As per the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 5,333 workers died in 2019 while performing their jobs, and of these 1,061 deaths were reported in the construction industry. This means that some 20% of all on-the-job deaths reported are from the construction sector alone.
It is a no-brainer that any work at a construction site comes loaded with some degree of danger and uncertainty. Utah’s laws provide injured workers with several options – they can claim workers’ compensation from their employer, and sue the at-fault party for personal injuries and/or product liability, depending on the cause of the accident and the severity of the injuries. As it is, workers’ compensation is almost always insufficient to compensate the victim for damages, and therefore most construction accident injury victims also need to file a case for personal injuries and/or product liability.
Experienced and skilled construction accidents attorneys in Utah help victims file suits, calculate the rightful compensation, negotiate, and mostly settle cases before they land up in a trial. Here is how they go about it.
Workers’ Personal Injury Cases
Utah’s construction accident attorneys first flesh out the people involved in the accident. A construction accident can be directly or indirectly caused by parties like:
- The employer
- The owner of the property
- Contractors and sub-contractors
- Architects
- Material suppliers
Typically, the attorney investigates the site and determines if the accident occurred because of negligence, or some other motive, on the part of one or more of the above parties. Even if the other parties are partially responsible, the victim can move beyond the workers’ compensation claim and file a personal injury compensation claim. Lawyers also investigate whether or not appropriate warning signs of any dangers present on the site were posted by the employer.
The law says that any party who has decision-making powers at the site is bound by the law to ensure worker safety. If that party does not ensure worker safety, actively or passively, he is considered to be an OSHA law violator.
After investigating the case, Utah’s construction accident attorneys have to prove all of the following:
(i) That the law required the at-fault party (defendant) to ensure worker safety.
(ii) That the defendant failed in his duties.
(iii) That the failure caused injury to the victim.
Once these three things are proved, the lawyer then calculates the compensation claim, which includes medical expenses, lost wages (current and future), future pain and suffering, and other non-economic damages, and then files a claim.
Suing for Product Liability
While investigating the case, there are chances that Utah’s construction accident lawyers can discover that the injury was caused because of equipment that malfunctioned or material that was substandard. If so, the victim can sue the maker, distributor, or designer of the product in a product liability case.
The attorney has to prove all of the following points:
(i) That the material or equipment was unsafe when it was delivered to or left in control of the defendant.
(ii) That the worker handled the equipment or material in a reasonably cautious manner.
(iii) That despite using it in the manner described in (ii) above, the equipment or material caused an injury to the worker.
If product liability is proved, the construction accident attorney then calculates and files a compensation claim on behalf of the victim. The damages that can be claimed are similar to the ones described in the personal injury section above.
Construction accidents involving cranes, forklifts, scaffolds, explosions, fires, falling objects, and defective equipment are commonplace. But establishing a solid case and working up a rightful compensation claim is not.
You need a skilled and experienced Utah construction accidents attorney on your side, someone like us. And, to demonstrate our credentials and show you how we can help you win, we are offering you a free meeting.
FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION
Construction site-related injuries can make the victim go through painful medical procedures and are likely to deteriorate his earning potential and social life in some cases.
Sure enough, OSHA will take the defendant/s to the cleaners, but how does that ease the victim’s physical, emotional, and financial pain and suffering?
We encourage you to take advantage of our free consultation offer and chat with our skilled and experienced Utah construction accidents attorneys, and find out what it takes to build a winning case, the rightful compensation claim, and how to make the defendant fold up and settle the case before it goes to trial.
What do you have to lose by talking to us? – Nothing! Fact is, you have everything to gain.
Go ahead and contact us now to learn how an experienced and skilled attorney can help you win.
