Getting hurt in a motor vehicle accident at a worksite is among the dangers construction workers in South Carolina face every day. These include crashes involving dump trucks and other work vehicles such as bulldozers, graders, backhoes and forklifts. Other hazards on construction sites are being hit by vehicles or falling from vehicles. Workers and others are also harmed when heavy objects fall onto them from vehicles.
Accidents involving motor vehicles account for about 40 percent of fatal work injuries in the construction industry, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says. Construction vehicle accidents can harm bystanders as well as workers.
If you have been hurt in an accident involving a construction vehicle, you may be entitled to money for medical expenses, lost earnings, disability, occupational therapy and pain and suffering.
Call Joye Law Firm. For more than 40 years, our lawyers have helped injured people like you obtain the compensation they need to recover and rebuild their lives. Find out how we can help you today.
Types of Construction Vehicle Accidents
In its most recent annual figures about fatal transportation incidents in the construction industry, the BLS says that:
- About 58 percent were roadway incidents
- 13 percent were non-roadway incidents, such as a vehicle overturning at a work site
- About 16 percent involved pedestrians who were struck by vehicles (and 65 percent of these were in road construction work zones).
More than 20,000 workers are injured in road construction work zones each year, the Federal Highway Administration says. The primary causes of worker fatalities in recent years were:
- Runovers and backovers (often by dump trucks)
- Collisions between vehicles or other mobile equipment
- Being caught in between or struck by mobile construction equipment and objects.
Legal Options for Those Hurt in Construction Vehicle Accidents in SC
Construction vehicle accidents that are not fatal can cause a variety of serious injuries, such as:
- Back and spinal injuries, including paralysis
- Burns and respiratory damage (smoke inhalation)
- Deep lacerations and contusions (cuts and bruises)
- Concussions and traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Broken bones (fractures)
- Dislocated joints.
Developers, contractors and other supervisors have an obligation to ensure that their construction sites or work zones are safe. They must also put up fences or other barriers and warning signs to separate construction areas from the general public. Work vehicles must be properly maintained and employees who operate them must have received appropriate training.
If you have been seriously injured in a construction vehicle accident, you may have a right to compensation for your losses. This may include money to assist with medical expenses and lost wages during your recovery, including future income losses in cases of permanent partial or total disability.
A South Carolina attorney experienced with construction vehicle accidents can make sure you get the workers’ compensation benefits you and your family are entitled to.
But you may deserve additional compensation if a third party – such as a non-employer contractor, equipment manufacturer or driver – contributed to your accident. Workers’ compensation laws bar lawsuits against employers, but other parties on a construction site who did not employ the injured worker may be held liable through a third-party claim.
Joye Law Firm can investigate your accident to ensure you get all the compensation you have coming. The construction industry is tightly regulated by OSHA, and documentation is required for most activities at a construction site.
With quick action, we can gather evidence necessary to persuade the responsible parties to settle a claim with a full and fair payment or take the case to court.
Hurt By a Construction Vehicle? Find Out How We Can Help
The attorneys of Joye Law Firm have over 110 years of combined legal experience and are ready to help injured construction workers and their families obtain appropriate payments for injuries suffered in construction accidents in South Carolina.
Call Joye Law Firm now or submit our online contact form for a free case review and information about your legal rights.
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