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Injuries for oil workers can often be severe enough to force them to miss work. Serious accidents may even cause permanent injuries that make it impossible to return to work to support their families, making seeking compensation from lawsuits paramount.
Our lawyers can confirm if you are excluded from Workers’ Compensation or if a third party caused your injuries, enabling you to file a lawsuit. We can then ensure that the lawsuit gets filed on time and is supported by compelling evidence, like witness statements, video footage, photos, and medical records. Our attorneys will accurately and carefully monitor your compensable damages, so we know your case’s value before filing it in Austin.
Get a free case review from The Queenan Law Firm’s oil field injury lawyers by calling (817) 476-1797 today.
Can You Sue Your Employer for Oil Field Injuries in Austin, TX?
To sue for workplace injuries in Texas, you typically must reject Workers’ Compensation coverage. When you start a new job in Texas, you are not required to use Workers’ Compensation, but you only have five days to opt out. If you do not reject coverage, you may be unable to sue, and you will have to take your claim through Workers’ Compensation if your employer has coverage. If you opt out, you retain the right to sue and may be entitled to claim additional damages, such as for pain and suffering.
Taking your case through Workers’ Compensation should cover all medical expenses, but you may not be able to choose your doctor and may lose other benefits. For instance, lost wages are typically only partially covered, and you are usually barred from claiming pain and suffering damages.
If you waive Workers’ Compensation when you start your job, you will have the right to sue after an injury. This means you can take your case to court and claim full damages for any lost wages, medical expenses, and pain and suffering you face because of your employer’s negligence.
If you were injured at work by someone other than your employer, you may be able to sue even if you did not opt out of Workers’ Compensation. Workers’ Compensation only blocks you from suing your employer for negligence. So, if a third party’s negligence injured you, like a defective piece of equipment, or your employer intentionally harmed you, you may still be able to sue.
Common Oil Field Injuries from Accidents in Austin, TX
Injuries suffered in oil field accidents could range from mild to severe or even life-threatening. Many serious accidents lead to death, as well, and you may be seeking to file a wrongful death lawsuit rather than an injury lawsuit if you lost a spouse, a child, or a parent in an oil field accident. Our attorneys explain some of the most common injuries oil workers face and what damages these might entitle you to.
Burn Injuries
Oil explosions and blowouts are rare on oil rigs, but they can cause widespread disaster when they do occur. Many victims survive, but they may face serious burn injuries that require intensive medical treatment and skin grafts. The pain and suffering from these injuries is often some of the most intense pain you can experience, and the damage is often visible and causes long-term suffering, leading to substantial non-economic damages.
Head Injuries
Falling accidents are some of the most common accidents on oil rigs. Climbing high ladders, walking on slippery or uneven surfaces, or falling while carrying heavy equipment can each lead to serious head injuries if you fall. This can cause concussions or traumatic brain injuries that can lead to permanent effects, loss of motor function, cognitive difficulty, trouble remembering people or faces, and personality changes. The pain and suffering and cost of ongoing medical care for these kinds of injuries are often incredibly high.
Amputations
Many oil workers deal with heavy machinery and powerful tools in their jobs. These tools can lead to serious injuries if they are mishandled or if one of your coworkers is not properly trained in the operation or safety requirements. Assembling or operating a drill or other equipment can lead to your sleeve or pant leg getting caught in the moving parts, potentially pulling you in and amputating a limb. This permanent injury could make it hard to return to work and lead to ongoing reduced earning capacity, which can be compensated in court.
Broken Bones and Crushing Injuries
Similar to how machinery can cause amputations in serious accidents, more fortunate victims may keep their limbs but face serious broken bones or crushing injuries. Even carrying and lifting heavy equipment or tools can lead to broken bones if the equipment falls on you or you fall under the equipment.
Added Risks of Injuries to Oil Field Workers in Austin, TX
In the Eagle Ford Shale oil region of Texas, Austin has seen an increase in hydraulic fracking and oil and gas production. Interestingly, this presents an added risk of certain accidents, like vehicle accidents.
With drilling and gas production sites come large trucks and other vehicles necessary to transport dangerous substances, workers, and equipment. These vehicles must often share the road with smaller passenger cars, especially in highly populated areas in and around Austin. Though the Eagle Ford Shale region is large and encompasses more than just Austin, it saw over 14,000 traffic accidents in 2023 due to energy production activities. These accidents caused 171 deaths and 588 serious injuries, highlighting that the risk of injury on and near oil fields is not only dependent on the dangers associated with drilling, specifically. Larger vehicles have bigger blind spots and struggle to slow down quickly, creating an increased risk of rear-end or sideswipe accidents in the Eagle Ford Shale region.
The likelihood of workers suffering deadly or life-altering injuries on oil fields only increases when employers violate Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations. There are many safety rules for drilling and gas production, as it is inherently very dangerous work. Employers who are reckless with workers’ safety may be liable for the injuries they suffer as a result, and our oil field injury lawyers can identify the specific safety violations that caused an accident when preparing claims.
Filing Successful Oil Field Injury Lawsuits After Accidents in Austin, TX
While you may still be recovering from an accident or injury, our lawyers can work to preserve key evidence, review incident reports, submit your complaint, and tally your compensable damages.
Preserving Key Evidence
We can start preserving evidence once you contact our lawyers about your case. An explosion or other major accident on an oil field may leave considerable debris in its wake, and the scene may not remain intact for long. Though victims may be unable to take photos themselves due to their injuries, first responders who arrive on the scene or other workers who witness the incident might take pictures, and we can quickly obtain these images. We can also confirm if cameras on the site might have filmed the accident and get that footage before it is erased. Furthermore, we can interview eyewitnesses whose statements may corroborate yours, helping us prove multiple elements of your case if it goes to trial. We will continue to request medical records as you get treated for your injuries, and these documents can prove the exact physical harm you suffered during an oil field accident.
Reviewing Incident Reports
We will also obtain and review any incident reports for the accident from your employer or police who responded to the scene after you or witnesses called 911. These reports can give us a clearer idea of an accident’s cause and your employer’s response and be generally beneficial as we build the foundation for your case.
Submitting Complaints on Time
Because accidents on oil fields are typically physically devastating for victims, they may delay claims while focusing on their physical recoveries. This could put them at risk of missing the filing deadlines for their lawsuits, after which judges could dismiss claims filed late. Generally speaking, the statute of limitations for oil field accidents and injuries is two years under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003. If a victim dies during a catastrophic accident, like a well fire or explosion, their survivors would have two years from the date they died to sue for wrongful death in Texas. In addition to submitting your complaint to the court on time, we will ensure it contains the appropriate information about the accident, the defendant, and their negligence so that the court accepts your claim.
Monitoring Compensable Damages
While victims may face costly damages from initial emergency room treatment, they will likely continue incurring damages for many months, and possibly years, as they physically recover. We will keep monitoring your compensable damages throughout your case and confer with experts regarding upcoming medical treatments and future lost wages. Many victims are unable to resume their previous occupational duties after oil field accidents, and their earning capacities might be permanently diminished or eliminated. In addition to the major economic damages of medical expenses and lost wages, our oil field injury lawyers will also monitor your other out-of-pocket expenses, like transportation or childcare costs. Your life might look completely different after being injured while working on an oil field, and our attorneys can consider all the ways an accident has affected your life when calculating your damages.
Call Our Austin, TX Injury Lawyers About Your Oil Field Accident
Get a free case assessment from our oil field injury lawyers and call The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797.