Texas Construction Site Accident Attorney

Understanding Your Options After a Construction Accident

Before we can tell you what options you may have, we need to know a little more about the job. Who did you work for? Did your employer carry workers’ compensation? Was another company involved in the accident? Those details help us understand what type of claim you may have and where we need to start looking.

Your legal options may include:

• Workers’ compensation benefits through an employer with coverage
• A claim against an employer that does not subscribe to workers’ compensation
• A third-party claim against a contractor, equipment company, property owner, or another business
• More than one claim arising from the same accident

These claims follow different rules. A Texas construction site accident attorney can review the companies involved before determining which path may apply.

Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Claims in Texas

Workers’ compensation may cover an injury through your employer, but another claim could be available if a different company contributed to the accident. On a busy construction site, that could be a subcontractor, equipment provider, delivery company, or another business working nearby.

For more information about employer coverage, nonsubscriber claims, and workplace injury plans, visit our Texas construction accident lawyer page.

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What If Your Employer Does Not Carry Workers’ Compensation?

An employer without workers’ compensation coverage is commonly called a nonsubscriber. If you worked for a nonsubscriber, you may be able to bring a negligence claim directly against that employer.

A construction site injury lawyer can review the employer’s coverage, any workplace injury plan it offers, and the documents you received after the accident.

Who May Be Responsible for a Construction Site Injury?

It’s common for several companies to be working on a construction site at the same time, but that doesn’t mean they are all responsible for your injury. We look at who was working in the area, who was in control of that area, and who caused the unsafe condition.

It could be the general contractor, another crew, a delivery company, or the business that supplied the equipment. A construction site accident lawyer can review job records and determine which company was involved.

How Injuries Happen on Construction Sites

You can be seriously hurt on a construction site even when you are doing your job correctly. Another crew may leave materials overhead, a trench can give way, or a piece of equipment may move into your work area without warning.

Ali Law Group reviews claims involving:

• Falls from a roof, ladder, scaffold, or open floor
• Tools or building materials falling from above
• Cranes, forklifts, and other heavy equipment
• Trench and excavation cave-ins
• Contact with live electrical lines
• Workers pulled into or pinned by machinery
• Work trucks and other vehicles moving around the site
• Fires, explosions, and chemical exposure
• Collapsed walls or other structures
• Harnesses, guards, and safety equipment that did not work as intended

A visitor, delivery driver, vendor, or inspector may also have a claim after being injured at an active construction site. You do not necessarily have to be employed as a construction worker for the circumstances to warrant a legal review.

Common Injuries on Construction Sites

You may know right away that you are hurt. Other problems can take hours or days to show up.

A fall, electrical shock, chemical leak, or accident with heavy equipment can injure almost any part of the body. Construction workers may experience broken bones, burns, trouble breathing, hearing or vision loss, or injuries to the head, neck, back, or internal organs. Some accidents lead to the loss of a limb or a worker’s life.

When you see a doctor, explain that you were hurt on the job and describe the accident in your own words. This gives the medical team a clearer picture of what areas may need to be checked.

What to Do After a Construction Site Accident

Once you have taken care of your injuries, write down what happened and gather any information you can about the accident. Job sites can change quickly as equipment is moved and repairs begin, sometimes while you are still dealing with your injury.

• Get medical care. Tell the doctor you were injured at work and explain how it happened.
• Report the accident. Notify your employer or supervisor and ask for a copy of the accident report.
• Take photos. If it is safe, photograph the area, equipment, and anything else connected to the accident.
• Save names and numbers. Write down how to reach witnesses and note the other companies working on the site.
• Keep damaged items. Hold onto the clothing, tools, hard hat, harness, or safety equipment involved.
• Read before signing. Make sure you understand any accident forms, releases, or benefit documents you receive.
• Talk with a lawyer. A Texas construction site accident attorney can look into your employer’s coverage and whether another company may share responsibility.

Evidence That May Help Explain What Happened

A construction accident investigation may go beyond photographs and an incident report. Depending on the case, relevant information could include:

• Daily jobsite logs
• Contracts describing each company’s work
• Site-specific safety plans
• Inspection reports
• Training and certification records
• Toolbox-talk and safety-meeting records
• Equipment rental, maintenance, and repair records
• Photographs or video taken by site supervisors
• Surveillance, drone, or vehicle-camera footage
• OSHA investigation records
• Text messages, emails, or radio communications
• The damaged tool, ladder, scaffold, harness, or machine

You may not be able to get these records on your own, especially when another company has them. A construction site accident lawyer can ask for the right documents and take steps to keep important evidence from being lost or destroyed.

What Financial Recovery May Be Available?

The answer depends on the type of claim. Workers’ compensation benefits are different from damages available through a lawsuit against a nonsubscriber employer or negligent third party.

Workers’ compensation may provide payment for qualifying medical care and part of the income lost because of an on-the-job injury. A separate personal injury claim may account for additional losses when supported by the facts and Texas law.

Depending on the claim, those losses could include:

• Medical treatment and rehabilitation
• Income missed during recovery
• Reduced ability to earn a living
• Future care or personal assistance
• Physical pain
• Mental anguish
• Physical limitations
• Scarring or disfigurement
• Damage to personal belongings
• Funeral expenses and losses resulting from a wrongful death

There is no standard value for a construction injury. Before discussing numbers, we need to understand the injury, available insurance, who is responsible for the accident, and how the injury has affected your work and daily life.

How Long Do You Have to Act?

The deadline is not always the same. A third-party injury lawsuit in Texas often has a two-year filing window, while workers’ compensation and nonsubscriber claims follow different rules. A government project may also come with an earlier notice requirement.

That does not mean you should wait. By the time you start asking questions, equipment may have been returned, video may have been recorded over, and crews may have moved to another job.

How Ali Law Group Can Help

When we review a construction accident, we begin with the relationships among the people and companies at the site. That tells us where to look for insurance, contracts, safety records, and evidence of control over the work.

Depending on the circumstances, our work may include:

• Confirming whether the employer carried workers’ compensation
• Identifying the contractors and businesses involved
• Reviewing contracts and jobsite records
• Requesting photographs, video, and inspection reports
• Speaking with workers and other witnesses
• Examining equipment maintenance and repair histories
• Reviewing medical records and employment information
• Determining which insurance policies may apply
• Handling communication with insurers and other parties
• Filing a lawsuit when the facts and available claims support doing so

Ali Law Group serves clients through its Houston and San Antonio offices and handles construction accident cases across Texas.