NYC Excavation Accident Attorney

Excavation accidents can cause permanent injuries, and some are fatal. That’s why construction companies, property owners, and contractors have to follow safety regulations. When they don’t, and a worker gets hurt, the injury can lead to a construction accident claim.

Workers hurt in these accidents face big medical bills and lost wages, and many deal with the physical and emotional effects long after the injury.

At Richman Law Firm PLLC, we help injured workers through the legal process after an excavation accident. We’ve handled many of these cases and know New York’s labor laws. Much of our practice is representing construction accident victims. Contact us for a free consultation.

Compensation for Excavation Accident

If you’ve been injured in an excavation accident, our lawyers can help you pursue a personal injury claim. Here are the types of compensation you may be entitled to:

Medical Bills and Rehabilitation Costs

Victims may recover compensation for emergency room visits, hospital stays, surgeries, follow-up procedures, physical therapy, rehabilitation, medication, medical equipment, and future medical expenses related to the injury.

Lost Wages and Future Earnings

If your injury keeps you from working, temporarily or permanently, a personal injury claim may recover the wages you lost during recovery, along with reduced earning capacity and future lost earnings.

Pain and Suffering

Excavation injuries cause more than physical pain. It’s hard to put a dollar value on emotional distress, mental anguish, or loss of enjoyment of life, but these are real losses, and your claim can seek compensation for them.

Wrongful Death

If you’ve lost a loved one in an excavation accident, no amount of money can truly make up for it. A wrongful death claim can still bring justice and financial stability. It may include compensation for funeral and burial expenses, lost financial support, and the loss of a parent’s care and guidance for surviving children.

Liability in Excavation Accident Cases

In New York City, more than one party can be liable for an excavation accident, depending on how it happened. Our construction accident lawyers help injured clients work through these claims. Here’s who may be responsible:

Construction Companies

Construction companies have a big responsibility to keep their workers and the public safe. They can be held liable if they don’t provide proper safety equipment, don’t train workers properly, ignore OSHA regulations, rush work schedules at the expense of safety, or neglect to put proper protective systems in place.

Property Owner Liability

Property owners in New York have a duty to keep their property safe for workers. They can be liable if they know of an unsafe condition and don’t fix it, don’t warn of known hazards, or interfere with the construction process in a way that creates danger.

Equipment Manufacturer

If equipment caused your accident, the manufacturer may be liable. That’s the case when the equipment had a design flaw or a manufacturing defect, or when it came without adequate warnings and instructions.

Recoverable Damages Besides Workers’ Compensation

If you were injured in an excavation accident in New York City, the law gives you several ways to recover compensation. Here’s how we can help:

Personal Injury Claims

A workers’ compensation claim isn’t always the end of it. Excavation accident victims may also sue the other parties who share responsibility, such as property owners, general contractors, or equipment manufacturers, though not their own employer. A personal injury claim like that can cover more than workers’ comp does, including full lost wages, pain and suffering, and long-term care costs.

Third-Party Claims

A third-party claim is a personal injury lawsuit against someone other than your employer. That might be the equipment manufacturer if faulty equipment caused your injury, the property owner if an unsafe property caused your accident, or a subcontractor that created a hazardous condition on the job site.

New York Labor Laws

New York has some of the toughest labor laws for high-risk work like construction and excavation. Here are the key laws that may apply to your excavation accident case:

Labor Law 200

This is New York’s general workplace safety law. It requires property owners and contractors to use reasonable care to keep the site safe, warn of dangers that aren’t obvious, and answer for hazardous conditions they knew about or should have known about.

Labor Law 240 (The “Scaffold Law”)

Labor Law 240 covers the hazards of working at heights, including falls and falling objects. Its protections reach gravity-related dangers at excavation sites too. A worker who falls into an unprotected excavation, or who is hit by tools or material falling into the trench, may be covered.

