Maison Law stands ready to help anyone injured in a work accident across Los Angeles. While workers’ compensation helps those hurt on the job, including in accidents involving unsafe scaffolding, not every victim is treated fairly, and not everyone receives the same amount of support. We want to make sure every victim has the money to pay every medical bill and support their families.
Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation to learn more about your options that may go beyond standard workers’ comp benefits.
Do I Need a Lawyer for a Scaffolding Workers’ Compensation Claim?
You should contact a lawyer if you feel your injury isn’t being taken seriously enough. This can include the feeling that you should be receiving much more in compensation for your injury and time away from work. It’s the biggest reason to turn your case over to a Los Angeles Workers’ Compensation Lawyer…to earn more from your employer’s Workers’ Comp insurer.
You should also speak to a lawyer if you have suffered a longterm injury or permanent disability. These cases will be complex and you’ll have to be certain you are getting everything you’ll need to support yourself in the months and years ahead. The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) explains further why you could need a lawyer for your case.
Workers’ compensation claims in California can be complicated, especially when it comes to scaffolding injuries. This is due to the potential of third-party liability. Not only could your employer be responsible, but the manufacturer of the scaffolding and safety equipment that let you down could also share in the blame.
Depending on the details of your accident, several parties may face liability in your accident. That often means more support for you, but it won’t mean anything unless you know your full rights.
Common Causes of Scaffolding Accidents
The biggest danger for those who must trust scaffolding to do their work is obvious. They often must work dozens of feet in the air, often without a safety net. However, there are many other risks for these vulnerable workers.
Employees on scaffolding will be found at Los Angeles construction sites, in warehouses, on farms, in oil fields, and at large events where set-up is needed. Painters are often left high in the air as they do their jobs.
In every sector, accidents occur and people get hurt. These are just some of the factors that can lead to frightening scaffolding accidents:
- Scaffolding segments improperly manufactured
- Scaffolding improperly installed
- Scaffolding wind and weather hazards
- Scaffolding support collapse
- Objects falling from scaffolding and hitting victims below
- Electrocution
- Lack of safety training for managers and scaffolding workers
- Lack of safety equipment like guardrails, safety harnesses, and lanyards
Victims can suffer major falls, leading to broken bones, head injuries, and the loss of life. A Maison Law attorney helps victims and their families seek justice after such a frightening accident. We demand support for the immediate costs that victims face, and for the care that could be needed months or years from now due to a serious injury.
California Workers’ Compensation judges may not award everything families need if they don’t hear of the effects injuries have on victims and the victims’ ability to support their families. Maison Law makes sure judges understand the true extent of an injury and seek as much in support as possible on the victim’s behalf.
Can I Sue My Employer After Suffering an Injury While Working on Scaffolding?
In most cases, you could only seek support from California’s Division of Workers’ Compensation. However, there are a few circumstances that would allow you to file a lawsuit against your employer or another at-fault party.
You could file a lawsuit if…
- your employer knew about a scaffolding problem but didn’t inform you
- your employer showed an extreme disregard for your safety
- your employer broke laws or codes regarding scaffolding construction and safety
- the manufacturer of the forklift was guilty of providing equipment with a design flaw or manufacturing defect
Your attorney would be prepared to file claims against any individual or company that contributed to your injury. Workers’ Compensation sometimes runs out before victims are fully healed. Victims also don’t receive support for the physical pain and emotional toll an accident causes through Workers’ Comp. Taking an employer to court may be the only way to see that all of the consequences of a workplace accident are covered.
Winning Compensation for Injured Scaffolding Accident Victims
Your lawyer would file a Workers’ Comp claim that included every hardship you experience. That includes the damages you absorb now (medical bills, lost time at work) and the damages in the future (a permanent disability, a potential flare-up of your injury, help finding a new career).
The DIR Injured Worker’s Handbook goes over all the different types of support available through a claim. This is a look at some of the support victims could receive:
- Medical Care. Paid for by your employer’s Workers’ Comp insurance provider to help you recover from an injury or illness caused by work. This includes doctor visits and other treatment services, tests, medicines, equipment, and travel costs reasonably necessary to treat your injury.
- Temporary Disability Benefits. Payments if you lose wages because your injury prevents you from doing your usual job while recovering.
- Permanent Disability Benefits. Payments if you don’t recover completely and your injury causes a permanent loss of physical or mental function that a doctor can measure.
- Death Benefits. Payments to your spouse, children, or other dependents if you die from a job injury or illness.
- Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit. A voucher to help pay for retraining or skill enhancement if you are eligible to receive permanent disability benefits, your employer doesn’t offer you work, and you don’t return to work for your employer. This benefit is available for workers injured in 2004 or later. If your injury also occurred in 2013 or later and you received a Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit, you may also be eligible for an additional, one-time payment under the Return-to-Work Supplement Program.
Contact a Los Angeles Scaffolding Injury Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Those hurt while working on or around scaffolding should never be afraid to speak up. They’ve hurt themselves while sacrificing their safety and physical wellbeing for their companies, and those companies must be there for them now that they are injured.
Speak to Maison Law in a free consultation. We want to hear about what happened to you and then help you determine the best course of action for your family. We also want to make sure you earn the maximum in benefits for your family while you are down with an injury.
If you do need us to earn more for your claim, Maison Law’s Los Angeles Workers’ Compensation Lawyer works on a contingency basis. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. There’s zero upfront cost. Then our attorney’s fee comes out of the award you receive.
