Electrocution Accident Lawyer in Palm Coast, FL

Did you suffer injuries or lose a loved one in an electrocution accident at work? These incidents happen more frequently than many people realize. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) lists electrocution as one of the “Fatal Four” leading causes of death in U.S. workplaces. The number of electrocution deaths jumped nearly four percent in a single recent year.

Depending on your employment status, you could be eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim through your employer if you sustained an electrical injury in Florida. These benefits are available regardless of who was responsible for the accident. Independent contractors do not qualify for workers’ comp but could seek compensation through a third-party claim or personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault party. An experienced electrocution accident lawyer from Chiumento Law, PLLC can review your claim and discuss your legal options with you in a free consultation.

Chiumento Law, PLLC is an accomplished workplace injury law firm with offices in Palm Coast and Ormond Beach. Call or contact us today for your free case review.

What To Do After Being Electrocuted at Work

If you were electrocuted at work, there are several steps you should take right away to protect yourself and your workplace injury claim:

• Seek medical attention – Get evaluated by a medical professional right away. Some electrical shock injuries are not immediately apparent, so it is vital to be checked out by a doctor as soon as possible after the accident. Insurance companies usually require you to be seen within a reasonable period after an accident. Otherwise, they might deny your claim.
• Collect evidence – If you can, take photos of the electrical hazard that caused the accident, your injuries, and the scene in general. If anyone witnessed the accident, ask for their contact information. They may be able to provide a statement on your behalf later.
• Report the accident – You should report the accident to your employer right away. In Florida, you have 30 days to notify your employer of an on-the-job injury.
• Gather documents – Keep a record of all your medical documents, hospital bills, accident reports, lost income, and other documentation related to your injuries.
• Contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible – A skilled attorney can handle all communications with the insurance company while you focus on recovering from your injuries.

How Much Compensation Can I Get for an Electric Shock Accident?

Injured workers in Florida may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits after being involved in workplace accidents. Others may have third-party liability claims, depending on their employee classification and the circumstances of the accident.

Various factors determine whether you can file a personal injury lawsuit after suffering an electrical injury in the workplace. If you are an employee, you will most likely have to pursue workers’ compensation benefits through your employer’s insurance company. In Florida, employees are generally prohibited from suing employers unless they can prove that the employer intentionally harmed them.

But if you are an independent contractor, you could seek compensation through a third-party personal injury claim if negligence or misconduct contributed to the electrocution accident. It’s also worth noting that if the electrical accident occurred at work but was caused by a third party (not your employer), you could potentially take legal action to recover additional compensation from them apart from your workers’ compensation benefits. For this reason, it’s critical to talk to an experienced workplace injury lawyer.

If your loved one died on the job due to electrocution, your options for pursuing compensation will also depend on the deceased’s job classification. If your family member was an employee, you will likely not be able to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against the employer. Instead, you would be entitled to recover death benefits through the state workers’ compensation system.

However, if the deceased was an independent contractor, you might be able to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against the at-fault party. A successful wrongful death claim allows claimants to recover money for medical expenses, funeral and burial costs, future lost income, and other losses like pain and suffering.

The amount of compensation that you can recover will depend on various factors after being injured on the job. These include:

• The severity of your workplace injuries
• Your present and future medical needs
• Whether you were disabled by the electrocution accident
• Physical and emotional pain and suffering
• Your attorney’s competence, knowledge, and experience

Whether you are pursuing compensation through a workers’ comp claim, a third-party injury claim, or a wrongful death suit, determining the value of your case can be challenging. A knowledgeable workplace injury lawyer can help by investigating the accident, determining liability, and seeking fair compensation on your behalf.

Who Can Be Sued in an Electric Shock Lawsuit?

Multiple parties could be liable in your electrocution accident case. While workers’ compensation exists to provide benefits to injured employees and prevent them from taking legal action against their employers, there are situations in which you could be owed compensation from another at-fault party.

