Most construction site accidents happen unexpectedly, causing life-altering medical bills, time off work and delayed deadlines—and sometimes fatalities. If you’ve been injured while working in a construction zone, it’s important to know your next steps. 

To start, when you’ve been injured, you should immediately report the injury to your direct supervisor and fill out a DWC1 workers’ compensation form. It’s illegal in the state of California not to be covered by workers’ compensation by your employer. Once you’ve filled out your workers’ comp form, you’re eligible to be covered for time off work, your medical bills and more. If your employer does not have workers’ compensation or has denied fault, you should seek a legal counsel to help fight for reimbursement of injury expenses as construction accidents are extremely complex cases.

There are other case considerations for construction site accidents if you aren’t covered by workers’ compensation. The first consideration is your own involvement in the accident. Sometimes an employer refuses compensation because they claim you were 50%+ at fault for the accident due to your own negligence. If the construction site requires hard hats, and something fell on your head causing a concussion or obtrusion, you are likely 50% at fault, meaning you’re barred from filing a lawsuit.

If you’ve been injured on a construction site because of someone outside of your company, have no reimbursement plan and are not at fault in any way, you can also go after third party involvement/negligence. Third party negligence cases happen all the time on construction sites due to the large number of companies involved in finishing a construction project. If you’re an electrician, but were injured by another company’s heavy machinery, you can file a lawsuit against third party negligence.

Because of these case considerations, we recommend reaching out to our San Diego law firm to help you navigate your construction accident lawsuit. The team at Arendsen Braddock LLP offers two convenient locations in San Diego and Solana Beach and won’t charge you a lawyer fee until we win your settlement or verdict. Connect with us for an initial case review today.