insurer files a Notice of Controversy. Your case then goes to a Board Troubleshooter for informal resolution, then to mediation, and finally to a formal hearing before an Administrative Law Judge. If you disagree with that decision, you must file a Notice of Intent to Appeal (Form WCB-240) with the Board's Appellate Division within 20 days after receiving notice of the decision.
Is Maine a monopolistic workers' compensation state?
No. Maine employers secure coverage by purchasing a workers' compensation policy on the private market or by qualifying to self-insure with the approval of Maine's Superintendent of Insurance under 39-A M.R.S. §403. There is no single state fund you must file against.
Is there a waiting period before Maine wage-replacement benefits start?
Yes, for most workers. Compensation for incapacity is not payable for the first 7 days of incapacity, but if your incapacity continues for more than 14 days, compensation is allowed from the date of incapacity, so that first week is paid retroactively. Firefighters are an express exception under 39-A M.R.S. §204: they must receive compensation from the date of incapacity, with no 7-day waiting period.
Where can I get free help with a Maine workers' comp claim?
The Workers' Compensation Board's Worker Advocate Program provides free legal representation to injured workers who qualify. There are five offices: Augusta (1-888-645-2266), Bangor (1-888-594-4556), Caribou (1-888-257-7892), Lewiston (1-888-828-5460), and Portland (1-888-258-0853). You generally qualify if the injury occurred on or after January 1, 1993, you went through the Board's troubleshooter program, the dispute wasn't informally resolved, and you have not hired private counsel.
This article is general legal information, not legal advice, and may not reflect the most current law or the law in your jurisdiction. Laws vary by state and change over time. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney.
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