These are the questions injured construction workers and their families ask our NYC construction accident lawyers most, answered in plain language. A construction injury raises a lot of questions fast, about your job, your medical bills, your immigration status, and your rights. If your question is not here, our NYC construction accident attorneys can answer it in a free consultation.
Call us at (212) 732-4992 24/7 to arrange to speak with a personal injury lawyer about your case, or contact us through our website today.
You likely have a case if you were hurt on a construction site because of an unsafe condition, missing safety equipment, or someone else's carelessness. New York law places strong safety duties on property owners and general contractors, so you do not have to prove your employer was at fault to recover. Our NYC construction accident lawyers review what happened at no cost.
If your injury required real medical treatment, kept you out of work, or left lasting effects, it is worth having reviewed. Workers' compensation alone often does not cover everything a serious injury costs, and a separate case against a party other than your employer can recover much more. The only way to know is to have our NYC construction accident attorneys look at the facts.
You can still recover money. New York uses comparative fault, which means your compensation is reduced by your share of the blame but not taken away. On many construction cases the law places heavy responsibility on owners and contractors for site safety, which can limit how much fault falls on the worker at all.
You may still have a claim even if a coworker was involved. While you generally cannot sue a coworker or your own employer directly, the owner, the general contractor, or another company on the site can still be responsible for an unsafe worksite. Our NYC construction accident lawyers look for every party outside your employer who shares the blame.
Often, yes. Your job title does not decide your rights on a New York construction site. Owners and general contractors owe safety duties to the workers on the site, and a subcontractor or independent contractor hurt by an unsafe condition can have a claim. Our NYC construction accident attorneys sort out how your status affects the case.
Yes. Your immigration status does not stop you from bringing a construction injury claim in New York, and it does not stop you from recovering. Injured workers have the right to a safe worksite and to compensation when it fails, regardless of status, and your status is not used to defeat the claim.
Often more than one party, and usually not just your employer. Property owners, general contractors, subcontractors, and equipment makers can all share the blame for an unsafe site. Finding every responsible party is what opens the door to full compensation beyond a workers' compensation check.
Usually not directly, because workers' compensation is generally the exclusive claim against your own employer. But that is not the end of the story. When a party other than your employer, such as the site owner, the general contractor, or an equipment maker, contributed to the accident, you can bring a separate case against them that recovers far more than workers' comp alone.
The Scaffold Law is New York's construction safety law that places strict, non-delegable duties on property owners and general contractors to protect workers from falls from heights and from falling objects. In plain terms, it holds them responsible for providing proper protection on elevation-related work. When they fail and a worker is hurt, that law can make the case much stronger, and our NYC construction accident lawyers use it where it applies.
That defense often does not hold up on a New York site. For certain elevation and safety duties, the law makes owners and general contractors responsible whether or not they controlled the work, and they cannot simply hand that duty off to someone else. Our NYC construction accident attorneys hold every responsible party to their own duty.
Yes. When a defective or poorly maintained tool, ladder, hoist, or machine caused your injury, the manufacturer, the supplier, or the party responsible for maintaining it can be held responsible. This is a separate claim from workers' compensation, and preserving the equipment as evidence is critical. Our NYC construction accident lawyers move to secure it before it disappears.
Often, yes. Workers' compensation can pay part of your medical bills and lost wages no matter who was at fault, and it usually runs alongside a separate injury case. When someone other than your employer helped cause the accident, you can pursue both at once, and the third-party case can recover the pain and suffering and full losses that comp does not cover.
Workers' compensation is a no-fault benefit from your employer that covers part of your medical bills and lost wages but not pain and suffering. A construction accident lawsuit is a claim against a party other than your employer who was at fault, and it can recover the full range of your losses, including pain and suffering and future losses. Many injured workers have both, and our NYC construction accident lawyers coordinate them.
Generally your work injury care should go through workers' compensation, not your personal health insurance. Using the wrong coverage can create billing and lien problems later. Our NYC construction accident attorneys help make sure the right coverage pays and that any liens are handled properly out of a recovery.
It is against the law for an employer to retaliate against you for filing a workers' compensation claim. If you are pressured, demoted, or fired for asserting your rights after a construction injury, that is a separate problem the law addresses. Our NYC construction accident lawyers can point you to your options if that happens.
In most cases you have three years from the date of the accident to file an injury lawsuit. If a city or public agency is involved, you may have as little as ninety days to serve a formal notice first. Because the deadline depends on who is responsible, confirm yours early with our NYC construction accident lawyers rather than assume you have years.
