When a Workplace Injury Involves More Than Your Employer or Co-worker
When you are injured at work in Illinois, it is natural to assume that worker's compensation is your only path forward. Your immediate concerns are probably much more personal. You may be focused on getting the medical treatment you need, finding out how serious your injuries are, wondering when you will be able to work again, and worrying about how your family will manage financially in the meantime.
Worker's compensation can provide important benefits after a workplace injury, including medical treatment and a portion of your lost wages. But it may not be your only legal option. If someone other than your employer or co-worker caused or contributed to the accident, you may have additional claims under Illinois law.
This is especially important in workplaces where several companies may be involved. Construction sites, steel mills, manufacturing plants, warehouses, transportation facilities, and other industrial workplaces often have contractors, subcontractors, equipment companies, maintenance crews, trucking companies, property owners, and other businesses working in the same location. Any one of those parties could potentially contribute to a serious accident.
At Allen Law Group, we represent injured workers throughout Illinois. We look beyond the worker's compensation claim to understand how the accident happened, who was involved, and whether another person or company should be held responsible for the harm you suffered.
You May Have More Legal Options Than You Realize
After a workplace accident, you should not be expected to know whether another company may be legally responsible for what happened. You may not know who owned the machine that injured you, who was supposed to inspect a piece of equipment, which contractor controlled the area where you were working, or whether an outside company created the dangerous condition that caused your accident.
Those are questions for an investigation, not questions an injured worker should be expected to answer alone.
Our attorneys examine the circumstances surrounding the accident to determine whether someone other than your employer or co-worker may have caused or contributed to your injuries. Sometimes that responsibility is obvious. In other cases, it may take a careful review of contracts, maintenance records, safety procedures, photographs, video, witness statements, equipment records, and company documents to understand what went wrong.
When you are already dealing with pain, medical treatment, uncertainty about your future, and concern for your family, you should not also have to become an expert in Illinois worker's compensation and personal injury law. Our job is to help you understand your options and determine whether there is another party that should be held accountable.
What Is an Illinois Third-Party Liability Claim?
Worker's compensation is generally the first source of benefits when an employee is injured while working within the course and scope of their employment. It can provide important medical and wage-related benefits without requiring the injured worker to prove that the employer was negligent. However, worker's compensation does not necessarily provide compensation for every way a serious injury can affect your life.
A third-party claim is different. If a person or company other than your employer or co-worker negligently caused or contributed to your injury, you may be able to pursue a separate personal injury claim against that party.
Depending on the circumstances, a third-party claim may allow you to seek compensation for losses that are not addressed in the same way through worker's compensation, including pain and suffering, loss of normal life, future lost earnings, future medical needs, permanent disability, disfigurement, and other losses resulting from a serious injury.
That distinction can become extremely important when an injury is permanent. Worker's compensation may help with medical treatment and part of your lost wages, but a serious injury can affect much more than your paycheck. You may no longer be able to return to a career you spent years building. You may need additional surgeries, rehabilitation, or long-term medical care. Everyday activities such as caring for your children, working around your home, driving, exercising, or spending time with your family may become more difficult. Those changes are part of the real impact of a serious workplace injury, and they should not be overlooked.
You May Have a Third-Party Claim in Addition to Worker's Compensation
Having a potential third-party claim does not necessarily mean you must choose between worker's compensation benefits and pursuing another responsible party. Generally, the two matters can proceed at the same time.
Worker's compensation may provide benefits while you receive treatment and recover from your injuries sustained within the course and scope of your employment. A third-party case may address the broader harm caused by the negligence of another person or company. However, the two claims can affect one another, which is why they need to be handled carefully.
Illinois law provides employers and worker's compensation carriers with certain reimbursement and lien rights when an injured employee receives compensation from a responsible third party. There can also be issues involving insurance companies, medical records, settlements, and the timing of each case.
You should not have to determine how those legal and financial issues fit together on your own. At Allen Law Group, our attorneys work to coordinate the different aspects of your case while protecting your rights and helping you understand how decisions in one claim may affect the other.
Who Could Be Responsible for a Workplace Injury as a Third Party?
The answer depends on how your accident happened and is case specific. A third party is generally someone other than your employer or co-worker whose negligence played a role in causing your injury.
For example, you may have been working near employees of another contractor when they created an unsafe condition. You may have been injured by machinery that was defectively designed or manufactured. An outside maintenance company may have improperly repaired equipment, or a property owner may have failed to address a dangerous condition. A trucking company or delivery driver may have caused an accident while you were working, or an equipment rental company may have provided unsafe machinery.
There are also situations where more than one outside company may have contributed to the same accident. A piece of industrial equipment, for example, may have been manufactured by one company, installed by another, modified by another contractor, and maintained by yet another business. Determining what went wrong may require looking closely at the responsibilities and actions of each company involved.
