Sumter, SC Workplace Injury Lawyers
Workplace injuries can take away your means to support yourself, robbing you of your present and future. All the while, while you are out of work, you will be dealing with mounting medical bills that put you and your family’s financial well-being in jeopardy.
Many injured workers think that Workers’ Compensation is the only option they have after an injury, but this insurance scheme will not pay for your damages in full. In many cases, there are other options and potential parties to sue for damages that could help pull you out of a bad situation. Our lawyers can help you recover these costs so you can recover from your injuries in peace instead of economic distress.
Call Burriss Ridgeway Injury Lawyers at (803) 451-4000 for a free case assessment with our workplace injury lawyers today.
What Are My Options After a Work Injury in Sumter, SC
Many workers are under the impression that if they get injured on the job, Workers’ Compensation is their only option to recover payment. This is not always the case, and our workplace injury lawyers can explain what other routes to payment you might have.
Problems with Insurance
When you apply for damages through your employer’s Workers’ Compensation insurance, you will not receive the full damages you could be entitled to in a lawsuit. Insurance only pays a portion of your lost earnings in exchange for covering your medical bills in full without needing you to prove who caused the accident or why they should be held responsible. Even so, insurance does not pay for pain and suffering or any other “non-economic” damages in your injury case.
This ultimately means that, compared to a lawsuit, you could be left with unrecovered damages if you rely on insurance alone.
Suing for Workplace Injuries
Fortunately, lawsuits can often be filed for workplace accidents. Many people will tell you that you have to file with your employer for damages, but it is more accurate to say that insurance is the “exclusive remedy” when it comes to injuries caused by your employer. These rules only prevent you from suing your employer for negligence and do not block other lawsuits.
What this means is that you might have to rely on Workers’ Compensation if your injuries were caused by a complete accident, since there would be no one to sue; by your own accidental actions, since you cannot sue yourself; or by your employer’s accidental actions, since you cannot sue your employer. However, you can sue virtually anyone else outside the company for accidents they caused you.
This means that if you sue a negligent equipment manufacturing company, a customer who injured you, a driver who crashed into you, a contractor, a vendor, or any other third-party defendant, you might be able to recover full compensation in that lawsuit. Your employer’s insurance company might want to take back some of those damages from you in what is known as a “subrogation” claim, but this could still ultimately mean getting full lost-wage damages and compensation for your pain and suffering.
Other Exceptions
As mentioned, you can sue third parties for your injuries, but you can also sue your employer (despite the typical laws against doing so) if they injured you intentionally. Additionally, if you are not an “employee” and instead work as an independent contractor, you might be able to sue the party who contracted you, as they are not your “employer.”
Common Workplace Injuries in Sumter, SC
What injuries are most common will vary from industry to industry and from workplace to workplace. Nonetheless, the following are all some of the most common types of injuries across all industries, and our lawyers can help you with workplace accidents involving any of the following:
Electrocution
Electrocution injuries are some of the most common injuries that are tracked. These are, in fact, one of the top four injuries that OSHA is concerned with preventing. Electrocution injuries can cause burns as well as neurological issues or even death.
Back Injuries
Lifting heavy items, carrying them, and putting them back down are requirements of many different jobs, from construction work to warehouse stocking to office jobs. Lifting without a partner to help you or lifting the wrong way can hurt your back, potentially leading to periodic absences from work down the line and potential surgery to repair things like herniated or “slipped” discs.
Repetitive Stress/Repetitive Strain Injuries
Doing the same thing over and over again is a part of many job duties, but it takes a toll on your body. Wrists, elbows, and other joints often face long-term conditions and disabilities because of repetitive stress and repetitive strain in all kinds of job tasks, from machinery operation to driving to typing.
Blunt Force Injuries
Blunt- force trauma injuries can occur in many different ways. Falls are another of OSHA’s top four injuries, as are injuries from being struck by or pinned between various items. Whether you are hit by a falling tool, whether you fall to the ground, or whether you hit your head on a low-hanging hazard, these injuries can be quite serious. Injuries to the head are especially dangerous, as they can cause concussions and traumatic brain injury.
Amputation/Loss of Limb
Amputation injuries can occur in many industries involving heavy machinery, power tools, and other moving parts. Amputation usually happens in one of two ways: either the body part is traumatically amputated in an accident and cut off at once, or it is so injured in a workplace accident that it must be surgically amputated later at the hospital. In some traumatic amputation cases, the body part can be reattached, but many of these injuries do result in permanent loss and hardship.
Call Our Workplace Injury Lawyers at Burriss Ridgeway Injury Lawyers Today
After a work accident, call Burriss Ridgeway Injury Lawyers at (803) 451-4000 for a free review of your case with our workplace injury attorneys.