Examples of third parties who could be held liable for electrocution accidents include

• Entities that were responsible for maintaining and repairing power lines and utility poles
• A company that manufactured, designed, or sold defective power line components
• The designer or manufacturer of faulty utility equipment

To determine liability, you will need to be able to demonstrate that someone else’s carelessness led to your accident and injuries. Proving negligence can be challenging, particularly if multiple people could be at fault. An experienced work injury lawyer can help you identify the liable parties and all possible sources of compensation.

What Is an Electric Shock?

People suffer electric shocks when a part of their body touches an electrical current. While some electrical shocks may cause only minor pain and discomfort, other incidents could result in a catastrophic injury or death.

Electric shocks commonly affect people in hazardous occupations, such as utility workers. Around 1,000 people die of electrical shocks each year in the United States, and most of those fatalities are work-related.

Shock injuries are often caused by:

• Overloaded circuits
• Exposed electrical energy sources
• Fallen power lines
• Frayed cords
• Poorly installed electrical lines
• Damaged machinery
• Defective electrical equipment
• Water on or around electrical equipment
• Defective electrical wires

Because electric shocks can cause serious injuries and death, employers must enact safety protocols to reduce the risk of electrocution accidents on the job.

Typical Electric Shock Injuries in the Workplace

The severity of an electrocution injury depends on the voltage, type of current, and what part of the body is shocked. Lower-voltage electric shocks typically don’t harm humans. But if a worker comes in contact with electricity greater than 500 volts, the consequences can be severe.

Burns are the most common injury stemming from electrical shocks. Burn injuries are classified into three main categories:

• Superficial burns – A superficial burn only damages the top layer of skin, called the epidermis. These burns may have a red appearance that turns white when pressed. While they are typically painful, they are the least serious type of burn.
• Partial-thickness burns – A partial-thickness burn involves the epidermis and part of the dermis, the top two layers of skin. Symptoms of these burns include blistering and redness. Medical intervention can expedite the healing process.
• Full-thickness burns – A full-thickness burn impacts every layer of skin. These burns often result in tissue and nerve damage, which means the victim may not feel any pain. Full-thickness burns may turn the skin gray, white, or black. Depending on the severity of the burns, internal organs could also be damaged. Victims must undergo extensive medical treatment for full-thickness burns.

Minor burns can be treated with a cool cloth, bandages, over-the-counter pain medication, and elevating the affected area. More severe burn injuries may require skin grafts, surgery, prescription pain medications, specialized bandages, and antibiotics to prevent infection.

Other common types of electric shock injuries include:

• Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
• Nerve damage
• Muscle pain
• Muscle weakness
• Seizures and convulsions
• Spinal cord injuries
• Respiratory issues
• Cardiac arrest
• Hearing loss
• Vision loss
• Cardiac arrhythmia
• Numbness or “pins and needles”
• Death

Workers who suffer an electrocution injury are also at risk of secondary injuries. For example, an electrical shock could incapacitate a construction worker and cause them to fall from an elevated worksite, leading to additional trauma.

Injured workers can file a workers’ compensation claim to pay for their medical bills, a portion of their lost wages, and temporary or permanent disability benefits while they heal. A skilled workers’ compensation attorney can also help employees determine whether other potential sources of compensation are available to them after a workplace accident.

What Percentage of Work-Related Electrocutions Involve Cranes?

Crane operators are particularly vulnerable to electrocution accidents. Of the 6,400 work-related deaths that occurred in the United States over a nine-year period, on average 15 deaths resulted from cranes coming into contact with power lines, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

OSHA data also shows that 65 percent of work-related electrocutions occurred in construction zones during the same timeframe. Almost 30 percent of those electrical accidents involved cranes.

Contact Our Palm Coast Electrocution Accident Lawyers Today

If you sustained an electric shock injury at work, contact the Palm Coast personal injury lawyers at Chiumento Law, PLLC right away. Our legal team has represented clients in both workers’ compensation claims and third-party personal injury claims for over 40 years. Put us to work for you, too.

Call or contact us today for a free consultation.