If you get hurt while working at a construction site, you might not have to rely on Workers’ Compensation to get your damages paid. There are multiple ways to still sue for these damages, potentially opening access to pain and suffering and other damages you cannot get through that system.
Our lawyers can review your case, determine the proper parties to file against, and help you with your claim. We can assess the value of your case and work to get the damages through a settlement or even go to court if needed.
For a no-cost case evaluation, call The Martello Law Firm’s construction accident lawyers today at (914) 685-6950.
When Can Workers Sue for Construction Accidents in White Plains?
Construction accidents can often lead to lawsuits. Just because you were hurt at work does not mean that Workers’ Compensation is the only way to get paid, and many lawsuits can be filed separately from those claims.
First, you can always sue a third-party defendant – anyone other than your employer. This is common in any of these cases:
- Drivers crashing into work crews
- Defective machinery or tools causing injuries
- Defective safety gear failing to prevent injuries
- Third-party suppliers, delivery drivers, or vendors causing injuries
- Other contractors on the job site – e.g., electricians – causing injuries.
You can also sue your employer sometimes under New York law. There are exceptions that go around the traditional Workers’ compensation rules and allow direct lawsuits against your boss when they cause injuries through certain regulatory violations. Check with our construction accident lawyers to see if your situation fits one of these exceptions.
Are Construction Workers Contractors or Employees?
You cannot usually sue your employer for a work accident outside of the exceptions mentioned above. However, this rule only applies to employees.
Employees vs. Independent Contractors
New York’s laws create a broad definition of employee, but there are ways a contractor can be legally defined as an independent contractor. This would preserve their right to sue their boss in any situation where the boss caused the accident.
Identifying Independent Contractors
Independent contractors are considered self-employed, meaning they are in charge of their own work. If you do not work under close supervision and you are able to deliver finished construction or projects rather than working under someone else’s instruction, you may be an independent contractor.
Often, independent contractors work in a different trade or service than the party who hired them. For example, a general contractor hiring an electrician for a renovation job would probably hire the electrician as a contractor, not an employee.
Complications with Construction
This can be complicated when you have layers of construction firms, builders, and contractors, each with employees, helpers, and potential subcontractors in the mix, so check with a lawyer about your status and ability to sue.
When Do I Have to File My Claim?
If you were hurt working on a construction site, the law typically gives you 3 years to file your lawsuit. There are some legal exceptions that allow extended filing deadlines, but they are not usually applicable to construction accidents.
How Much is My Injury Case Worth?
Construction accidents typically leave victims with medical expenses, lost time at work, and pain and suffering from the injury. These three core areas of damages are common to most injury claims, but we have to go over the specific damages in your case to calculate damages for you.
All medical expenses – along with other expenses related to the injury – can be a big part of your damages. On top of this, any income you miss now and into the future can be claimed.
Pain and suffering damages are not based on bills or receipts you have, but instead on how severe the injuries were and how they affected your life. More severe injuries have higher pain and suffering, which is often reflected by applying a multiplier to the rest of your damages. This multiplier is typically a number from 1.5 to 5, chosen to reflect the severity on that scale.
Alternatively, pain and suffering can be given a daily value based on your income, then multiplied by however many days you experienced pain and suffering.
What Evidence Do I Need for My Case?
Our lawyers can worry about gathering most of the evidence for your case, but there are some things you can do to help:
- Take note of conditions at the scene of the accident
- Note what witnesses and cameras might have seen the accident happening
- Look for any noteworthy conditions like missing handrails, defective scaffolding, sparking electrical outlets, or broken flooring we need to get pictures of.
You should always get medical care when you need it after an accident. This will start you on the road to recovery, but it will also create medical records detailing your injuries and prognosis. We can get copies of these records and potentially have your doctors testify about your injuries and disabilities.
Report your accident to your employer so we can also obtain any records or reports they have about the accident.
When Should I Call a Lawyer?
While you might have 3 years to file your case in court, you should call a lawyer much sooner. We can help gather and preserve evidence in the aftermath of the accident, talk to witnesses about what happened, and set up depositions to get their recollection of events on the record.
We can also keep track of the damages you face as you go, tracking bills, receipts, and other records of these harms. Calling us early also gives us time to assemble the evidence, put together a strong claim, and file it quickly.
If we act quickly, we can also potentially negotiate a settlement that gets you your damages well before the deadline to file even arrives. Lawsuits can take months or even years to resolve, but a settlement often gets you the damages you need faster.
However, you should never settle your case without having your lawyer review it first. Any settlement ends the case, even if it was too low. You cannot go back to court after settling, so talk to us about any offers first.
Call Our Construction Accident Injury Attorneys in White Plains Today
Call The Martello Law Firm’s construction accident lawyers at (914) 685-6950 for your free case assessment.
