The Law Office of Kevin C. Ferry, LLC, has handled numerous construction accident claims and as a result has the experience and expertise to aggressively pursue your claims. Cases involving construction site accidents are extremely complex and involve overlapping contractors, subcontractors and construction companies. As such, only seasoned attorneys with experience in this area can fully evaluate, assist and pursue your claim. If you have been injured at a construction site accident, do not hesitate to contact our attorneys.

Statute of Limitations & Notice Requirements

In essence, a statute of limitations sets a specific time frame in which a particular type of law suit can be brought. If you do not meet the deadline, then you will be barred from bringing suit. It is imperative that you contact an attorney to properly asses and determine the applicable statute of limitations and any notice requirements that may be associated with your claim.

In Connecticut, a two year statute of limitation applies to claims involving construction accidents. See Connecticut General Statute § 52-584. In the case of an action for injuries resulting in death, however, the action must be brought within two years of the date of death and not more than five years from the act or omission complained of. See Connecticut General Statue 52-555.

Complexities of Construction Accidents

Large job sites often have many overlapping subcontractors together with a primary contractor who may be acting as a general contractor or as a construction manager for the site. It is imperative that an analysis of the job site, responsibilities of the contractors onsite and the involvement of the prime or general contractor be performed by a qualified attorney. This analysis will include review of statutory obligations, if any, violations of Connecticut Building Code or OSHA. Workers' Compensation benefits and/or disability will likely cover just a fraction of the actual financial losses and none of the losses related to loss of life enjoyment or pain and suffering.

The general contractor may be liable for the negligence of its independent subcontractors, but only under certain well-established legal principles. The most commonly occurring of these legal principals is the general contractor's ability to control the work of its subcontractors. Other exceptions to the rule that liability of the general contractor does not attach include: if the work is illegal, may cause a nuisance or is intrinsically dangerous or if the general contractor negligently employs an incompetent or untrustworthy contractor. The general contractor will be directly liable for its own negligence.

The key to finding a remedy for all the damages a worker suffers in a multiple party job site is to find legal liability in an entity other than the injured party's employer or the injured party himself. Workers' compensation will be the exclusive remedy where no third party liability is uncovered.

Filing a workers' compensation claim is your right! Your employer is required to maintain workers' compensation insurance to protect you and it in the event you are injured while working. Filing a workers' compensation claim is not the same as suing your employer. You are not filing a lawsuit against your employer, but rather seeking benefits/compensation you are entitled to under the law.

You give up your body everyday for a paycheck. If you are injured in a work related accident of any kind, have an injury from wear and tear on a body part, or from exposure to a noxious substance that is substantially related to your work, always, always file a workers' compensation claim. Even if one of the following occurs:

1. Your employer tells you it will pay all of you medical bills and lost wages.
2. Your employer says use short or long term disability insurance for your lost wages because it pays better than workers' compensation.
3. You are afraid your employer will fire you or discriminate against you by cutting your hours, giving you more work, less enjoyable work.
4. You don't think the injury is that severe.

Preserve your rights today!!! Do not delay in filing your workers' compensation claim. Generally, with certain limited exceptions, you have one year from the date of injury to file your claim or forever be barred from bringing a claim. Exceptions to this rule include claims for repetitive trauma (S31-275(16)) or occupational disease (S31-275(15)). You should not assume that your injury falls under any one of the particular categories cited herein. You should consult an attorney at once relative to your specific case.

Please be aware that filling out an incident form or a first report of injury form is not the same as filing your workers' compensation case. If you are not sure how to file the claim, consult with a lawyer.

The advantages of filing a workers' compensation claim are:

1. You are entitled to compensation for time you miss from work after the third calendar day of your incapacity (the first day of injury does not count). Benefits start on the fourth day with the exception of an injury or illness that causes an employee to be incapacitated for seven or more days in which case benefits start from the day of injury or illness.
2. If you have a permanent injury, you are entitled to money based on the degree of permanency and the body part disabled.
3. You are entitled to be compensated for doctor's appointments which you have to attend during work hours and in some case during non-work hours.
4. You are entitled to be compensated for mileage and parking fees for all medical appointments.
5. You are entitled to have all prescriptions and bills paid with no co-pay or deductable.
6. If your condition gets worse in the future and you can't work, you are entitled to be compensated for the time you are unable to work.
7. If your permanent injury gets worse over time, you are entitled to additional compensation for the injury.
8. When you leave your employer, retire or are otherwise no longer wor king for the employer when your injury occurred, your case may have settlement value if you wish to close the case and relinquish all future rights.
9. Once your workers' compensation case is accepted, you are always entitled to the vocational rehabilitation program. This program is available at generally little to no cost for persons who are injured at work and can no longer return to their type of work due to their injury. Some of the benefits of this program include:
   • job-retraining
   • training for new position
   • evaluation and testing
   • education including schooling
   • job counseling
     
   • job placement