Demonstrate Negligence
Negligence is the legal concept that is the basis for a personal injury claim. To demonstrate negligence, you must show that your employer or a third party failed in its duty of care toward you. Texas follows the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidelines, which gives safety standards for all construction sites. Your employer is obligated to follow these guidelines, so if you can prove that there was a violation, you can establish that your employer was negligent.
A third party may be responsible for unsafe conditions, too, like a subcontractor, property owner, or equipment manufacturer. If this is the case, you will need to prove that the responsible party knew about the hazard (or should have known), but did nothing to correct the issue or protect people who might be affected.
Collect Evidence to Support Your Claim
Take photographs or videos of the unsafe conditions that led to your accident. If you are not able to, see if anyone who was there has photos or videos of the scene. Also, ask coworkers or bystanders who saw the incident to give witness statements describing what happened. Eyewitness testimony is very helpful in establishing the sequence of events that led to your injury.
Keep all medical records of your injuries, both to show the extent of your injuries and to establish a direct link between the accident and your injury. In addition, look into whether your employer has had previous OSHA reports or citations. If there have been previous safety violations, that may indicate a pattern of negligence.
Show Causation
It is not enough to prove that there were unsafe conditions; you must also show that the hazard directly led to your injury. For example, if you fell from an unstable scaffold, you must prove that the scaffold, either its poor construction or a lack of safety measures, directly led to the fall. Medical records are very helpful for establishing causation as well as safety inspection reports and even expert testimony.
Consult with a Personal Injury Attorney in Houston
If your accident was caused by unsafe conditions, it is wise to seek out legal advice. A construction accident attorney will have experience both in gathering evidence and in proving the link between the unsafe conditions and your injury. Having a lawyer on your side makes it much more likely that you will be able to get compensation for the financial and other losses you’ve incurred due to your injury. Click here to learn more.
If you have been injured in a construction site accident due to unsafe working conditions, know that you do have recourse for seeking compensation for your losses.
