Oilfield Accident & Injury Lawyers

 Texas is the no. 1 is an energy producing state, employing thousands of people in oil fields and refineries offshore.

However, this industry leadership comes at a cost.

Oilfield Accident & Injury Lawyers

Serious injuries in the oil industry cost many workers their livelihoods and, in many cases, their lives.

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says that workers in the oil field suffer seven times more serious injuries than all other industries.

If you were injured at work in the oil field, you have the right to compensation.

Types of oil field injuries

Oilfield Accident Attorney

Dangerous working conditions with heavy machinery and toxic chemicals injure many oil field workers each year.

Here are some of the injuries that oil workers suffer:

head and back injuries,

spinal cord injuries,

traumatic brain injury,

amputation of limbs or digits,

crushed limbs,

gas and chemical fuels,

many broken bones,

lung damage,

mud-related injuries, and

Electricity burns.

These oil field injuries often severely disable workers or even claim their lives. Workers cannot work and support their families after sustaining such gruesome injuries.

Injured workers, meanwhile, face expensive medical treatment and suffer psychologically and emotionally during recovery.

When you are injured in the oil field or lose a loved one, you deserve just compensation.

Pursuing compensation can provide you and your family with the medical care and income you need after your oilfield accident.

An experienced oilfield injury attorney can protect your rights and pursue maximum compensation on your behalf.

Types of Oil Rig and Oil Field Accidents

Long hours and inadequate safety regulations put many oil field workers at risk.

Every year, workers are injured or killed in accidents such as:

Vehicle tip overs and collisions,

equipment failure,

Drilling rig accidents,

Compact platform, and

Explosion and fire.

Oil companies must protect their employees from dangerous situations. When a worker is injured in an oil field accident, the oil company must pay through workers' compensation or a lawsuit.

Workers' Compensation for Oil Field Injuries

Most states require employers to subscribe to workers' compensation insurance.

Workers' compensation protects employers from lawsuits and provides medical care and income to injured employees.

If your employer subscribes to workers' compensation, you should file a claim immediately after your accident.

Workers' compensation is not a fault-based system, which means you can still recover compensation even if you caused the accident.

Of course, there are some exceptions, such as if you were intoxicated, committed a crime, or were off duty when your accident occurred.

What does workers compensation provide?

Workers' compensation provides payment for medical care and reduced wages while you are disabled.

If your injuries permanently prevent you from resuming your regular job, workers' compensation can pay for job retraining.

Workers' compensation provides a certain level of recovery for oil field injuries, and the Texas workers' comp lawyers at The Zimmerman Law Firm can help you if your recovery claim is denied or called into question.

While this system of compensation is helpful for injured employees, it may not pay enough to cover the employee's housing and bills.

When your employer has workers' compensation insurance, you generally cannot file a claim. However, some states, such as Texas, do not require employers to carry workers' compensation insurance.

Suing for Oil Field Injuries

When your employer does not have workers' compensation insurance, you may be able to file a claim for injury compensation.

To successfully sue your employer, you must show that someone acted negligently and caused your injury.

For example, maybe your supervisor didn't train employees properly or neglected a fellow crew member to clean up an oil spill.

More often than not, however, we file a third-party lawsuit when the negligence of a party other than your direct employer causes you injury or — in the worst case scenario — the death of a family member.

For example, if the platform you were standing on collapses due to a manufacturing defect, you may suffer serious injuries.

In that case, our attorneys can sue the platform manufacturer for your injuries. In a product liability lawsuit, you can sue to receive compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

In order to sue the manufacturer or designer of defective oil field equipment, you must prove one of these product liability issues.

design flaw

Oilfield equipment had a design flaw that made it dangerous. The designer could have chosen a safer design.

With a safer design, the equipment will still work well and reduce the risk of injury. You are injured due to a design defect.

manufacturing defect

Perhaps the oil field machinery was well designed but the manufacturing facility made a mistake.

If the manufactureIf a defect has made the equipment dangerous and you have been injured, you can claim.

Failure to warn

Sometimes, even the best designed and built oil field equipment is dangerous. However, the manufacturer should warn you about the dangerous aspects of the machinery.

If the manufacturer fails to post a warning and you have no reason to suspect a hazard, you may be able to sue for your injuries.

What should I do if I am in an oilfield accident?

If you sustain injuries while working on your job site or in the oilfield, the first step is to seek medical attention.

All oilfield accident attorneys know that these dangerous accidents often result in debilitating and sometimes permanent injuries.

Alternatively, even if your injuries aren't immediately apparent, get a full medical evaluation anyway.

Follow all steps outlined by your medical provider. For example, your doctor may require you to take prescription medications and complete physical therapy for your injuries.

Your oil rig injury attorney uses all of your medical records to link your injuries to an oilfield accident.

Additionally, remember not to accept any settlement offer in the early stages of your recovery.

Oil company representatives want to talk to you to force you into an unfavorable settlement.

While it may be tempting to accept a seemingly generous offer of money, the cost of your case is too high.

Your oil rig injury attorney analyzes the facts of your case and negotiates favorable settlement terms on your behalf.

 

After an oil field accident, you have a limited amount of time to seek compensation for your injuries.

To protect your return potential you should take these steps:

Report your injury to a supervisor,

seek immediate medical attention,

Do not return to work if you are injured, and

Contact an experienced oil field accident attorney.

The statute of limitations prevents you from filing a claim after some time has passed. For example, you only have two years to file a personal injury, wrongful death or product liability claim in Texas.

Some exceptions apply to this rule, but you should contact an oil field injury attorney quickly so that the statute of limitations does not bar your claim.

Do you need an oil field accident lawyer?

If you have been injured or lost a loved one on the oil field, you need a skilled oil field accident attorney. Oil company insurance lawyers do not have your best interests in mind.

If you try to negotiate with the insurer on your own, they may try to take advantage of you by offering you less money than you deserve.

Understandably, you may wonder, how can an oilfield accident lawyer help me?

When you have a skilled attorney on your side, the insurer won't trick you into settling for less. Once you accept a lower settlement, you can't come back later to demand more money.

Your oil rig injury attorney provides you with an accurate value for your case, so you understand from the beginning what your case is worth.

With this information, you are better prepared to negotiate a favorable settlement that puts you back on the road to recovery.

Your attorney will take these steps to try to get you the maximum compensation:

Investigate your accident,

Collect available information,

Interview witnesses,

Review your medical records,

Calculate the reasonable damages claim,

Negotiate with the insurer and

Take your case to trial if necessary.

Most reputable oil field accident attorneys work on a contingency basis, which means you owe nothing until your attorney settles your case or wins a verdict.

A contingency fee structure levels the playing field, so you can hire the best attorney for your case, even if you're struggling to make ends meet.

Experienced in all types of oil field accident injuries

The Zimmerman Law Firm is experienced in providing assistance at the non-subscriber, workers' compensation and civil litigation levels. We've been helping accident victims for decades, and we have the experience and skills to help you fight even the biggest oil company.

We invite you to call our attorneys to schedule a no-charge, no-obligation case evaluation. You can visit our office, or we can meet virtually or come to your home or hospital - whichever is safest and most convenient for you.