The damages available to injured construction workers depend on whether they are pursuing a Workers’ Compensation claim or a lawsuit. We will explain the compensation you can recover and help you obtain it after a construction site accident in Massachusetts.
Lawsuits can cover all medical expenses, lost wages, and non-economic damages. Workers’ Compensation claims, on the other hand, cover all medical damages, only some lost wages, and no non-economic damages. We need proof of damages to recover them, so please provide us with all relevant bills and other concrete evidence. Let us maximize your recovery, and call us about your case right after you’re injured on the job.
Call the Massachusetts construction accident lawyers of the Law Office of John J. Sheehan for a free case evaluation at (617) 925-6407.
What Damages Are Available to Injured Construction Workers from Lawsuits in Massachusetts?
When injured construction workers file lawsuits against negligent third parties in Massachusetts, they may recover full compensation for all incurred damages. Let us calculate these damages so you know what a fair recovery is before filing. Injured workers in Massachusetts may only sue third parties, such as equipment manufacturers, and not their employers.
Medical Expenses
Your lawsuit should cover all medical damages, regardless of their cost. This includes current and future damages, which our Andover, MA construction accident lawyers may prove using physicians’ statements and other medical evidence.
Report all medical expenses to our lawyers, whether large or small. We can tally them to determine the amount of compensation you are entitled to.
Lost Wages
Lawsuits can also cover all lost wages that injured construction workers suffer in Massachusetts. We can verify your pre-injury income using tax returns and pay stubs, and have medical experts testify about your inability to return to the same job because of the injury.
Miscellaneous Out-of-Pocket Expenses
Injured workers often experience additional economic damages as well. Tell us about any services you have had to hire, like transportation accommodations to get you to doctor appointments, and we can factor in those expenses as well when calculating your total economic damages.
Non-Economic Damages
Filing a third-party construction accident lawsuit may yield non-economic damages for injured workers, too. Disfigurement, crushing injuries, skull fractures, and other severe injuries have long-term emotional and mental consequences.
Tell us if you have experienced anxiety, depression, or even post-traumatic stress disorder due to a recent construction accident, and we can calculate your deserved non-economic damages in a lawsuit.
What Damages Are Available from Workers’ Compensation for Construction Accidents?
The damages that injured construction site employees can get from Workers’ Compensation claims differ from those that are available through lawsuits. Let us explain which damages you may get if there is no liable third party, and work hard to maximize those recovered in your claim.
Medical Damages
Like lawsuits, Workers’ Compensation generally covers all necessary medical expenses. Massachusetts has specific rules regarding which physicians injured workers must see for their initial assessment, unless it is an emergency, according to Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 152, § 30. If you don’t follow these rules, your employer’s carrier might contest covering some medical damages, which our lawyers can help prevent.
Lost-Wage Damages
Investigating a third party’s liability for construction accidents is vital, as Workers’ Compensation only pays a portion of the injured worker’s lost wages. The exact amount depends on your disability classification, whether that is temporary total incapacitation, partial incapacitation, or permanent and total incapacitation.
Specific Injury Damages
Workers’ Compensation also provides special one-time payments for specific injuries under § 36. Losing your vision or suffering an amputation due to a construction accident may qualify you for an additional sum from your employer’s carrier, so let us see if that’s the case.
Are Punitive Damages Available to Injured Construction Workers?
Generally, punitive damages aren’t available to injured construction workers in Massachusetts. Even if a plaintiff can file a third-party lawsuit and the defendant’s behavior was particularly egregious, they may not get additional non-compensatory damages to punish the defendant.
Massachusetts does allow punitive damages in wrongful death lawsuits. Suppose your loved one died in an equipment explosion on a construction site. In that case, you and other survivors may get punitive damages if the defendant’s conduct warrants them.
How Can You Get All Damages Available to Injured Construction Workers in Massachusetts?
We can help recover all potential damages in Massachusetts; let us start calculating your fair recovery right away.
Keep Proof of Damages
To recover all the damages available to you after a construction accident, keep proof of them. You can provide us with any medical bills or confirmation of your previous income so we can calculate and substantiate your economic damages.
If you can file a third-party lawsuit and recover non-economic damages, we must also prove them. Your testimony is great evidence of your pain and suffering. Not all third-party construction accident lawsuits in Massachusetts proceed to trial. However, if yours does, we may prepare you to testify in court.
Call Our Lawyers
Our attorneys can work hard to maximize your recovery after a construction accident and injury. The sooner you involve us, the better. That way, we can handle organizing proof of damages, getting statements from other witnesses, and compiling any relevant medical records.
Let us determine exactly which damages are available to you and help you recover them. Even though Workers’ Compensation is a no-fault system and all workers should be covered, carriers might deny claims for missing information or if they suspect the claimant intentionally injured themselves.
We can also work diligently to bring a timely case, as missing the filing deadline may prevent you from obtaining any compensatory damages in Massachusetts.
Call Us for Help Recovering Damages in Massachusetts
Call the Boston, MA construction accident lawyers of the Law Office of John J. Sheehan for help with your case at (617) 925-6407.