California farms and ranches provide a large percentage of the meats and vegetables we all find in our local grocery stores. While the profits provide weekly paychecks to agricultural workers and their families, it’s important that employers are also providing safe work environments. Farmworkers work hard and they deserve to be supported when they are hurt on the job.
Growers and those that tend to livestock do dangerous work in sometimes hazardous conditions. It’s important those farm employees know where to turn to get help when they get injured.
Free Consultation for Farming Accident Victims
If you or a loved one were injured while working on a farm, a ranch, or in any other agricultural industry, don’t accept insufficient support or no support at all. Your employer and any company benefiting from your work must be held accountable for your wellbeing after an injury on the job.
Workers’ Compensation may provide some financial protection after you’ve been hurt. However, it doesn’t provide for the pain you’ve endured and the emotional trauma you’ve suffered. Things like your loss of enjoyment of life, and the effect an injury has on your family life must also figure into any settlement.
Contact a California Farm Accident Lawyer to find out what your injury and your suffering are really worth. Maison Law provides a free, no-obligation case consultation to all farm accident victims to make sure they know about every benefit available to them.
California Farming Hazards
Farming and livestock work is tough, physical labor. And when employees aren’t straining their bodies to get the job done, they are relying on powerful and dangerous machines to help. Accidents on California farms and ranches are a daily occurrence.
The CDC and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics say that Agriculture ranks as one of the most dangerous industries in the United States. Accident numbers spike particularly around the fall harvest season. Researchers found that in a single year there were 574 fatalities in the agriculture industry with an estimated 23.4 deaths per 100,000 workers.
Farm work can be a family operation and young children end up the victims of accidents far too often. The CDC reports that around 33 children a day are injured in farming accidents across the nation.
Growers and livestock workers face hazards from the conditions they work in and from the machines provided to help them complete their tasks.
These are just some of the most common threats to their safety:
- Harvester/Combine and tractor accidents and malfunctions.
- Other machinery accidents involving things like balers, spreaders, and conveyor belts.
- Disease and injury from exposure to things like pesticides, other chemicals, and mold.
- Falls.
- Falling objects.
- Dangers working around livestock.
- Exposure to hot and cold weather.
- Traffic Accidents.
Types of Injuries in California Farming Accidents
The equipment used in farming is designed to be powerful, and some of these machines utilize blades and sharp points. Farmhands suffer devastating crush injuries and puncture wounds with frightening regularity.
When California farming accidents occur, the injuries can be severe and recovery can take weeks or months. In some cases, recovery isn’t possible and a permanent physical disability may result. When this is the case, the ability to provide support for a family can be taken from victims. A lifetime of medical and financial support may be needed from employers and corporations.
These are just a few of the injuries emergency room doctors treat after an agricultural accident:
- Fractured bones.
- Loss of limbs.
- Back and spine injuries.
- Traumatic Brain Injuries and concussions.
- Soft tissue damage to organs, ligaments, muscles, and tendons.
- Sprains and strains.
- Repetitive motion injuries.
Who Can Be Sued After a Farming Accident?
These days, a farm isn’t always run by a single farmer or landowner. Companies and corporations can partner with farmers or own and operate a string of farms to cultivate crops, raise livestock and distribute them to purchasers. The bottom line is that victims of a California farm personal injury accident may need to file a claim against several parties to receive fair compensation.
Local farm owners will have farm liability insurance to cover accidents to farmworkers, guests, and customers. This insurance provides compensation for medical care for victims. With additional coverage from “Med Pay,” injury victims can receive support no matter who was at fault in an accident.
Large businesses operating farms and ranches will likely have must bigger insurance policies to protect workers. After a smaller farmer’s insurance cap on benefits is reached, a claim against the corporate partner’s insurance company may have to be called upon. This liability coverage will have a much higher policy limit, allowing the victim a better chance to get funds to cover all of their recovery costs in a settlement.
A third-party contractor may also be liable for injuries. The manufacturers of farm equipment could also face liability in farm accidents. Their machines may have had a design flaw that put workers at risk. A California farm accident lawyer would check for recalls on certain products or parts and demonstrate how a faulty machine led to the injury of a client.
Workers’ Compensation After a California Farm Accident
California requires that all agricultural business owners pay for workers’ compensation coverage for their employees. Not all states grant farmworkers access to workers’ compensation protection, but in California, they have the same access to coverage as any other employee in any other industry. This benefit is also available to undocumented workers.
Workers’ compensation helps workers with the financial damages suffered after an injury, but its support is often limited. It also generally doesn’t compensate workers for their physical pain and the emotional trauma they suffer in an accident and during recovery. These damages fall under the legal concept of “pain and suffering.”
“Pain and suffering” damages are non-economic damages the victim suffers. They can be just as devastating as physical injuries. They do factor into personal injury claims and can increase settlement amounts.
Compensation Available After a California Farming Accident
After every party responsible for your painful accident is identified, it’s time to file claims against those parties. You’ll want to present an organized list of the hardships you expect help with. Any hardships you don’t list won’t factor into compensation.
Your California personal injury lawyer will be helping you with this list and make sure you don’t forget to list every difficulty you’ve had. Your lawyer may also include damages you might not have considered.
These are just a few of the things that decide the amount of your settlement check:
- All medical costs including surgeries and care expected to be necessary in the future.
- Lifetime expenses associated with a permanent physical disability.
- Replacement of earnings you’ve lost while missing work.
- Physical pain and emotional anguish. An accident can cause excruciating pain that doesn’t go away with treatment. Victims may face anxiety or depression as a result of an accident. A loss of enjoyment of life due to an injury and changes in family relationships can also earn financial support.
- Travel costs. You can be reimbursed for every drive made to a doctor’s appointment or to see an out-of-city specialist. This travel can become very expensive when a victim is temporarily unable to walk long distances.
- Wrongful death benefits. Fair support after a family has lost a loved one to a tragic workplace accident. Responsible employers must provide help with funeral and burial costs. Any medical cost incurred before the victim passed on. Employers must provide support for the family in the coming years when they’ll be without the income a loved one had provided.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to file a claim over a California farm accident injury?
You have two years to file a personal injury claim after a workplace accident. If you are filing a workers’ compensation claim, you have just one year to fill out the paperwork and submit your claim.
Should I trust insurance representatives for my farm employer or company?
No. Their insurance adjusters will do everything possible to reduce the support you receive. They’ll call to ask for a recorded statement about the accident. Decline. This statement can be used against you later.
What kind of things do I need to save after a California farm accident?
Save any photos you take on the scene of your accident. Keep all medical bills and travel cost receipts involving your care. Keep paystubs that demonstrate the income you’ve lost. Save the clothing and shoes you were wearing the day of the accident.
Contact a Farm Accident Lawyer Serving California Victims
As a farm accident victim, you could be facing a long, difficult recovery from your injuries. The expenses that come along with any medical recovery shouldn’t be your concern.
You’ll need an attorney with experience in all types of farm-related injury cases to help you determine who was a fault. You can lose time from work and incur thousands in medical bills. An attorney with expertise in dealing with medical service providers and insurance companies can help you get your life back on track and secure your family’s future.
After an accident involving a serious injury in California, contact attorney Martin Gasparian for a free consultation and case evaluation. It’s a no-risk way to determine what your injury is worth and if you’ll need more than what workers’ compensation will provide for recovery.
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