What to Do About Common Accidents That Occur on Construction Sites

Construction sites present many hazards. With heavy materials, power tools, and ladders common elements found on a construction site, accidents can occur. Damages including medical bills and lost wages are just two of the many damages often involved in construction site injuries. If you or a loved one were injured on a construction site, there are a series of steps you can take to evaluate your case and potentially file a claim if workers’ compensation is not present or insufficient to cover the damages resulting from the accident.

Employers are required to notify OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) within 8 hours of a work-related fatality, and within 24 hours of a work-related hospitalization. If you believe the accident occurred due to negligence or a labor violation, you can file a personal complaint with OSHA resulting in an investigation of the employer and construction site.

Common accidents that occur on construction sites:

• Falls from heights
• Slip and falls
• Falling debris
• Electrocutions
• Burns
• Machinery accidents
• Ground collapse in the case of building site excavations
• Struck by a vehicle
• Caught in/between machinery or material
• Heatstroke and dehydration

What to do after a construction site accident:

• Seek immediate medical care. Regardless of the severity of your injury, it’s important to seek medical care immediately after a construction site accident. While some people have the tendency to “tough it out”, waiting to seek medical care could actually result in an argument being made against the validity of your injury in the future. This also ensures that a medical record will exist to support the validity of your claim.
• Report your injury to a supervisor and HR. It’s important to report the accident to your supervisor and the human resources (HR) department if your company has one. You will need to provide details regarding when and how the accident occurred, in addition to details regarding the resulting injuries. If negligence or a labor violation were involved in the accident, you can file a personal complaint with OSHA to request an investigation into the employer and construction site.
• Collect evidence. Evidence from a construction site accident could include pictures and videos of the scene of the accident, surroundings, warning signage, and copies of any medical records, incident reports, and any other documentation related to the accident or injury. It’s also a good idea to collect the contact information of any witnesses to the accident, and even record their testimony if they agree to it.
• Seek legal counsel. It’s a good idea to speak to an attorney regarding a construction site accident, especially if your employer does not offer workers’ compensation, offers only insufficient workers’ compensation, or if gross negligence was involved in the accident. In these situations, you might be eligible to file a personal injury claim in addition to or instead of workers’ compensation. An experienced construction accident attorney will know exactly what evidence to look for, how to obtain it, and how to handle potentially unscrupulous insurance companies.

To learn more about construction site accidents and what to do after one of these occur, seek legal counsel.