Fort Worth Construction Accident Attorneys

Fort Worth Construction Accident LAwsuit

The construction industry is one of the most dangerous and deadly industries in America. Every year, hundreds of people die from injuries they sustain on construction sites. Falls from a height, electrocution, being struck by an object, and being caught between objects account for the industry’s “fatal four” incidents. Anyone who enters a construction zone faces a certain level of risk. Those who work in construction must take extreme care to avoid dangerous and deadly situations. Unfortunately, even those who use extreme caution cannot always avoid the mistakes of others. Human error often causes or contributes to serious and deadly construction accidents. At The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert, we handle all construction accident claims including workers’ compensation support and lawsuits against employers and third parties. While we most commonly represent workers who spend their days around construction sites, we have also represented site visitors, inspectors, and passersby who suffer injuries from construction-related accidents. If you or someone you know has suffered a serious injury in a construction accident, talk to our team as soon as possible to learn more about your options for recovery.

Why Choose Our Firm?

When you suffer injuries in a construction accident as an employee or a passerby, you need an attorney who can help you recover the maximum amount of compensation possible for your damages.

The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert, P.C. has more than a decade of experience handling personal injury claims in Texas.
Aaron A. Herbert is one of 2% of Texas attorneys to achieve board certification in personal injury law, offering clients an unmatched level of experience in this area of law.
We work to maximize our clients’ recoveries by exploring all available channels of compensation in their claims.
We take every case on a contingency fee basis, ensuring you pay nothing in legal fees unless we win your case.

Fort Worth Construction Injury Lawsuit

Hiring the right attorney for your construction accident claim can make a significant difference in your recovery. The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert has the experience, skill, and resources necessary to handle the toughest construction accident lawsuits.

Construction Accident Claims We Handle

The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert, P.C. has extensive experience with a wide variety of construction accident claims involving many types of injuries.

If workplace negligence or ineffective safety equipment causes severe burns, the victim can experience tremendous physical and psychological pain and face a long recovery.
Head injury. Any kind of head injury can have unpredictable consequences, including long-term pain from persistent headaches, migraines, nerve pain in the head and back, and neurological trauma.
Falling materials. Falling objects can cause severe brain trauma, potentially leading to permanent disability or even death.
If an explosion occurs on a construction site, anyone caught in the blast could suffer burn injuries or impact injuries from concussive force and debris. These incidents may also permanently damage hearing and vision.
Spinal injury. Any kind of spinal injury can have permanent effects, including partial or total paralysis, loss of range of motion, or diminished physical sensations in the affected areas.
Falls are the leading cause of workplace fatalities and missed days from work. Falls can occur from unstable ladders and scaffolds, high winds on an unfinished construction site, defective safety equipment, or improper workplace conduct.
Chemical exposure. Some chemicals used in construction can cause severe burning or toxic reactions in workers exposed to them.
Equipment accidents. Faulty equipment or mishandling of construction equipment can easily cause a severe construction injury, potentially leading to a product liability claim against a defective equipment manufacturer or a liability claim against another party for improper use of equipment.
Severe puncture wounds and lacerations. Many construction tools can cause severe injuries that result in massive blood loss, potentially jeopardizing the victim’s life without immediate medical treatment.

Workers’ Compensation and Construction Accidents

In Texas, private employers can carry workers’ compensation insurance to lower their civil liability in the event of an accident, or they can opt out of the state-regulated workers’ compensation program. Those who do provide benefits must provide fair compensation for those who suffer on-the-job injuries, regardless of fault in most cases. Under workers’ compensation programs, you may qualify for medical support as well as lost income as you recover from a job-related injury. Like other insurance programs, insurers may not always grant full benefits to injured workers. Benefits administrators may look for reasons to lower or deny benefits. Workers’ compensation programs also reduce an employee’s ability to pursue a lawsuit against an employer for negligence. The workers’ compensation program in Texas is complex and differs greatly from many other state-run programs. Our firm can help you understand your rights and responsibilities under a workers’ compensation policy. We routinely help injured workers obtain full compensation under the terms of a policy and explore additional avenues for recovery.

Lawsuits and Construction Accidents

Non-subscribing employers in the state do not receive any protection from personal injury lawsuits. An employee who suffers a construction job related injury can file a negligence-based claim to receive compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. While a lawsuit does not offer guaranteed compensation, those who succeed in filing a lawsuit may obtain a higher settlement than those who receive benefits through workers’ compensation programs. In addition to lawsuits against construction employers, our firm handles third-party construction claims for those injured on the job or while visiting construction sites. When defective equipment manufacturers, property owners, vendors, and certain outside contractors cause or contribute to construction accidents, injured individuals may file a third-party lawsuit against the company or individual responsible instead of or in addition to an employment-based claim.