Our job is to follow the evidence rather than assume that your employer is the only party connected to the accident.
Construction Sites and Industrial Workplaces Often Involve Multiple Companies
Construction sites are one of the most common places for third-party liability claims to arise. You may be employed by one company while working alongside numerous other contractors and tradesmen. A general contractor may oversee portions of the project, subcontractors may control specific areas or equipment, and property owners or other companies may have responsibilities involving the worksite.
If a worker is seriously injured in a fall, scaffolding accident, crane incident, electrical accident, machinery accident, or other construction-related event, determining who was responsible may require much more than looking at the name on the worker's paycheck.
The same is true in Illinois steel mills, factories, manufacturing facilities, distribution centers, warehouses, and transportation operations. These workplaces may involve outside maintenance companies, equipment manufacturers, contractors, trucking companies, and other businesses whose decisions can affect worker safety.
A serious accident may happen in seconds, but understanding why it happened and who contributed to it can require a detailed investigation.
Serious Work Injuries Can Affect the Rest of Your Life
The true impact of a catastrophic workplace injury cannot always be measured by medical bills or time away from work.
A traumatic brain injury may affect memory, concentration, communication, judgment, or relationships. A spinal cord injury can result in permanent mobility problems or paralysis. An amputation may require prosthetics, repeated medical treatment, rehabilitation, and learning new ways to perform everyday activities. Severe burns, crush injuries, fractures, electrical injuries, and internal injuries can lead to lasting pain and physical limitations.
For some injured workers, returning to the same job may no longer be possible. Others may be able to return to work but never regain the physical ability, independence, or quality of life they had before the accident.
The effects are often felt throughout the family. A spouse may take on caregiving responsibilities. Children may see a parent struggle with activities that once came easily. Household responsibilities and financial plans may change. A family that once felt secure about the future may suddenly find itself facing years of uncertainty.
When we represent someone who has suffered a life-changing injury, we want to understand all of those consequences. A serious injury case should reflect what the accident has actually meant for you and the people who depend on you.
When a Workplace Accident Takes a Life
When a worker is killed in an accident, the family left behind may face overwhelming grief along with unanswered questions about how the accident occurred.
Families often want to know whether the accident could have been prevented and whether another company or individual played a role in causing it. They may also suddenly be facing the financial consequences of losing the income, support, and contributions of someone they depended upon.
If the negligence of someone other than the worker's employer or co-worker caused or contributed to a fatal workplace accident, the family may have rights beyond the worker's compensation benefits available after a workplace death.
Allen Law Group investigates fatal workplace accidents to determine what happened, identify the companies and individuals involved, and determine whether a third-party wrongful death claim may exist.
We Look Beyond the Accident to Understand What Happened
A serious workplace accident can happen without warning, but determining why it happened can take time and careful investigation.
Depending on the circumstances, our attorneys may examine the equipment involved in the accident, maintenance and inspection records, photographs, surveillance footage, safety procedures, company policies, training records, contracts, witness statements, accident reports, communications between companies, and other evidence that can help establish responsibility.
When necessary, we work with engineers, safety professionals, medical specialists, accident reconstruction professionals, and other qualified experts to understand complicated technical or medical issues. We may investigate whether defective equipment, improper maintenance, unsafe procedures, inadequate safety precautions, contractor negligence, or another preventable condition contributed to your injuries.
It is also important to begin identifying potentially responsible parties before important evidence disappears. Equipment can be repaired or put back into service. Worksites change. Video can be erased. Employees and contractors may move on. The sooner the circumstances surrounding a serious accident can be examined, the better opportunity there may be to preserve evidence showing what happened.
You Deserve an Attorney Who Understands What Is at Stake
A serious workplace injury can leave you feeling as though the future you planned has suddenly been taken out of your hands. You may not know whether you can return to work, how long your recovery will take, or whether your injuries will ever fully heal. At the same time, bills continue to arrive and insurance companies, employers, doctors, and other parties may all be asking questions or making decisions that affect your case.
It can sometimes feel as though everyone is talking about your injury while very few people are asking what this experience has actually been like for you.
At Allen Law Group, we want you to feel heard. We take the time to understand what happened, how you have been affected, and what you and your family may need in the future. We explain the legal process in terms you can understand and keep you informed as your case progresses.
You should never feel like another claim number. You are a person whose life has been changed by an injury, and your case should be treated accordingly.
Understanding Your Rights After a Workplace Injury in Illinois
Allen Law Group represents seriously injured workers and families throughout Illinois in third-party liability matters. We will help you understand your rights, investigate who may be responsible, and work to protect your future.
You focus on your recovery and your family. Let Allen Law Group focus on finding out what happened and who should be held responsible. Contact us today for a free consultation. You pay nothing until we win.
Allen Law Group Represents Victims of Workplace Accidents Across Illinois, Including:
