They may build good things, but construction sites are pretty dangerous places. High heights, large and powerful tools, and human error can cause serious injuries to visitors and workers on and near these sites. Unfortunately, some individuals in construction site incidents suffer permanent physical injuries that include amputation.
At Greenspan & Greenspan Injury Lawyers, we have decades of experience and can handle your legal and practical needs in amputation injury claims you submit for compensation. We are thorough and work hard to effectively cover every detail of each client’s case. Reach out to us right away for a case review.
Threats to Life and Limb on Construction Sites
A significant number of individuals endure limb amputations each year. For the lower limbs alone, approximately 150,000 people in the United States undergo amputations each year. The number of people undergoing amputations increases substantially from there when you consider that fingers are among the most commonly amputated limbs among people living in the U.S.
Vascular disease is the number one cause of limb amputations in the U.S. However, trauma is the second most common reason for amputations. On construction sites, traumatic causes for amputations can include the following:
- Falls from high heights,
- Slamming doors,
- Vehicle crashes,
- Power tool accidents, and
- Equipment dropped from above.
Physically recovering from an amputation can take more than a year. Your mental and emotional recovery might take longer. At Greenspan & Greenspan Injury Lawyers, we want you to focus on getting well. We handle your case down to the smallest detail to give you time to rest and rehabilitate. While you rest, we can help you recover all the compensation you deserve under the law.
Your Rights in Amputation Injury Claims
When you sustain an injury that causes a limb amputation, a construction accident claim might be your best option for getting relief and support. You can receive financial damages through an insurance claim or a lawsuit.
Who Is Obligated to Pay?
In many construction cases, you can make an insurance claim or file an amputation injury lawsuit against one of the following parties:
- An owner of the property under construction,
- A contractor working on the construction site, or
- A third party engaging in misconduct on the construction site.
Sometimes, determining who is at-fault in an accident is a difficult process. We have been resolving personal injury cases for years and can correctly identify all defendants who should be part of your case.
How Do I Prove Fault?
If you can prove that a property owner or occupant of a construction site engaged in misconduct that caused you harm, that individual likely owes you money. Negligence is a type of misconduct that is the basis for many amputation injury claims. To prove negligence, you must prove the following:
- The at-fault party owed you a duty of care,
- The at-fault party breached the duty of care they owed you,
- The at-fault party’s breach caused you an injury, and
- The injury you experienced resulted in damages.
Contractors and property owners owe the public and occupants of construction sites many duties of care.
In addition to the duty to act reasonably, property owners and contractors have the obligation to follow many labor laws and building codes to help ensure the safety of their construction sites. These laws and codes include rules for the following:
- The construction and maintenance of adequate scaffolding,
- The periodic inspection of on-site conditions,
- The reporting of hazardous conditions,
- The proper loading of cargo,
- The construction and maintenance of equipment used on-site,
- The proper operation of vehicles and equipment,
- The correction or removal of hazardous conditions from the site,
- The proper training of construction workers,
- The enclosure of dangerous equipment, and
- The proper labeling of power tools.
The above are just a handful of duties that contractors and property owners have toward construction site occupants and those nearby. We can maximize your damages by identifying all relevant laws an at-fault party has broken in your case.
What Type of Compensation Can I Receive?
Once you prove that the defendant in your case is at fault, you can receive compensation for your injuries. This compensation can include the following:
- Noneconomic damages to pay you for your pain and suffering;
- Economic damages to pay you for your present and future financial losses (including lost earning capacity) and healthcare needs (including physical therapy, prosthesis, and pain management treatments); and
- Punitive damages to punish the defendant for any abhorrent acts they commit.
Proving fault and your right to damages might require expert testimony, medical records, accident reports, witness testimony, and construction site recreations. We can obtain this evidence on your behalf and make the strongest arguments for your financial recovery.
What About a Loss of Limb Workplace Lawsuit?
If you suffer a construction site injury while at work, you will likely have to make a claim for partial wage replacement and medical care through workers’ compensation. Making a claim through workers’ comp is different from going to court and suing for negligence. Workers’ compensation is an exclusive, no-fault insurance program that employers provide for injured workers. You do not have to prove liability to get workers’ compensation, but it does not provide all of the various types of damages you can receive in a civil lawsuit. For example, it will cover medical expenses but not pain and suffering or punitive damages. However, if a third party other than your employer caused your injury, you can sue that individual, and we can help with your lawsuit.
How Long Do I Have to File My Lawsuit?
Typically, you have three years to file a lawsuit after an injury. To cover all of your bases, you will likely need to file any insurance claim right away to receive immediate care and payment for property and wage losses. If the at-fault party’s insurance company does not agree to a fair settlement, you can sue for damages within the three-year window.
As you can see, there can be many laws, defendants, and factors at play when you suffer an amputation injury on a construction site. Greenspan & Greenspan Injury Lawyers can help you make sense of all of the legal requirements and ensure you meet all deadlines.
We Can Take Good Care of You
You deserve good care after suffering an amputation injury. You deserve good health care, good financial care, and good legal care. Greenspan & Greenspan can help ensure that you receive all three in amputation injury claims. We are an award-winning team, and we are here to fight for the injured victims of New York. Contact us by phone or online to schedule a free consultation. Hablamos español.
Resource List
- Sadoma, Sheets, Plurad, and Dubina, “Traumatic Amputations Treated in US Emergency Departments: A Review of the NEISS Database,” Am Surg., 2023 Oct, link.
- National Library of Medicine, Medline Plus, Traumatic amputation, link.
- Lost Wage Benefits, New York State Workers’ Compensation Board, link.
- New York City General Administrative Provisions for Construction Codes, Chapter 3, link.
- The Laws of New York, Chapter 67, §10, link.
- The Laws of New York, Chapter 67, §11, link.
- The Laws of New York, Chapter 8, §214, link.
