Construction accident injuries and fatalities are far too common. Workers are frequently subjected to a wide variety of potentially deadly hazards. Construction workers tend to sustain occupational injuries and illnesses at a much higher rate compared to individuals employed in other industries.
If you are a construction worker who has sustained an injury on the job, you may be wondering what steps you should take to preserve your legal rights. The trusted legal team at OnderLaw can evaluate your situation and help you understand what types of compensation you may be eligible to claim for your injuries.
Important Steps to Take After a Construction Accident
There are many potential causes of construction accidents. Incidents involving serious falls, being crushed, struck, or caught in-between heavy machinery, and electrical incidents are behind many of the dangerous injuries workers suffer on these job sites. These injuries can include:
- Severe burns
- Loss of a limb
- Spinal cord trauma
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Fractured and broken bones
After a construction accident, the first thing you need to do is get medical care for your injuries. Depending on the nature and severity of your injuries, you may require extensive physical therapy, occupational therapy, rehabilitation, surgery, and other required courses of treatment.
Do not delay medical care after you suffer an injury in a construction accident. This could not only worsen your condition, but could also complicate your ability to collect compensation. Getting the prompt medical attention you need should be a priority up front.
Beyond receiving medical care, you will also need to notify your employer about the accident and injury. Although you technically have two years from the date of the incident to file a formal workers’ compensation claim in Missouri, you must notify your employer about the injury within 30 days of the accident. If you wait or don’t report your injury, it could be difficult to get the benefits you need later on.
Take care to preserve any evidence related to your claim, including photos or video of the accident and your injuries, details or notes about the accident, test results, and treatment records. Next, it is wise to consult with a qualified construction accident attorney to assess your legal rights.
At OnderLaw, our team of attorneys has extensive experience and knowledge of the laws surrounding workplace injuries. We can explain your legal options in detail and provide you unwavering support during all legal proceedings. Our dedicated lawyers can also assist with filling out the proper forms, investigating your claim, helping you pursue workers’ comp benefits, and determining whether anyone’s negligence played a role in your construction accident.
Types of Compensation for Construction Accidents
Businesses in the construction industry in Missouri must carry workers’ compensation coverage, even with just one employee. If you are injured on the job, you can claim these types of benefits to recover the value of part of your lost wages and your medical bills for prescribed courses of treatment.
Your employer’s workers’ compensation coverage can pay for temporary partial, temporary total, permanent partial, or permanent total disability benefits, depending on how much your injury prevents you from fulfilling your regular duties. This can help to make up for the fact that the law usually prevents you from suing your employer. You also don’t have to prove legal fault to get workers’ compensation benefits.
However, you can’t collect compensation for pain, suffering, and other non-economic damages through workers’ compensation. And workers’ compensation may not always reflect the full value of your losses.
If a party other than your employer was negligent—such as a subcontractor or vendor—you may have legal cause to file a separate action in the form of a personal injury lawsuit. In order to recover damages in a personal injury lawsuit after a construction accident, you need to demonstrate that the at-fault party owed you a legal duty of care, violated that duty, and that this violation was the direct cause of your injuries and harm. Our skilled personal injury attorneys can help with this.
We Can Help You Recover After a Construction Injury
Now is the time to make sure that you have someone looking out for your legal interests. You are likely entitled to file a workers’ compensation claim for benefits after a construction accident, but you may also have a separate claim for personal injury damages to pursue, depending on the facts of your case.
Our diligent attorneys at OnderLaw regularly assist with various construction accident-related claims, including personal injury claims, workers’ compensation claims, product liability claims, and wrongful death actions.
From navigating the workers’ compensation process on your behalf to filing a lawsuit against a third party who had a hand in the accident, our committed legal professionals can help you ensure you get a full and fair settlement for all of your damages. Contact our firm today to discuss what legal strategies and compensation may be available for your construction accident injuries. At OnderLaw, we don’t just take on cases; we take on causes—let us take up yours.
