Sacramento Construction Accident Lawyer: Safety Violations
There is no doubt that the construction industry has come a long way in making job sites safer over the past four decades. Part of this is due to the federal, state, and local regulations that set high safety standards with which employers must comply. These regulations have helped reduce the incidents of death and injury significantly, although construction sites remain one of the most dangerous types of workplaces. Employees and visitors alike are hurt every day on construction sites due to faulty equipment or human error.
Victims who have suffered injuries on a construction site–whether as employees or visitors–have the right to collect compensation for these injuries. Most construction accident injuries involving employees are covered under workers’ compensation policies, but there are cases in which there is also liability for another party and the victim may have the right to file a personal injury claim as well.
Sacramento construction accident injury attorneys at Demas Law Group, P.C., are ready to evaluate your injury case and help you determine if you are entitled to compensation from the employer or another party. Demas Law Group, P.C., attorneys will work hard to ensure that you receive the full amount of compensation to which you are entitled.
Construction Site Injuries FAQ’s
Q. What Should I Do If I’ve Been Injured On A Construction Site?
Ans: Receiving immediate and adequate medical treatment should be your top priority. Other steps we would advise you to take include:
- Reporting the injury to your employer or construction site supervisor
- Documenting the accident by taking pictures, notes, and statements from witnesses.
- If you are an employee, consulting with a workers’ compensation attorney and a personal injury attorney to get help in determining liability and legal options.
- If you were a bystander, consulting with a personal injury attorney.
Q. Who Can Be Held Liable In A Sacramento Construction Accident?
Ans: The commercial and residential construction industry is complex, comprised of a vast array of general contractors, sub-contractors and many other entities. Other potential liable parties include property owners, architects, engineers, designers, construction managers, manufacturers of equipment, suppliers of material and insurance companies.
Q. What Are Some Of The Major Differences Between A Workers Compensation Claim And A Personal Injury Lawsuit?
Ans: One of the primary differences concerns who is found at fault for the accident. If your injury was caused solely by your company or a coworker, you will be covered by Workers Compensation, but cannot file a personal injury lawsuit. If another company or one of its employees caused your accident, you can file a personal injury lawsuit against that third-party. You can also claim Workers Compensation. In a Workers Compensation case, if the parties can’t agree on a settlement amount, a Workers Compensation board makes the decision and awards are fairly limited. In a personal injury lawsuit, if the parties can’t agree on a settlement, a jury makes the decision, and juries can be highly unpredictable. That’s why many parties will settle before letting a personal injury lawsuit go to trial.
In a Workers Compensation case, compensation is limited to medical expenses, disability and rehabilitation services. In a personal injury lawsuit, those damages are also considered, as well as other physical and mental injury, such as pain and suffering. Legally, you are entitled to be made whole again. That’s why personal injury awards are often higher than Workers Compensation claims.
Q. What Type Of Lawyer Do I Need For An Injury On A Sacramento Work Site?
Ans: Workers Compensation claims and personal injury lawsuits are two separate areas of law, and require experienced attorneys. Before you file a Workers Compensation claim, consider contacting an experienced Workers Compensation attorney. We’d be happy to refer you to an experienced Workers Compensation attorney in the greater Sacramento area. Demas Law Group, P.C., specializes in personal injury law.
If you have been injured on a job site by a third-party, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit. Please contact one of our experienced Sacramento construction accident attorneys as soon as possible.
Q. Can I Collect Workers Compensation And File A Personal Injury Lawsuit At The Same Time?
Ans: Yes, if you’ve been injured on your employer’s work site by a third party, you may collect Workers Compensation benefits and file a personal injury lawsuit at the same time.
Q. Where Can I Obtain More Information On Filing A Third Party Claim For My Sacramento Construction Accident?
Ans: Please contact one of our attorneys free of charge or check our General FAQs for answers to these and other questions:
- What can I be compensated for in a construction accident personal injury lawsuit (third party suit)?
- What is my case worth?
- How long do I have to file a personal injury lawsuit after a construction accident?
