Staten Island Scaffolding Accident Lawyer
Staten Island, like all boroughs of New York City, is home to its fair share of tall buildings and structures. Construction workers and other relevant workers often rely on scaffolding to help them perform various tasks at such great heights.
This can be somewhat dangerous. If you or a loved one has been injured while working on scaffolding, you may be able to pursue compensation for your medical bills and related losses. This may involve filing a claim to collect workers’ compensation benefits and/or filing a personal injury lawsuit.
You should strongly consider enlisting the help of a Staten Island scaffolding law lawyer who can help explain your legal options. Our team of Staten Island legal experts at Shulman & Hill can help optimize your chances of receiving fair compensation. Get started by scheduling a free legal consultation today.
New York’s Scaffold Law: Essential Information
New York’s laws are designed to ensure the safety of those working on scaffolding. The New York Scaffold Law requires employers, property owners, and general contractors to take all necessary steps to prevent accidents.
Examples of steps employers, property owners, and general contractors must take include:
- Providing workers with proper safety equipment
- Securing railings firmly to prevent scaffolding from swaying
- Installing safety railings that cover the full length of scaffolding
- Ensuring scaffolding is capable of supporting four times its maximum weight
While some critics of the Scaffold Law have lobbied against it claiming it drives up construction costs, it is a necessary legal measure to help improve worker conditions.
Staten Island Scaffolding Accidents: Potential Causes
Accidents may befall those working on scaffolding for many reasons. Examples include the following:
- Improper installation
- Failure to provide necessary safety equipment and/or training
- Defective equipment
- Failure to establish, communicate, or adhere to safety policies
- Failure to secure items that could fall from heights and strike workers
Construction remains one of the most dangerous occupations in the country. It is critical that employers, property owners, and general contractors do all they can to protect workers. Unfortunately, they sometimes neglect this duty.
Staten Island Scaffolding Accident Injuries
Scaffolding accidents often involve falls from heights. Falls have the potential to leave workers with serious injuries. Some injuries can have a permanent effect on a worker’s quality of life. A spinal cord injury, for example, can result in permanent paralysis.
Scaffolding accidents may also occur when items fall from heights and strike workers below. If a piece of equipment were to fall and strike a worker on the head, it could cause a traumatic brain injury. This may have a lifelong impact on a victim’s cognition, memory, emotional regulation, and even personality.
Regardless of the type of injury you sustain, if you are involved in a Staten Island scaffolding accident you will likely require costly medical treatment. Your injuries may also be severe enough to prevent you from working and earning an income. A Staten Island scaffolding law lawyer can help you pursue compensation for these losses.
The Importance of Working With a Staten Island Scaffolding Law Firm
If you are seeking compensation for losses sustained as a result of an accident that occurred while you were working on scaffolding, it is recommended that you work with a Staten Island law firm that has qualified workers’ compensation attorneys and personal injury lawyers. Our Staten Island scaffolding law attorneys can help you in the following key ways:
Proving the Scaffold Law Applies to Your Case
Negligent parties may contest arguments that the New York Scaffold law applies to your accident. In order to show why you are entitled to compensation, our Staten Island lawyers can gather evidence in support of your case.
Proving Negligence
In New York, the most common means by which an injured employee seeks compensation after an on-the-job accident is to file a claim with their employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. They do not need to prove anyone’s negligence caused their accident to qualify for workers’ compensation benefits. However, if their accident was the result of another party’s negligence, such as a property owner or general contractor, they may file a personal injury lawsuit as well.
The New York Scaffold Law allows injured workers to more easily pursue additional compensation beyond what they would receive from workers’ compensation insurance. However, to show they may be entitled to compensation, injured workers must still prove that a property owner or general contractor was liable under the Scaffold Law. Our Staten Island personal injury lawyers can help you prove liability.
Be aware, you can still file a claim for workers’ compensation benefits in addition to a personal injury lawsuit. You will be more likely to recover a fair sum if you have representation from our Staten Island law firm.
Filing a Claim for Compensation
Filing a claim can be a tedious process that involves documenting your losses and providing evidence showing why you may be entitled to compensation. You do not need to burden yourself with this process at a time when you should be focusing on your recovery. Our Staten Island legal team can handle the process of filing your claim.
Negotiating
This may be one of the top reasons to hire a Staten Island scaffold law lawyer when pursuing compensation. Insurance companies can be profit-driven businesses, and as such, they may not be inclined to provide fair compensation.
Negotiating with an insurance company for fair compensation requires a significant degree of expertise and an understanding of insurers’ tactics. We are prepared to negotiate aggressively on your behalf.
Why Choose Shulman & Hill?
At Shulman & Hill, you will find a team of Staten Island workers’ compensation and personal injury lawyers that have a consistent track record of success. We have recovered more than $300 million for our injured clients over the years due to our meticulous and aggressive approach.
To learn more about how we can help you, call us today at (555) 555-5555 or contact us online to schedule your free legal consultation.
WE WORK WITH YOU
TO GET YOU COMPENSATED
Everyday working people often struggle to afford top-tier legal representation. To ensure equal access to justice, we work on a contingency-fee basis. You pay no attorneys’ fees unless we achieve a settlement or verdict in your case.