Construction workers are at high risk for suffering from a construction accident due to the dangers of the industry. A construction accident may lead to serious injury or even death.

The frequency of construction accidents is surprising to many people, but most often the company will be held liable. Liability depends upon the events leading to the construction accident.

Whether it is a small project for an individual or a large commercial development, construction workers deal with some of the most hazardous occupational conditions faced by employees in any industry.

There are many programs in place to attempt prevention of construction accidents such as regulations, specifications, inspection requirements and job safety programs.

However, in spite of these efforts to handle the challenge of construction site safety, accidents happen and will continue to happen due to both the nature of the occupation and the many hazards faced by construction employees.

These hazards may include:

If you or a family member has been injured due to a construction accident, the first step in your financial and legal recovery is to meet with an experienced attorney to discuss the situation.

Issues in your potential case, including compliance with occupational and site safety standards and regulations, engineering matters and liability determinations require that your claim be handled by a lawyer who is experienced in the area of construction accident injuries.

There are certain issues which may arise, depending on the state in which the occurrence happened, which may negate the employee's ability to recover damages for a construction accident. There are statutes of limitation laws that place time limits in which you must file a complaint, or it may be found invalid.

In addition, liability may be difficult to determine, because there are often many factors involved in a construction accident. Attorneys who are experts in construction accident law will be able to identify the responsible parties.

Depending on the size of the construction project, there may be many individuals in a variety of roles involved at a construction site. These may include the site's landowner, architects, contractors, construction managers, and equipment or material suppliers.

Most construction site projects are based on general contract relationships (when a general contractor is retained by the site owner and enters into agreements with sub-contractors as required); larger projects are progressively being handled by construction management organizations.

Potential liability of various parties is dependent upon the type of system in place at the construction site where an injury takes place. Larger construction projects generally involve a large amount of delegation of work and legal responsibility.

Typically, in assessing responsibility for injuries from a construction accident, the main determinations are the extent of the party's control over the site and the amount of their control over the work itself.

In order to better understand who may be liable for injuries due to a construction accident is will help to take a closer look at the responsibilities and legal duties of the parties involved on the construction site.

The landowner may not be considered the legal possessor of the site for the duration of the construction project if authority over the site is given over to other parties.

The landowner’s control over the site and the work itself are main issues in determining landowner liability for a construction accident. The landowner is primarily responsible for injuries from construction accidents which are the result of potentially harmful conditions on the land of which the owner knew or should reasonable have known.

This liability does not extend to potentially dangerous conditions that should be obvious to those on the site, and the responsibility may be eliminated or lessened depending upon the independent contractor's knowledge and corresponding responsibilities.

The general contractor and sub-contractor have the responsibility of providing a construction site that is reasonably safe and have a legal responsibility to warn of any hazards at the site or pertaining to the work itself.

Usually a general or sub-contractor will have a responsibility to ensure that work is being performed safely to the extent they have been given control over the site. This responsibility included the hiring of competent employees and making sure that all employees are aware of and in compliance with safety regulations.

Prime contractors are only responsible for the work outlined in his or her prime contract, whereas a general contractor has responsibility for the entire project. A prime contractor is also responsible for any work that he or she chooses to delegate to sub-contractors and has exclusive responsibility over those sub-contractors, including payment, work quality and liability for construction accident injuries.

Design professionals may be charged with varied amounts of responsibility for a construction project. Usually the best way to determine the degree of that responsibility is to look to their contract with the site owner.

Responsibilities may include progress observation to make sure all parties are in compliance with plans and specifications, as well as site inspection to make sure that all contractors are in compliance with code regulations.

Besides responsibilities outlined in the contract, these design professionals are held to certain accepted standards. An architect or engineer may be held responsible for any injuries suffered in a construction accident due to their failure to meet those standards.

Manufacturers of defective machines and equipment may be held liable for the design, manufacturing, and/or maintaining of that construction equipment as it relates to a construction accident.

The legal precepts that place responsibility on a manufacturer of defective products are pertinent in the construction industry, including the principle of no-fault or strict liability.

In most cases all parties involved on a construction site are required by law to carry liability and/or workman's compensation insurance coverage. The owner or property manager may be legally required to obtain property liability insurance.

The insurance coverage of each party involved in a construction project, and the extent of the insurance coverage, are important matters to consider when determining legal liability for a construction accident injury.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 set down many safety regulations for construction sites, which have been adopted by most states in some form or another.

Determining who is liable for making sure all parties are in compliance with OSHA regulations usually belongs to who was in control of the construction site or work activity when the construction accident occurred.

The legal consequence of violating OSHA regulations varies, depending upon the state in which the construction accident happened. If it can be proven that an OSHA regulation was violated and resulting in a construction accident, nothing more need be shown to establish that the responsible party was negligent, in some states.

In addition to OSHA regulations, the property owner or general contractor will have established his or her own safety rules designed to protect those performing work on the project from potential construction accidents.

Violating these regulations may constitute legal negligence to support a claim for a construction accident.

You should contact an experienced lawyer when involved in a construction accident. An experienced construction accident lawyer may be able to notify the construction accident employee of their legal responsibilities, rights and options.

If another party may be responsible for the construction accident, the construction accident lawyer can seek compensation.

When injured due to a construction accident, there are many things you can do to protect yourself and your rights.

First, get medical treatment for your injuries immediately.

Next, report the construction accident injury to your employer and/or construction manager, and make note the name and position of the party notified.

Then, get the names and contact information of other workers who may have witnessed the construction accident. When possible preserve any evidence of your injury from the construction accident by taking pictures of the area where the construction accident occurred and the injuries resulting from the construction accident. You may also wish to keep the equipment that was involved in your construction accident.

Finally, find an experienced construction accident lawyer to assist you in evaluating your potential claim. Usually your case may be won or lost based upon the leg-work done before it goes to trial.

By discussing your case with a lawyer experienced in construction accident injury law is the best way to make sure you are successful. Meeting with a qualified attorney as soon as possible after the accident is highly recommended, because of complex liability issues, statute of limitations which may apply, and the need to conduct a complete site investigation as soon after the construction accident injury as possible.

If you, or a loved one, has been involved in any type of construction accident in Kansas or Missouri, please do not hesitate to contact our office for a free consultation and case evaluation.