A notice of claim is the formal notice you have to serve on a public entity, like the City or a public authority, before you can sue it, and it is generally due within ninety days of the accident. Missing it can end a claim against a public entity before a lawsuit is even filed. If a public entity may be involved in your case, our NYC construction accident attorneys move on it right away.
Do not assume your case is over. Some deadlines have exceptions, and in limited situations a late notice of claim can still be allowed. The only way to know is to have your specific timeline reviewed as soon as possible, because acting quickly gives our NYC construction accident lawyers the best chance to protect your claim.
Get medical care first, then protect the case before the site changes.
Yes, report it as soon as possible. Prompt reporting creates the official record and protects your workers' compensation rights, which can have their own short reporting timeline. Even if you feel okay, report it, because some injuries surface days later. Our NYC construction accident attorneys can help if your employer resists.
You may still have a case. A delay in reporting can make things harder, but it does not automatically end your claim, especially where the injury or its seriousness became clear later. The sooner you report it now and speak with our NYC construction accident lawyers, the better your position.
Not before you talk to a lawyer. A recorded statement requested in the first days after an accident is a tool for the insurer, not something you are required to give on their terms. What you say can be used to reduce or deny your claim. Let our NYC construction accident attorneys deal with the insurer for you.
Not until a lawyer reviews it. Documents from an insurer or employer can waive your rights or lock you into a low settlement before you know what your case is worth. There is no rush to sign. Our NYC construction accident lawyers review anything put in front of you before you commit to it.
Yes. Insurers and defense lawyers look at social media, and a photo or post can be twisted to argue you were not really hurt. The safest approach during an active case is to stay off social media and not discuss the accident or your recovery online. Our NYC construction accident attorneys can explain what to avoid.
Fault is proven by showing what a reasonably careful owner or contractor should have done and how they fell short. Prior notice matters, so a site that knew about a hazard and did nothing is in a very different position than one caught by a true accident. Our NYC construction accident lawyers build that proof from the records, the witnesses, and the physical evidence.
The strongest cases are built on evidence gathered early, before it disappears. That usually includes:
Construction injuries tend to be serious and lasting. The most common ones our NYC construction accident attorneys see are traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and paralysis, broken bones and crush injuries, amputations, burns and electrical shock injuries, internal organ damage, and vision, hearing, and respiratory injuries. Falls from heights and falling objects cause many of the worst ones.
When a party other than your employer is at fault, a claim can recover far more than workers' compensation alone. No lawyer can promise a number, but a case can pursue:
It depends on how serious the injury is and how it affects your life, so there is no set number. What drives value includes the severity and permanence of the injury, the strength of the liability proof, the medical record, the impact on your work and daily life, and the future care you will need. Our NYC construction accident lawyers evaluate all of that rather than guess at a figure.
The family may bring a wrongful death claim through the person appointed to represent the estate. It can recover the loss of the financial support and guidance the worker would have provided, the funeral and burial costs, and, through a survival claim, the pain and suffering the worker endured before death. Our NYC construction accident attorneys handle these cases with care for the family.
It varies. A straightforward case may resolve in a matter of months, while a serious case with disputed fault or catastrophic injuries can take longer, sometimes a couple of years or more, especially if it goes toward trial. Rushing to settle early often means leaving money on the table. Our NYC construction accident lawyers keep you informed at every stage.
Many cases settle, but the ones that settle for full value are the ones prepared as if they will be tried. Building the case for trial from the start is what pushes an insurer to make a fair offer. If the other side will not offer what the case is worth, our NYC construction accident attorneys are ready to take it in front of a jury.
Nothing upfront. Our NYC construction accident lawyers handle these cases on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay no attorney's fee unless there is a recovery for you. The first consultation is free, so you can learn where you stand at no cost.
Construction is the deadliest job in New York City. In 2024, 19 construction workers were killed on the job in the city, and falls were the leading cause, according to the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health. Its Deadly Skyline report also found that a New York City construction worker is more than six times as likely to be killed on the job as the average city worker, and that more than three quarters of the deadly worksites had safety violations on record.
A NYC construction accident lawyer investigates the site before the evidence disappears, identifies every party responsible, coordinates your workers' compensation and third-party claims, deals with the insurers, and builds your case for its full value. Our NYC construction accident lawyers prepare every case as if it will be tried, and there is no fee unless there is a recovery for you.
Call us at (212) 732-4992 24/7 to arrange to speak with a personal injury lawyer about your case, or contact us through our website today.
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