If you’ve suffered a workplace injury, you may receive benefits from your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. However, those benefits may not cover all your wages or any of the pain and suffering you’ve gone through.
If a third party—a person or company who isn’t your employer—cause your injury, you may be able to file an additional third-party lawsuit. Doing so will not only help you get the support you need during this trying time but also hold that party accountable for their actions.
Filing a lawsuit against an employer
Many times, when an employer provides workers’ comp insurance, they do not allow an employee to pursue legal action against them for a workplace injury. In these cases, a workers’ compensation claim can help you recover a part of your salary.
If your employer does not provide workers’ comp insurance, then you may be able to pursue a lawsuit against your employer.
Third-party liability
However, in most instances where a third party caused your injury, you may be able to file a third-party lawsuit in addition to filing for workers’ compensation.
Examples of third party caused injuries may include:
- A car injury that took place while you were at work where another individual, not working for your employer, was at fault
- Injuries sustained in a refinery explosion that was caused by a defective piece of machinery.
- An offshore accident where a third-party vessel or operator was at fault
Unlike a workers’ comp claim, a lawsuit against a third party will require you to prove that they were at fault for your injury. Because of this, using an attorney is even more important when filing a third-party lawsuit—though a lawyer can still be helpful for negotiating a workers’ compensation claim.
If you’ve suffered a workplace injury that has kept you from work, you deserve to seek out as much support as possible to help you through these tough times.