Dollar General Workers’ Compensation Claims in Houston

There are more Dollar General stores in Texas than there are in any other state—nearly 1,800 of them, representing nine percent of all the Dollar General stores across the country. However, this is not the only unique thing about working for Dollar General in the Lone Star State. Unfortunately, most people find that out when they get hurt on the job and realize they do not have workers’ compensation coverage.

As one of many “non-subscriber” companies in Texas, Dollar General takes advantage of a state law allowing them to skip paying for workers’ comp insurance, which means genuine Dollar General workers’ compensation claims in Houston are fairly rare. Importantly, a workplace accident lawyer may still help you recover for an injury you suffered on the job by filing suit directly against Dollar General.

Proving Dollar General at Fault for an Accident

Texas is the only state that does not require any employer—regardless of how many employees they have or what industries they do business in—to purchase workers’ compensation coverage for their employees. Companies that elect not to purchase workers’ comp insurance here are referred to as “non-subscribers.” People who work for these companies cannot hold their employers automatically liable for certain financial losses they suffer due to accidents or illnesses on the job.

However, non-subscriber companies also must go without one of the main benefits of workers’ compensation insurance, which is immunity from civil liability for their employees’ work-related accidents. In other words, if a Dollar General worker in Houston gets hurt on the job directly because of their employer’s negligence, there is nothing stopping them from suing Dollar General over that injury. That is something people with workers’ compensation coverage would not be able to do to their own employer.

Recovering Fairly for Common Injuries and Losses

Legally actionable negligence in this context could be as obvious as a Dollar General store letting frayed wires or faulty light fixtures go unrepaired for weeks, or as small as a manager failing to make sure someone cleans up a spill soon after it happens. If reckless or careless behavior by someone affiliated with Dollar General was the primary cause of the accident, and the accident led to an injury serious enough to require professional medical care, the company could be civilly liable for the losses.

Specific damages a lawyer could incorporate into a work injury claim may include:

• All past and future bills for medical care
• The full value of lost work income during injury recovery
• Permanent loss of working capacity
• Injury-related expenses, like home modifications, to account for a physical disability
• Job retraining costs
• Physical pain and suffering
• Emotional and psychological distress
• Lost overall quality of life

A lawyer could go into further detail during a private consultation about what losses an injured worker in Houston could recover through a claim filed against Dollar General.

Talk to a Houston Attorney About a Dollar General Workers’ Compensation Claim

Working for Dollar General may not seem like a particularly dangerous career path, but retail stores see plenty of work-related accidents and illnesses every year. In Texas, those incidents might not be covered by workers’ comp. Fortunately, even if you work for a non-subscriber like Dollar General, you still have rights after getting hurt on the job that a lawyer from Schechter, Shaffer & Harris could help you enforce.

If you want to know more about Dollar General workers’ compensation claims in Houston, one of our reliable attorneys could provide answers to all your questions during a confidential meeting. Schedule yours by calling us today.