Poughkeepsie Workplace Injury Attorney
Accidents at work can keep you from returning to your job for quite some time. This can leave you with the additional expenses of medical bills and other recovery costs, all without the income to afford them. If you were injured in an accident at work, you should work with an attorney to get full compensation for these injuries and your resulting damages.
Many workplace accidents are covered by Workers’ Compensation in New York, but the compensation paid through that program might fail to cover your injuries in full and prevent you from getting certain areas of compensation. However, a lawsuit might be permitted against other parties or, in certain situations, against your employer.
For a free review of your workplace injury case, call the workplace injury attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.
When Can Injured Workers File a Lawsuit in Poughkeepsie, NY?
Injury cases at work are often governed by New York’s Workers’ Compensation rules. These rules can be incredibly restrictive for injured workers, blocking access to the courts. This could mean receiving reduced damages for your lost wages and no damages for pain and suffering. However, our workplace injury attorneys can help you take your case to court under the following exceptions, potentially opening access to additional compensation:
Specific Exceptions
New York law creates some specific exceptions where, when your employer is responsible for your accident, you can sue them. These exceptions require the accident to have involved particular issues covered under exceptions in New York law.
L.A.B. Law § 200, 240, and 241 provide the most common exceptions that allow lawsuits for work injury victims. Under these rules, an employer’s violation of safety regulations can open them to a lawsuit, allowing the victim to get around the usual obstacles under Workers’ Compensation.
Independent Contractors
Independent contractors are not covered by Workers’ Compensation and do not face these lawsuit restrictions – but that is only for properly classified independent contractors. Most workers in New York are indeed counted as “employees” for these insurance purposes, even if they are paid as independent contractors. So, while most independent contractors will still need to find another exception to allow them to sue, some will be covered by this exception and will be permitted to sue their clients.
Third-Party Lawsuits
Although these laws prevent lawsuits against an employer, your employer might not be the best or only target for a workplace accident anyway. If you were injured at work because of someone else’s negligence, then these laws do not usually block or limit your right to sue them, and you can go ahead with a lawsuit against any other parties. This is one of the most flexible exceptions and can help many people sue for injuries at work.
Workers who do their job at other locations can often sue the owner of the property at that job site for their injuries. This could include cleaners, contractors, consultants, and many other types of workers.
Workers who rely on safety gear, tools, and other equipment for their jobs could be entitled to lawsuits against the companies that produced that gear. Any design defects, manufacturing defects, or issues with warnings could implicate the manufacturer in your case and allow you to sue them.
Other workplace injury cases can be filed against customers, vendors, passers-by, and other people who are not employed at your place of work.
Damages Payable to Injured Workers in Poughkeepsie, NY
Work injuries are often frustrating because you have to work to get a paycheck, but if you get injured at work, then you lose your paycheck. Fortunately, our lawyers can help you get compensation for your lost wages, medical bills, and other damages related to your workplace injuries.
If you were injured at work and filed through your employer’s insurance, then you might be able to recover limited damages. This commonly covers medical bills related to the work injury – but there might be strings attached, such as a requirement to use an approved doctor. You can also get lost wages, but they are typically capped and provide only a portion of the wages you missed. You also cannot claim pain and suffering damages this way, meaning that you will miss out on a potentially large area of compensation.
In a lawsuit for a workplace injury, you can get compensation – in full – for medical bills, any wages you missed because of your injury, and pain and suffering, as well as other damages.
Medical Expenses
Medical expenses related to your injury can involve more than just hospital stays and surgery and can also include compensation for physical therapy, occupational therapy, mental health counseling, and other expenses. Many long-term injuries result in higher damages for things like wheelchair ramps and home nursing care.
Lost Earnings
When you claim compensation for lost wages in a lawsuit, you can receive compensation at the full value, and you can receive compensation for any impact the injury will have on your ability to work going forward.
Other Economic Damages
Alongside these two areas of damages, you can also potentially claim compensation for other “economic” damages. This can include incidental damages related to the accident, like property damage for a broken cell phone or ruined clothing. It can also include other expenses you have to pay because of the accident, such as the cost of help around the house while you recover or help with additional childcare needs after work until you are well again.
Pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering damages can often be worth as much as the rest of your damages combined – possibly more. Because of this, pain and suffering damages are a huge area of compensation that many work injury victims miss out on by filing through insurance. Your attorney can help prove how much these damages are worth by presenting evidence of how the injury affects your day-to-day abilities, how it affects your enjoyment of life, and how the mental anguish, emotional distress, and physical pain have impacted you.
Call Our Workplace Accident Lawyers in Poughkeepsie, NY
To have our attorneys provide a free evaluation of your injury case, contact The Carrion Law Firm’s workplace injury attorneys today at (718) 841-0083.