Austin Construction Accident Attorneys

Securing Maximum Compensation for Austin’s Construction Injury Victims

An injury on an Austin construction site can be complicated. While workers’ comp helps, it may not cover all your losses, especially if a third party’s negligence caused your accident. 

The Austin construction accident attorneys at LGR investigate every angle of your case to identify all liable parties—from general contractors to equipment manufacturers—to fight for the maximum compensation you deserve. Contact us today for a free case evaluation.

Construction Accident Lawsuits in Austin vs. Texas Workers’ Compensation Claims

Construction accident claims in Austin operate under two vastly different legal systems: workers’ compensation and personal injury lawsuits. In some workplace injury cases, you can use both methods of recovery.

Workers’ Compensation Claims

This is a no-fault system. Benefits are available regardless of who caused the accident, but compensation is strictly limited. It covers only medical treatment and a portion of lost wages, but never compensation for pain and suffering or the full value of future lost income. 

If an employer carries workers’ comp, the employee generally cannot sue them directly.

Personal Injury Lawsuits

These cases are based on negligence. This path is required to seek full financial recovery. It is viable in two key scenarios:

1. Non-Subscriber Lawsuit: If the injured worker’s employer does not subscribe to the voluntary Texas Workers’ Compensation system, they can be sued directly for negligence.
2. Third-Party Liability: The worker can sue any party other than their employer (e.g., a negligent subcontractor, equipment manufacturer, or site owner). This allows recovery for all damages, far exceeding the limits of workers’ comp.

Compensation in Third-Party Construction Accident Cases in Austin

Third-party construction accident lawsuits are critical for securing the compensation that workers’ compensation alone cannot provide. They allow the injured worker to pursue the full spectrum of civil damages based on negligence. This is essential for catastrophic injuries that result in permanent impairment.

Economic Losses

These cover the measurable financial impact, which is often massive in construction injury cases:

• Past and Future Medical Costs: Including emergency treatment, complex surgeries, rehabilitation, and the estimated lifetime cost of care.
• Lost Wages and Benefits: Full recovery of income missed during recovery and, most critically, diminished earning capacity for permanent disabilities.
• Adaptive Equipment Costs: Expenses for wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs, and necessary modifications to homes or vehicles.

Non-Economic Losses

These damages address the non-financial human cost of the injury, which is wholly excluded under the Workers’ Compensation system:

• Physical Pain and Suffering: Compensation for all discomfort, chronic pain, and long-term physical limitations.
• Mental Anguish and Trauma: Recovery for severe depression, PTSD, and emotional distress caused by the accident and resulting disabilities.
• Disfigurement: Compensation for permanent scarring, burns, or the loss of a limb.
• Loss of Enjoyment of Life: Damages reflecting the inability to participate in hobbies, sports, or family activities.

Punitive Damages

In cases where the third party, such as a manufacturer or a contractor, acted with gross negligence (e.g., knowingly failing to fix faulty scaffolding), punitive damages may be awarded. These are intended to punish the egregious wrongdoing and deter similar unsafe behavior in the industry.

LGR: Fighting for Austin’s Construction Accident Victims

A serious injury on an Austin construction site can be devastating. While workers’ compensation provides a baseline of benefits, it is often not enough to cover the full extent of your losses. 

At LGR, our primary role is to investigate beyond the workers’ comp claim to determine if a negligent third party is also responsible, opening the door to the full and fair compensation you deserve.

Multi-Layered Investigation into Third-Party Liability

What makes our process unique is our immediate, multi-layered investigation that runs in parallel with any workers’ compensation claim. The moment we are hired, we deploy construction site safety engineers and OSHA experts to the scene. 

The mission is to identify negligence by parties other than your direct employer, such as the general contractor, a subcontractor from another company, or the manufacturer of a defective piece of equipment.

Pursuing All Avenues for Maximum Recovery

Our firm’s unique value is in our ability to build a powerful third-party personal injury lawsuit based on our investigation. This separate claim allows you to recover critical damages that are not available through workers’ compensation. 

By pursuing all liable parties, we fight to ensure you receive a recovery that truly accounts for the total impact the injury has had on your life.

Who Is Financially Liable for Austin Construction Accidents?

Financial liability in personal injury law refers to the legal obligation of an individual or entity to pay for the victim’s damages. On an Austin construction site, financial liability is complex because the Texas Workers’ Compensation Act often protects the direct employer from being sued (unless the employer is a non-subscriber). This shifts the focus to negligent third parties.

The key to a successful claim is finding a liable entity, which may include:

• General Contractors (GCs): Often held liable for overall site safety, particularly if the accident resulted from OSHA violations or failure to coordinate a safe working environment.
• Subcontractors: Another subcontractor working on site whose negligence (e.g., leaving unsecured materials, improper wiring) caused an injury to an employee of a different company.
• Equipment Manufacturers: Liable through product liability if the accident was caused by a defective crane, faulty scaffolding, or malfunctioning power tool.
• Property Owners: May be liable if they retained control over the site or were aware of a dangerous pre-existing condition and failed to warn workers.
• Architects or Engineers: Liable if the injury resulted from a flawed design or a dangerous specification in the project blueprints.
• Motorists: Drivers who cause a crash by striking a worker or vehicle entering or exiting the construction site.

Common Causes of Construction Accident Injuries in Austin, TX

Austin’s booming construction landscape is filled with inherently dangerous job sites. While construction work carries risks, accidents are rarely unavoidable. They are most often the direct result of negligence.  

A significant cause of construction accidents is the failure to follow federally mandated safety protocols established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Identifying these safety violations is the key to holding the responsible parties accountable.

The most common causes of construction accidents in Austin are known as OSHA’s “Fatal Four”:

• Falls: Falls from scaffolding, ladders, roofs, and unprotected edges are tragically common on construction sites. These incidents are almost always due to a lack of proper fall protection equipment or training.
• Struck-By Incidents: This involves a construction worker being forcefully struck by an object, such as falling tools or building materials, a swinging crane load, or a vehicle operating on the site.
• Electrical Injuries: Contact with live power lines, exposed wiring, and improperly grounded equipment is a major hazard on construction sites, leading to severe burns, internal damage, and often, electrocution death.
• Caught-In/Between Incidents: These horrific accidents occur when a worker is caught, crushed, or compressed between two or more objects, such as in a trench collapse, or between heavy machinery and a stationary object.

Severe and Catastrophic Injuries That Occur on Construction Sites in Austin

Construction sites present numerous hazards, making accidents in this industry exceptionally dangerous and often resulting in severe or catastrophic injuries. The severity of these injuries often leads to permanent impairment, requiring long-term care and significantly impacting a worker’s quality of life and ability to return to the job. 

Common severe and catastrophic construction injuries include:

• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
• Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) resulting in paralysis (paraplegia or quadriplegia)
• Severe Burns (thermal or electrical)
• Traumatic Amputations or crush injuries requiring surgical amputation
• Major internal organ damage and massive bone fractures