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Construction Injury Attorney
Serving Buffalo, New York
Construction sites are extremely dangerous. One slip can mean permanent injury or death. This is why New York State has a nondelegable duty for property owners and general contractors to provide safe work sites.
Construction workers are skilled trades people who build our communities and have much to be proud of for their contributions to the community and the skill with which they work. Unfortunately, when a worker is injured, even if he or she is receiving workers’ compensation benefits, those payments are not enough to maintain a family, pay a mortgage or rent, car payments, utility bills, and other fixed expenses.
Often there are multiple contractors, sub-contractors, governmental agencies, and other entities involved in a construction project. It is essential to identify and understand those who may be legally responsible for a construction injury.
Accidents at a construction site can be caused by:
- Defective vehicles or machinery
- Exposure to dangerous chemicals
- Working on scaffolding that isn’t structurally sound
- Negligence of other workers
- Failure to secure the site and equipment
- Failure to post adequate warnings
- Failure to provide adequate safety for passers-by
Construction injuries can be devastating. According to the US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are more worker deaths in the construction industry than in any other industry. As a worker on a construction site, your health and safety are of the utmost importance. It is the duty of the site owners, contractors, subcontractors, equipment manufacturers, and material suppliers to protect you. Although you are not allowed to sue your employer because of Workers’ Compensation Laws, one of these other entities may be held responsible for your injuries in what is called a third party action.
New York State has enacted statutes and regulations that are meant to ensure workers that their worksites are safe. The most significant of these statutes are New York Labor Law sections 200, 240, and 241(6).
These laws impose an absolute nondelegable duty on contractors, subcontractors, and site owners to provide a safe worksite. This means that the contractors, subcontractors, and site owners are absolutely liable for injuries on the worksite. These parties cannot raise a comparative negligence defense, even if the injured worker is at fault. The laws also prevent contractors, subcontractors, and site owners from claiming they were not at fault because they assigned the duty of providing a safe worksite to someone else. Safety is a nondelegable duty.
Section 200 generally requires that workers and other people that are legally on the site be provided reasonable and adequate protection. Under section 240, it is solely the responsibility of owners, contractors, and their agents to supply proper protection for height related work, such as scaffolds, hoists, stays, ladders, slings, etc. The equipment supplied must be constructed, placed, and operated to give workers proper protection. Section 241(6) requires owners, contractors, and their agents to comply with the New York State Industrial Code. The Industrial Code requires that people be protected from general hazards, such as overhead hazards, falling hazards, drowning hazards, slipping hazards, tripping, and other hazards.
It is necessary to employ an experienced lawyer to analyze the circumstances of your accident and separate those who can be held liable from those who cannot and determine what constitutes an appropriate claim in each case.
We operate on a no recovery, no fee basis, so don’t hesitate to schedule a complimentary case analysis with our Buffalo construction injury attorney today.
1220 Liberty Building | 424 Main St. | Buffalo, NY 14202 | (716) 854-0700
