Construction is one of the few jobs where the person who gets hurt is often standing next to workers from three or four different companies. A general contractor, a subcontractor, an equipment supplier, a property owner, maybe a delivery driver pulling in. When someone falls, gets struck or is caught in machinery, the obvious thing to do is file for workers’ compensation. That’s a sensible first step. It’s just not always the only one.
A Fall River construction accident lawyer often starts by asking a different question: was anyone other than your employer involved in what happened?
How dangerous the work is
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2023 census of fatal occupational injuries counted 5,283 fatal work injuries in the United States. Workers in construction and extraction occupations accounted for 1,055 of those deaths, and the construction sector as a whole, with 1,075, had more than any other sector. Within construction, falls, slips and trips caused 421 deaths, about 39 percent.
Those are national numbers about deaths, which are only the most extreme end of job-site injuries. But they explain why heights, equipment and moving vehicles are the focus whenever people discuss safety on a site.
Two claims, one injury
The first claim is workers’ compensation. It’s the system that generally responds to on-the-job injuries and it’s handled through your employer’s insurer. It deals with medical care and wage loss, and it isn’t about proving someone was careless.
The second claim is against someone else. If a company or person who isn’t your employer contributed to your injury, you may be able to pursue them separately. That might be a subcontractor whose work created a hazard, a manufacturer of a defective tool or lift, a property owner, or a driver who hit you while you were working near a road. A claim like that can reach losses that compensation benefits don’t, but it requires showing that party was at fault.
What the state’s rules add
The Department of Industrial Accidents’ page on third-party liability explains that, under G.L. c. 152, section 15, either the injured worker or the workers’ compensation insurer can start a third-party recovery, and the insurer has to wait seven months after the date of injury before doing so. The department says it reviews more than 1,200 of these petitions every year.
Several features of that process matter in practice:
- A third-party settlement needs the department’s approval.
- The attorney fee is typically one-third, and the department won’t approve agreements that push the whole fee onto the employee.
- The workers’ compensation insurer is generally entitled to be repaid for certain benefits it paid out of a third-party recovery, so the final numbers need to be worked out carefully.
- If a lump-sum settlement of compensation benefits is part of the picture, it needs to be handled together with the third-party petition, rather than separately in court.
That interaction between two claims is why people should be careful before signing anything. An agreement that looks like a fix for one claim can limit another.
Evidence disappears faster on a construction site
A site changes by the week. Scaffolding comes down, a trench is backfilled, a crew moves on. The condition that hurt you may be gone before anyone has photographed it. If you’re able, or if a coworker can help, record the scene: where you were, what equipment was nearby, who else was working, and what the conditions were. Report the injury promptly to your employer and ask for a copy of whatever incident report is filed.
Medical records matter just as much. Tell every provider that your injury happened at work and describe exactly how.
Records worth gathering early
Because two claims can run on parallel tracks, the paperwork you keep matters. Save your recent pay stubs, your work schedule and any notes about light-duty offers or restrictions from your doctor. Write down which companies were working on the site that day and who directed your work, since contracts between those companies often decide who may be responsible. If you’ve received safety training, keep the certificates. And keep a simple diary of the tasks you can no longer do at work and at home, because it’s easy to forget the details months later. Even small entries, like not being able to lift your child or drive for a week, help show how the injury changed your daily life.
Be careful what you say and sign
You’ll probably be asked for statements by insurers, supervisors and possibly other companies on the site. Keep to facts, avoid guessing about causes and don’t sign releases or settlements until you understand what they would waive.
If you were hurt at a job site, a Fall River construction accident lawyer can look at who else may have been responsible, explain how that interacts with your workers’ compensation case and help preserve evidence before the site changes.
