New York City is constantly growing and changing, and construction projects are practically everywhere, even in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Whether you are a construction worker on a job or a pedestrian or passerby going past a construction site, the risk of injury is present. If you are injured in a construction-related accident, you should contact an attorney about a potential legal claim.
Construction accidents can be difficult to navigate because numerous people and parties might be involved. You might be dealing with general contractors, subcontractors, property owners, or even certain third parties, like the companies that produce tools and machinery. How your accident happened is an important detail that may shed light on who should be held responsible. Falling accidents are very common, but accidents involving faulty equipment or heavy machinery are also frequent. These kinds of injuries are often severe, and you deserve fair compensation.
Get a free case assessment from our Brooklyn, NY construction accident attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm by calling (718) 841-0083.
Who You Might Sue for a Construction Accident in Crown Heights
Construction accidents can be quite serious, and victims might be hurt very badly. Determining who should be held responsible for an accident can be challenging, to say the least. It is not unusual for plaintiffs to be unsure how their accident happened or who is to blame until after an investigation. In the meantime, our construction accident lawyers can go over the details of the accident to try to figure out what went wrong and who should be held liable.
Property Owners
Construction workers might not initially consider property owners when determining who is to blame for their accidents. Many workers never actually meet the property owners, and owners do not normally play an active role on the construction site. However, there are circumstances where a property owner may be held liable for construction accidents.
Perhaps the contractor and workers were never informed by property owners about certain hazards on the property. Maybe you were hired to do some roofing work on a major renovation project, but the owners neglected to inform you that the roof was damaged by wood rot. The next thing you know, you fall through the roof and end up in the hospital. Property owners may be held liable for failing to disclose such important information.
If you fell from scaffolding, certain New York statutes might come into play, making property owners and others liable for your injuries. According to L.A.B. Laws § 240(1), when a construction worker falls from scaffolding or other devices meant to suspend workers high above the ground, contractors and property owners – with the exception of owners of one or two-family dwellings – may be held liable.
Contractors
Property owners do not usually manage construction sites. Instead, general contractors manage them and hire numerous workers, including subcontractors, to do the work. Since these contractors run the construction project and hire workers, they are often responsible when things go wrong. As such, you should tell your attorney the names of the general contractors in charge of the site and the subcontractor who might have hired you.
Not only may contractors be liable for failing to keep the construction site safe for workers, but they might also be liable under the above-mentioned law regarding scaffolding. That law not only makes property owners liable, but it also makes contractors liable, and you may sue both.
You might not have been hired directly by a general contractor. Many workers are hired by subcontractors who were themselves hired by general contractors. For example, a general contractor might hire a subcontractor to do electrical work, and the subcontractor might have hired you. Depending on how your accident occurred, the subcontractor might also need to be included in your case.
Other Parties
Depending on the circumstances, other people or parties might be responsible for a construction accident. For example, trespassers sometimes tamper with construction sites, often looking for tools or materials to steal. If these trespassers mess with the site, machinery, or other equipment, it might become unsafe for workers to use. In other cases, injuries are caused by defective tools or machinery. In such cases, injured victims can sue the manufacturers of defective tools and equipment.
Finding Evidence to Support Your Construction Accident Claims in Crown Heights
Evidence to support a construction accident lawsuit might come from anywhere, depending on the situation, but the construction site itself is a great place to begin. Many construction sites, especially for larger projects, are monitored by security cameras. There might be video footage of your accident that shows exactly how it happened and why the defendant should be held liable. The problem is that this footage is likely in the hands of the defendant and might be easily deleted. We can request the evidence as part of discovery or ask the court to order the defendant to turn it over.
Witnesses are important in many cases, and construction accident claims are no different. Considering that construction sites often have many workers running around, there is a good chance that we will be able to speak to numerous witnesses and have those with the best testimony testify in court.
If the construction site has experienced accidents before or the contractors are known to be negligent, your coworkers might have valuable information about that. For example, another worker might have personal knowledge of how the contractors cut corners and create an unsafe environment.
We should also gather important physical evidence. For example, if you were injured because a power tool malfunctioned, we need to get the defective tool. Next, we should have it inspected so we can determine exactly what makes it faulty and why the manufacturer should be held responsible for putting out a defective product.
Speak to Our Crown Heights Construction Accident Lawyers for Help
Get a free case assessment from our construction accident attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm by calling (718) 841-0083.