Nothing is more frustrating than doing everything right and following all the rules, but still getting hurt. Yet this is what can happen if you get hurt at work in Clovis because of defective equipment. If you got hurt at work because of a faulty tool or machine, you’re entitled to compensation for your injuries.
You’ll most likely receive this compensation through California’s workers’ compensation system. But sometimes things don’t work out, your claim gets denied, or the benefits you receive aren’t even close to covering your lost income or medical expenses. If any of these situations apply to you, contact the Clovis workers’ compensation lawyers of Maison Law for a free consultation.
Workers’ Compensation for Defective Equipment Workplace Injuries
For most work-related injuries, workers will rely on California’s workers’ compensation system. Under Section 3700 of the California Labor Code, your employer is required to pay for your medical treatment and lost wages if you suffer injuries while on-the-job. This obligation exists regardless of whether you, your employer, or a coworker caused the accident (subject to a few exceptions). You may also be entitled to receive:
- Permanent disability payments: If the defective equipment leads to injuries that prevent an employee from completing the same job before their injury, then monetary compensation is possible to account for this economic loss.
- Temporary disability payments: These benefits cover up to two-thirds of the employee’s pre-tax wages while recovering from covered injuries.
- Travel expenses: Costs incurred to travel to and from the doctor and rehabilitation visits may be partially or fully covered by workers’ compensation payments.
- Vocational rehabilitation: If the employee can’t return to their old job, they may be eligible for a voucher to pay for additional training at an eligible school or vocational program.
- Death benefits: If the defective equipment results in an employee’s death, then qualifying dependents may be eligible for up to $320,000 in death benefits. Another $10,000 may be provided for funeral and burial costs.
Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim
After seeking immediate medical attention for your injuries caused by defective equipment from work, you’ll need to move quickly to obtain workers’ compensation benefits. There are four main steps.
Step 1: Tell Your Employer You Got Hurt
Before you can recover workers’ compensation benefits, you have to let your employer know you got injured. There should be a designated individual at work to inform, but it’s usually a manager or supervisor. In most cases, you’ll have 30 days from the date of your injury to tell your employer what happened. Missing this window could bar you from any workers’ compensation benefits.
Step 2: Obtain Required Paperwork
After telling your employer you got hurt, they should give you a Workers’ Compensation Claim Form (DWC 1) within one working day.
Step 3: Submit Form DWC 1
In the “Employee” section, provide as much information about what happened as possible, especially how the equipment malfunctioned. After you give the DWC 1 to your employer, they’ll complete the “Employer” section, then provide you with a copy and send another copy to the workers’ compensation claims administrator.
Step 4: Await a Decision from the Claims Administrator
The claims administrator should let you know within 14 days if your claim is accepted or if further investigation is needed. If the claims administrator denies your claim, you can file an appeal. Given the complexity of the appeals process and workers’ compensation law, you’ll want to talk to a workers’ compensation lawyer before filing your appeal.
When occupational injuries are the result of a defective tool, machinery, or piece of equipment, things are a little different for employees. Instead of relying only on the workers’ compensation system, an injured employee can also be able to recover under a product liability legal theory. To know for sure, it’s best to consult with a workers’ compensation attorney.
An Overview of Product Liability Law in California
Under California Law, an individual can have a product liability claim for their injuries caused by a defective product. Often, the individual can establish this through the legal theory of strict liability.
Strict Liability Law in California
An individual can recover damages if the defective product or equipment was:
- Sold with a manufacturing defect;
- Defectively designed; and/or
- Sold with inadequate instructions or warnings.
If the harmed individual can show that the equipment was defective and the defect directly caused them harm, they may have a strict liability claim. In addition to strict liability, an individual can also bring a product liability claim through a negligence theory.
Negligence Law in California
To prove negligence in a product liability case in California, an individual must prove four things:
- The defendant owed the individual a legal duty;
- The defendant breached that legal duty;
- The individual suffered harm; and
- The breached duty caused that harm.
For example, the manufacturer of a dangerous tool might have a legal duty to include a particular safety feature on a device. If the manufacturer doesn’t include the feature, they will have breached this duty. And if the plaintiff suffered an injury that could have been prevented if the safety feature were in place, then the plaintiff likely has a legitimate product liability negligence cause of action against the manufacturer.
Additional Legal Claims
Besides strict liability and negligence, an employee hurt by defective equipment may also have a legal cause of action based on:
- Breach of express warranty
- Breach of implied warranty of merchantability
- Breach of implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose
- Negligent misrepresentation
- Intentional (fraudulent) misrepresentation
- Wrongful death (if the defective equipment led to a fatal accident at work)
Potential Defendants in a Third-Party Product Liability Case
The injured employee can usually bring a legal claim against any party that owed the employee a duty of care relating to the defective product. This means that in addition to the equipment’s manufacturer, the employee could potentially sue the:
- Designer of the equipment
- The seller of the equipment
- A distributor of the equipment
Damages Available In a Product Liability Lawsuit
If an employee successfully sues for a negligence-based product liability claim, they can potentially recover the following three types of damages:
- Economic
- Non-economic
- Punitive
Economic damages are designed to compensate a person for quantitative economic losses, such as:
- Past and future medical bills
- Lost wages
- Property damage (not including the defective equipment itself)
Non-economic damages apply to harder-to-quantify damages for things like:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of consortium
Punitive damages are damages a court can impose against a defendant not to compensate the plaintiff, but to punish the defendant and/or set an example to deter future conduct. Punitive damage awards are relatively rare, as they’re usually only awarded when the defendant’s conduct is especially egregious. The plaintiff must show with clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with oppression, fraud, or malice.
Learn How a Clovis Defective Equipment Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Can Help
Workers’ compensation cases are complicated enough, but add in the possibility of product liability legal claims and this complexity gets amplified. The silver lining is that you may have additional legal options to recover for your injuries. In addition to an employer and workers’ compensation insurance company, you may also have claims against the defective equipment’s designer, manufacturer, distributor, and/or retailer. This can also potentially increase the amount of money you can potentially recover for your defective equipment injuries.
Don’t try to handle everything on your own. There may be special deadlines and legal intricacies that are easy to miss. If you believe your workplace injuries are the result of defective equipment, contact Maison Law today. We offer free consultations where we’ll examine the facts of your case and decide what your legal options are. We don’t charge you until we obtain a recovery on your behalf, so you’ve got nothing to lose by reaching out.