- How much does it cost to hire one of your Sacramento construction accident attorneys?
Q. Where Can I Get More Construction Accident Resources And Information?
Ans: The Occupation Safety and Health Administration keeps up-to-date statistics on workplace injuries. http://www.osha.gov/oshstats/commonstats.html
The Bureau of Labor Statistics construction industry page. http://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag23.htm
A Brief History of Workers Compensation. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1888620/
Construction Site Injuries – A Grim Picture
The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that more than two people per day (on average) are killed at construction sites across the nation, and another 3.7 percent of construction employees are injured each year. Of all industries, only private trucking records more deaths annually.
Accidents on construction job sites often fall into what is known as “the Big Four,” which includes trips & falls, electrocution, being struck by an object, and heavy machinery accidents. These accidents most often involve workers on the job site, but innocent bystanders are sometimes injured or even killed in construction accidents.
The liability for a construction site accident depends in part on the victim’s identity. If the victim is an employee, the incident may be handled by workers’ compensation coverage. However, there may also be third-party claims to be addressed, so it is important for any employee who has been injured on the job site to speak to a Sacramento workers’ comp lawyer in order to avoid missing possible compensation.
If the victim is a bystander, normal personal injury law applies, and the person or company responsible for the damage may be liable to pay compensation to the victim.
Workers’ Comp vs Personal Injury
Workers’ compensation is a form of insurance coverage that employers are required to carry for their workers. This compulsory insurance has its roots in the workers’ rights movements of the early 1900s. In the old days, an employee who was injured on the job often could not pay for medical treatment; however, workers’ rights groups petitioned until employers were required by law to pay for insurance coverage to protect their employees.
Workers’ compensation insurance is fully paid for by the employer. As long as an injury is covered by workers’ compensation, you are not permitted to sue the employer for on-the-job accidents. This is true even if the employer or an employee directly caused the accident.
While workers’ compensation has helped millions of injured employees get the healthcare treatments they need, the amount of the settlement is often not enough to fully compensate the worker for the total cost of his or her injuries. If there is a dispute between the employee and the insurance company about the amount of the claim, the case is heard by a Workers’ Compensation Board and not by a civil jury.
Sometimes, worker’s compensation is your only alternative for compensation in Sacramento. If you were injured by another employee, you will usually file a worker’s compensation claim rather than a personal injury claim. However, if you work for a company but are injured by a third party, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit against the responsible party, even if the accident occurred at work. Depending on the circumstances, this personal injury claim may be granted instead of or even in addition to a workers’ compensation claim.
“Third parties” simply means people or companies other than your employer. For example, a subcontractor working on a job site may be considered a third party, as well as the owners of a piece of property, an architect or architectural firm, an engineer or engineering firm, equipment manufacturers, and companies that provide construction supplies.
In order to collect compensation from a third party, you must be able to prove that the party was at least partially at fault through negligence. In California, even companies or individuals who are partially at fault for an accident may be sued by an injured worker.
The benefit in filing a third-party claim is that you are more likely to collect the full compensation of damages for your injuries. Personal injury lawsuits do not limit compensation in the same way as worker’s compensation claims. In a third-party claim, workers may be able to recover lost wages, payments for disabilities or lessening of earning capacities, medical bills, loss of consortium with loved ones, and pain and suffering.
We are ready to help you recover compensation for your Sacramento workplace injury accident. Our law firm has a strong history of fighting for the rights of our clients to collect monetary compensation for all types of injuries and damages. If you were told that you are not entitled to collect more than your workers’ compensation allows, contact us now. We will review the facts about your construction accident injuries and the amount of compensation to which you may be entitled.
Contact a Construction Accident Attorney in Sacramento Today
One Demas Law Group, P.C., the client was seriously injured by a forklift driven by an employee of another company. Demas Law Group, P.C., was able to help this injured employee win a $1 million settlement, which represented the insurance company limits on the policy.
This literature may be considered attorney advertising or an offer of professional services, according to rule 1-400 Rules of Professional Conduct by the State Bar of California. The information does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your potential legal matter.
