Construction accidents often feel like they come out of nowhere. Despite the perilous nature of most construction sites, particularly those near Pendleton’s interstates, you want to believe that crews and site managers have your best interests at heart. When that faith fails you, you may find yourself contending with a mountain of unexpected bills.
You can hold negligent parties accountable for the losses you endured due to their bad behavior, though – and Pendleton construction accident lawyers can help. Vaughan & Vaughan has a team of personal injury lawyers in Pendleton who can help you investigate your losses and take a negligent party to civil court.
A Violated Duty of Care Can Entitle You to Financial Support
Construction crews and all parties associated with them, even the manufacturing plants producing their equipment, owe the general public a duty of care. That duty dictates that construction crews, site managers, and manufacturers must take reasonable steps to prevent predictable accidents.
Parties who violate that duty of care via intentional or accidental negligence put the people around them in harm’s way. The accidents stemming from construction site negligence can leave you with financial woes as well as new physical losses and limitations.
That said, the Hoosier state stands up for its accident survivors. You can argue that your construction accident, having stemmed from someone else’s negligence, entitles you to loss compensation. If you bring your case before a civil judge, that judge can make the liable party fund your recovery.
Your Case Will Get
The Attention It Deserves
How to Assign Liability for a Construction Accident in Pendleton, IN
You might think you know who’s responsible for your recent construction accident, but the evidence and applicable contracts might say otherwise. When it comes to assigning liability for your losses, you need to look at evidence first.
What does video footage of your accident reveal? What do bystanders say happened? What do expert witnesses, like accident recreationists, think caused your accident? An experienced Pendleton construction accident attorney can bring this data together, analyze it, and assign fault accordingly.
Next, you need to consider what role contracts might play in your case. Were you injured by an independent contractor working on a construction site? You may have the right to sue that individual, but you can’t sue their client. If you get injured by an on-duty employee, though, you may have the right to bring a lawsuit against an entire corporation.
Our team can break down the influence both evidence and contracts have on your case long before you bring a case before a civil judge. The assistance can make it easier for you to demand compensation from the right party or parties.
Taking the Fight to Manufacturers or Other Third Parties
It’s not always a construction worker or site manager who bears the responsibility for your losses. If an excavator breaks down and puts you in harm’s way, you may have the right to sue the machine’s manufacturer or mechanic for your losses. The right to do so depends on what evidence of fault you can bring forward.
Our team can even help you divide accident fault between a negligent manufacturer and other parties on a construction site.
There is no fee
unless you win
When to File Your Construction Accident Claim in Pendleton
If you want to take legal action against any party responsible for your construction accident, you need to do so well within Indiana’s personal injury statute of limitations. The Hoosier state outlines this deadline in Indiana Code section 34-11-2-4.
You have until the second anniversary of your accident to bring evidence of another party’s negligence forward in civil court. Do not delay a construction accident claim more than two years. If you try to file your claim after your statute of limitations expires, Indiana civil judges can deny your right to fight for accident compensation.
What Damages to Request in Negotiations and Court
You may have the right to both economic and non-economic damages following a construction accident. These damages can cover losses stemming from your:
- Lost wages
- Lost opportunities to return to work
- Emotional distress
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Stress
- Physical injuries
- Emergency care and long-term treatments
- Property damage and restoration
- Rentals, if applicable
Negotiations Versus Court: What to Expect
There’s no one way that your construction accident case has to go. So long as a judge moves your claim forward, you get to decide whether you negotiate for your compensation or if you leave your right to support up to a jury.
You can only negotiate for a fair settlement if the liable party agrees to meet with you. Should said party acknowledge its role in your accident, though, you can have a construction accident lawyer in Pendleton arrange a meeting on your behalf.
These meetings take place out of court and can resolve more quickly than trials, though they may require you to compromise when requesting damages.
Construction accident trials can comparatively take months or years to resolve. That said, trials put control over your right to compensation into the hands of a neutral party. You can expect a judge and jury to offer objective perspectives on your losses, even awarding you punitive damages if the negligence that caused your accident appears gross in nature.
You can work with our team to determine which of these paths toward construction accident compensation best suits your interests.
Contact Vaughan & Vaughan With Pendleton Construction Accident Concerns ASAP
You deserve comprehensive compensation for the losses you’ve endured due to someone else’s negligence. Don’t let construction crews, site managers, or manufacturers get away with their dangerous behavior. You can work with Pendleton, IN, construction accident attorneys to hold these parties accountable for the wrongs they did to you.
Vaughan & Vaughan offers free case evaluations to construction accident survivors like you who need legal support. Our services come on contingency, meaning that you won’t have to stress about the cost of our representation.
Ready to learn more? Contact us through our website or by phone today to get your first FREE construction accident case evaluation on the books.