Common Complicating Factors in Construction Accident Claims

Determining liability for a construction accident can be difficult. If a workplace safety issue caused the accident, the supervisor or employer could absorb liability if it was a foreseeable cause of injury or if another employee already reported the issue, but the employer did nothing to correct it before it injured someone. Sometimes third parties cause accidents. For example, a construction worker delivering building supplies to a job site may suffer injuries if another driver negligently causes an accident. Ultimately, one or more parties could face liability for a construction accident.

The supervisor or employer could face liability if they allowed dangerous workplace conditions to persist without appropriate action.
A defective product manufacturer could face a product liability claim if defective equipment or a dangerous product injures someone.
A construction company could face liability for failing to take appropriate safety measures to protect passersby near a construction site from falling debris and other hazards.
The construction company could also face liability for failing to create and maintain clear policies for workplace safety or failing to comply with requirements from federal oversight agencies. A lawsuit resulting from this kind of situation may have the added positive effect of encouraging better workplace safety rules or even inspiring new legislation or regulations to protect other workers from similar injuries.
Third parties may face liability if they cause accidents with construction workers performing job duties, driving recklessly through a roadside construction site, or trespassing on a construction site and damaging property.

Some construction-related injuries occur from intentionally harmful acts. If someone commits an intentional tort on a job site, such as assaulting a coworker, tampering with a coworker’s or employee’s safety equipment or tools, or otherwise intentionally injuring the victim, the offender will likely face criminal charges from the state in addition to civil liability for the victim’s damages. The purpose of a criminal case is to punish wrongdoing, not to compensate the victims of that wrongdoing. While restitution may form part of the offender’s criminal sentencing, the victim’s best option for recovery is a civil claim against the offender. The criminal and civil case may run in parallel, and the victim may need to testify in the criminal case. However, this also means the victim’s attorney can refer to evidence in play in the criminal case, and the standard of proof for a civil claim is much lower than that of a criminal claim.

Compensation for Your Construction Accident Claim

The compensation available from a successful construction accident claim depends on the severity of the damages involved. Generally, a personal injury claim can yield compensation for economic and noneconomic damages. • Medical expenses are one of the most common economic damages in construction accident claims. While workers’ compensation may cover immediate care costs and offer some financial relief during recovery, not every employer in Texas carries workers’ compensation insurance. In a personal injury claim, a plaintiff can receive compensation for hospital bills, specialist treatment costs, rehabilitation costs, and any other expenses related to long-term care of his or her injuries. • Plaintiffs can also claim lost income as economic damages. Workers’ compensation awards weekly benefits to those who qualify based on the severity of their injuries, but this is usually only a fraction of the employee’s typical weekly wages. A personal injury claim can allow a plaintiff to recover all lost income resulting from a construction accident, even lost future earnings if the accident caused a permanent disability that limits the victim’s ability to work in the future. • Property damage is another type of economic damage in a personal injury claim and very straightforward. The plaintiff can claim compensation for the cost of repairing or replacing personal property damaged or destroyed by the defendant’s actions. • Noneconomic damages include intangible damages like pain and suffering. Although it may sound difficult to quantify something like physical pain or psychological trauma with a monetary amount, the court will assess the facts of the case and consider testimony from expert witnesses to award an appropriate amount of compensation for physical pain, mental anguish, and emotional suffering. • Punitive damages are rare but may come into play if a defendant was intentionally harmful, negligent beyond the scope of typical negligence, or engaged in any criminal activity related to the plaintiff’s injuries. It is vital to document everything related to your injuries after a construction accident. If you need to file for workers’ compensation or an insurance claim, you will need to prove you sought medical treatment immediately and reported the injury in a timely fashion. Taking photographs of your injuries (if possible) after a construction accident can also assist with your case. By the time your case reaches trial, your wounds will have healed and appear less severe to the jury; photos of when they were fresh can more accurately represent your injuries in these cases.

Fatal Construction Accident Claims

Some construction accidents take away hardworking crew members’ lives. When people die as the result of construction accidents, our firm helps surviving family members secure compensation for their loss. Depending on the situation, we can help survivors obtain workers’ compensation death benefits or file a wrongful death suit against an employer or the party responsible for the incident.