According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), one in five work-related deaths occur in the construction industry, making construction one of the most dangerous occupations in America. Injury and illness among construction workers is 24% higher than in other industries, but many of these fatalities and injuries are preventable.

If you are the victim of a construction-related injury, or a surviving family member of a construction worker who died on the job, Arns Davis Law is ready to advocate on your behalf and seek compensation for your losses.

Common Construction Site Accidents

Construction involves, among other things, heavy equipment, heights, explosives, and dangerous jobsite conditions that require organized management and safety controls in order to protect workers on the job. Unfortunately, construction remains a dangerous occupation even when safety measures are enforced. The most common forms of construction accidents include:

• Electrical accidents
• Falling objects
• Falls, especially from heights
• Getting caught in-between materials
• Heavy equipment malfunction and accidents
• Power tool accidents
• Trench collapses
• Vehicle and road accidents

Injury Claims Against Your Employer

Injuries suffered in the course and scope of your employment are governed by California workers’ compensation law, which pays medical bills, temporary disability and wage replacement, and long-term disability. Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system that compensates the injured employee without regard to the cause of injury or death. However, in addition to workers’ compensation recovery, which is limited, there is the possibility of third-party liability, in some instances, which will pay beyond workers’ compensation.

Injury Claims Against Third Parties

Too often injured construction workers and their families believe that compensation is limited to workers’ compensation claims. However, additional sources of compensation might be available if another party that is not the injured workers employer is responsible in-part for the injuries.

If you or a family member is harmed on a construction site, you may be entitled to compensation for economic and non-economic injuries beyond the California workers’ compensation system. For example, some construction site injuries are caused by third-parties—manufacturers of equipment, a general contractor, subcontractors, and lessors of equipment—which opens the door to additional compensation not covered by workers’ compensation law.

Third-party liability is a claim against any other party that is not your employer and might involve a general contractor on a project or subcontractors, like electrical, plumbing, and scaffolding companies. When safety standards are not followed, these companies might be liable for any resulting injuries outside of the workers’ compensation system. Third-party liability allows recovery beyond the workers’ compensation system for damages including present and future wage loss, as well as pain and suffering.

Establishing Liability

Because workplace accidents and injury are often limited to workers’ compensation claims against the employer, establishing liability of third parties is the key to securing additional compensation. The statute of limitations—the time period in which to file a claim—for construction injuries is two years from the date of the accident or one year from the date the injury was discovered.

To ensure that you and your family are fully compensated for injury or loss, it’s important to contact a skilled and experienced construction accident attorney as soon as possible to map out a road to recovery, preserve evidence, gather witnesses, and conduct an independent investigation in order to aggressively pursue your claim.

Arns Davis Law has experienced and skilled construction accident attorneys ready to investigate the circumstances of your accident, evaluate your claim, and litigate on your behalf so that you and your family are cared for to the fullest extent of the law.

When You Need a Construction Accident Lawyer in the San Francisco Bay Area, Call Arns Davis Law

At Arns Davis Law, we guide our clients with dignity and respect throughout the legal process from initial consultation through verdict or settlement. Being the victim of a construction accident requires that you surround yourself with people who will advocate for your best interests. That advocacy needs to be supported by a thorough knowledge of the law, experience with negotiation and litigation, and genuine people skills. Add to the mix a devotion to ethical principles and passion. That’s what we offer to you at Arns Davis Law. Our attorneys will listen, ask the right questions, and use their legal knowledge and experience to forge a strategy to hold defendants accountable for your injury and full compensation for your economic and non-economic losses.

Call The Arns-Davis Law Firm or contact us online to schedule a meeting with one of our lawyers.