Labor Law 241

This law sets specific safety rules for construction, excavation, and demolition work. It requires compliance with the New York State Industrial Code, which spells out the safety measures excavation sites must follow.

Excavation Accidents We Can Help With

These are some of the most common ones we see at Richman Law Firm PLLC:

Trench Collapses: One of the most serious excavation accidents on a construction site, trench collapses can bury workers alive, causing suffocation or crushing injuries.

Equipment Failures: Malfunctioning heavy machinery, such as backhoes or bulldozers, can cause serious accidents.

Falling Objects: Tools, debris, or building materials falling into excavation sites can hit workers below.

Cave-ins: Unstable soil conditions on a construction site can cause sudden cave-ins, trapping workers underground.

No Safety Equipment: Many accidents occur when workers aren’t given or don’t use proper safety gear, such as hard hats, safety harnesses, and protective footwear.

No Training: Workers who aren’t trained on safety protocols and equipment operation are more likely to cause or be involved in an accident.

Not Following OSHA Regulations: OSHA has strict guidelines for excavation work. Ignoring them can be deadly.

Common Excavation Injuries

Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBRs): Falling objects or impacts during a collapse can cause severe head trauma, resulting in memory loss and even lasting problems with thinking and concentration.

Spinal Cord Injuries: The force of trench cave-ins or falling into an excavation site can damage the spinal cord, resulting in partial or full paralysis.

Broken Bones: The weight of soil, equipment, or debris in a collapsed trench can break bones, sometimes resulting in complex breaks that require surgery.

Suffocation: Being buried in a trench collapse can cause suffocation if rescue isn’t immediate.

Cuts and Lacerations: Sharp tools, jagged debris, or broken equipment can cause severe cuts, which can lead to heavy blood loss or infection.

New York Statute of Limitations for Excavation Accident Claims

In New York, you generally have 3 years from the date of the accident to file an excavation accident claim, and 2 years from the date of death for a fatal one. 

The deadlines shrink when a city or other public entity is involved. Then you generally must file a notice of claim within 90 days, and the lawsuit itself within one year and 90 days. Excavation work in NYC often touches public property, so it’s worth confirming your deadline early.

Schedule a Free Consultation

We walk accident victims through the legal process of a personal injury claim. We:

• Investigate your accident
• Identify all liable parties
• Handle difficult legal and labor issues
• Deal with insurance companies for you

You don’t have to handle the insurance calls yourself, and waiting costs you. Trenches get backfilled and damaged equipment gets repaired, so the proof of what went wrong can disappear within days. Talk to us before you talk to an insurance company.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an excavation accident in New York City, don’t wait to get legal help. Contact us for a free consultation. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I sue my employer after an excavation accident in New York?

In most cases, no. Workers’ compensation is usually the only remedy against your direct employer, but New York’s labor laws let injured workers sue other parties responsible for site safety, such as property owners and general contractors. Those claims can recover damages workers’ compensation doesn’t pay, including pain and suffering. The same limit applies to families after a fatal accident: wrongful death claims typically proceed against those responsible third parties rather than the employer.

How deep does a trench have to be before it needs protection?

OSHA requires a protective system, such as sloping, shoring, or a trench box, for trenches 5 feet deep or more, unless the excavation is made entirely in stable rock. Trenches deeper than 20 feet need a protective system designed by a registered professional engineer. A collapse at a shallower depth can still support a claim if the site wasn’t kept reasonably safe.

Do bystanders injured by excavation work have a claim?

Yes. Pedestrians and neighbors hurt by excavation work, whether from a sidewalk collapse or falling debris, may bring a negligence claim against the contractor or property owner. These claims fall outside the labor law protections for workers, but the same three-year filing deadline usually applies.

Can undocumented workers recover compensation for an excavation accident?

New York courts have held that immigration status does not bar an injured worker from bringing a personal injury or labor law claim, and lost wage awards remain available in many cases. A contractor cannot escape liability because of a worker’s status.