Galveston Construction-Refinery Accident Lawyer

From offshore oil rigs to refineries on land, the oil and gas industry plays a central role in the economy of Texas and the United States. Unfortunately, despite the trillions of dollars in revenue that they take in each year, corporations within this industry rarely dedicate as much attention as they should to making sure their employees and contract workers have safe working conditions and access to the right protective gear.

This means that, alongside construction sites, refineries are one of the most common places statewide for on-the-job accidents to occur. When you need to get paid fairly for losses you have suffered through this kind of incident, working with a skilled work accident attorney is necessary.

No matter how you got hurt or what specific damages you need to seek recovery for, a dedicated Galveston construction-refinery accident lawyer is your ally throughout your legal proceedings.

Holding an Employer Liable for a Refinery or Construction Accident

Unlike every other U.S. state, Texas does not require employers of any size to maintain workers’ compensation insurance, and instead allows companies to designate themselves as “non-subscribers” and avoid purchasing this type of coverage. In practice, this means that the best course of action for seeking financial recovery after an accident involving construction or refinery work is often filing a lawsuit against a negligent employer or a negligent third party.

Holding a non-subscriber employer or third party (like a material supplier or manufacturing company) liable for a workplace injury typically requires proving they were reckless or careless in a way which led to an injury occurring. On the bright side, construction and refinery workers who can meet this standard of proof can seek restitution for a much broader variety of damages compared to a workers’ comp claimant. These damages might include:

• All past and future medical expenses for injury-related care
• Lost work income or long-term working capacity
• Disability-related costs of things like assistive equipment and home/vehicle modifications
• Physical pain and suffering
• Emotional and psychological anguish
• Lost overall enjoyment/quality of life

A Galveston construction-refinery accident attorney can make sure this claim accounts for every compensable loss a worker may be entitled to.

Getting Around Common Obstacles to Recovery

A professional can provide help with avoiding common legal and procedural pitfalls while pursuing a construction or refinery accident lawsuit. For instance, they can push back against allegations that an injured worker was partially or primarily to blame for causing their own injury through their own misconduct. Employers in these industries often use this tactic in an attempt to reduce the total compensation they will owe to that worker, or even to get their case thrown out of court entirely.

Just as importantly, a skilled lawyer could ensure a civil claim built around a construction or refinery injury in Galveston is filed within applicable deadlines. With few exceptions, anyone who waits longer than two years to file suit after getting hurt due to another person’s misconduct will be “time-barred” from ever recovering for that particular incident.

Get in Touch with a Galveston Construction-Refinery Accident Attorney Today

Working in construction or inside an oil refinery will likely always be dangerous to some degree, but you still have a right to expect reasonably safe working conditions on the job. If your employer failed to live up to their “duty of care” towards you in this regard, you may have grounds to demand money from them and anyone who played a role in causing you harm.

Guidance from a Galveston construction-refinery accident lawyer can make a big difference in how you can navigate through the legal process. Call today for a consultation and improve your odds of a successful personal injury case result.