LOCAL RULES

Tennessee incident report requirements

Your Tennessee incident report has 7 rules to meet. ReportDraft puts every one on your checklist and checks your draft before you sign.

  • Accepting every notice of an injury claim
  • Every known or reported injury: to your adjusting entity within 1 business day
  • The panel of physicians within 3 business days of a request for care
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Tennessee employers follow federal OSHA recordkeeping and add the Bureau of Workers' Compensation's rules (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01): every known or reported injury goes to your insurer or adjuster within one business day, and an employee who asks for care gets a panel of physicians within three business days. Here is each Tennessee rule with a link to the official rules, and what a Tennessee incident report should record.

Last reviewed October 15, 2026 against the official sources listed below.

Incident reportTENNESSEE / SAMPLE

Sample notes, 140 words

Company: Northgate Fabrication
Site: 1840 Industrial Pkwy, shipping dock 2
Date: 10/08/2026, about 2:15pm
Injured: Luis Romero, material handler, warehouse crew
Supervisor: Tom Reilly
...
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7 Tennessee rules on your checklist, including accepting every notice of an injury claim.

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Company or organizationNorthgate Fabrication
Site address or location1840 Industrial Pkwy, shipping dock 2
Date of the incidentOct 8, 2026
Employee or person involved (full name)Luis Romero, material handler, warehouse crew
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What Tennessee requires

  • An employer must accept any notice of a workers' compensation claim from any employee or employee's representative who alleges an injuryTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01-.05 (1)
  • Employers report all known or reported accidents or injuries to their adjusting entity within one business day of knowledge of the injury, and may not pay benefits in a way that shifts responsibility away from the adjusting entity or conceals the injury or the paymentsTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01-.05 (2), (3)
  • Once the employer has notice of a work injury and the employee expresses a need for medical care, the employer gives the employee a panel of physicians as T.C.A. 50-6-204 prescribes, as soon as practicable and no later than three business days; an inadequate or late panel can bring a civil penalty whether or not the claim is compensable, and an in-house or onsite provider visit does not replace the panelTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01-.06 (1), (2), (4)
  • For a workplace injury needing emergency care, the employer immediately provides proper emergency assistance (EMTs, an ambulance) and follows the panel rule once the employee is stableTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01-.06 (3)
  • Each employer keeps the Tennessee Workers' Compensation Posting Notice continuously posted in one or more conspicuous places at each worksite, telling employees about the Bureau's services, the duties of employer and employee, and whom to contactTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-01-.12 (2)
  • The adjusting entity files Tennessee's First Report of Work Injury with the Bureau by EDI as soon as possible whenever the injury results in a need for medical treatment, restricted work, inability to work or death, within the time frames of T.C.A. 50-3-702Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-14-.04 (5) (Nov. 2025)
  • Within two business days of the employer's notice of any injury, the adjusting entity mails the employee a Notice of a Reported Injury and the Beginner's Guide to Tennessee Workers' Compensation, and makes its first decision on compensability within 15 calendar days of the noticeTenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0800-02-14-.04 (6), (8)

Accept the notice, report in one business day

Accept any notice of an injury claim from an employee or their representative. Report every known or reported accident or injury to your adjusting entity (your insurer or third-party administrator) within one business day of learning of it. Do not pay for the injury yourself in a way that keeps it from the adjusting entity or hides the injury.

Emergency help and the panel of physicians

If the injury needs emergency care, get emergency help right away. Once the employee is stable, or for any injury where the employee asks for medical care, give the employee a panel of physicians within three business days. Sending the employee to an onsite or in-house provider first does not replace the panel, and a late or incomplete panel can bring a civil penalty even if the claim is not compensable.

What the adjusting entity does next

Your adjusting entity files the First Report of Work Injury with the Bureau electronically when the injury needs medical treatment, restricted work or time off, or causes a death. Within two business days of your report, it mails the employee a Notice of a Reported Injury and the Bureau's Beginner's Guide, and it decides compensability within 15 calendar days.

The posting notice

Keep the Tennessee Workers' Compensation Posting Notice up in one or more conspicuous places at every worksite.

From field notes to a finished Tennessee report

Note when you learned of the injury, when you reported it to your adjusting entity, whether the employee asked for care, and when you gave the panel. ReportDraft writes the incident up and keeps fields for each of those dates.

Common mistakes

  • Waiting more than one business day to tell the adjusting entity.
  • Sending the employee to the in-house clinic instead of giving a panel.
  • Giving the panel after three business days.
  • Paying a small medical bill directly to keep the claim off the books.
  • No posting notice at a second worksite.

Sources

Last reviewed October 15, 2026. Next review due January 15, 2027. This page explains published rules to help you write your report. It is not legal advice; the official text linked above governs.