Accidents Due to Defective Equipment
Defective Equipment Accidents
Construction accidents are more common than many people think and injury can easily occur to both workers or individuals who are passing by a particular construction zone that is not properly cordoned and marked as a dangerous area. Even the failure to post an area as a construction site or a potential safety hazard location could be construed by a court as negligence.
In cities like New York where everything is in close confines, construction areas often leave adjacent property exposed to significant danger in a variety of ways. In addition, many accidents due to defective equipment are actually the result of human activity, and many times that activity involves the use of defective construction equipment in close quarters.
Why Defective Equipment Claims are Significant
There are both federal and state laws that apply to the safety claims on manufactured products, whether that is for industrial, commercial, or personal use. All manufacturers are responsible for ensuring their products are safe to use for the intended stated purpose from the time they leave the plant. The legal term for this requirement is strict liability. Cases that fall under strict liability are different from standard civil cases because the plaintiff legal counsel does not need to demonstrate negligence on the part of the manufacturer. They must only prove that the use of the product led to the injury suffered by the plaintiff. The significance for construction workers who are injured using defective construction tools will be the potential to file for non-economic damages for pain-and-suffering due to the injury, as this recovery is not available when an accident occurs covered by workers' comp unless the employer is aware the product is defective. For innocent bystanders, it means that the product manufacturer is liable for injuries as is the owner or operator of the property in a premises liability injury claim.
Punitive Damages Potential Can Matter
There are two forms of damages that can be claimed in a personal injury legal action. They are compensatory and punitive. In cases involving injures from accidents due to defective products, both could very well be available based on the material facts of how the injury occurred and what the defendants knew prior to the accident. Negligence is always the central issue in every personal injury claim, and gross negligence can result in punitive awards. For construction workers, there are many construction companies that may use substandard construction equipment, which would mean that the employer could be liable beyond standard workers' compensation insurance coverage. Private contractors could also have a claim when injured with a tool they purchased for commercial or personal use that causes an injury by malfunctioning. Punitive damages are only awarded in a tried case from a sympathetic jury, but the potential offers significant leverage for an experienced personal injury attorney to use in negotiating a settlement, whether the settlement is from a construction company or an equipment manufacturer.
Personal injury claims from accidents due to defective equipment are always strongly defended and can be very complicated. Successful claims always take an experienced personal injury attorney like New York City personal injury attorney Jeff Shapiro who understands how to craft a personal injury case involving both product liability and premises liability for maximum financial recovery.