As Featured In
Texas oil field workers have a high risk of on-the-job injury. If you are hurt, your injuries might require intense medical treatment and make it impossible to return to work to support your family. If you suffered injuries while working in an oil field, call an attorney now.
Accidents in oil fields can be serious and often include machinery malfunctions, explosions, fires, exposure to hazardous materials, and falling accidents. If you are injured, an attorney can help you sue the people responsible. Damages may be vast and account for financial losses and non-economic injuries, like pain and suffering. We need to gather the strongest evidence possible before we can prove your claims and get compensation. Witnesses, physical evidence, security camera footage, and more might be used to prove your claims in court. Working with an experienced attorney is important because they can help you evaluate your damages, find evidence, and navigate the complex legal channels needed to get your case into court.
Our oil field injury lawyers fight to get injured workers compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. For a free case review to get started, contact The Queenan Law Firm, P.C.at (817) 476-1797.
Possible Accidents in Texas Oil Fields
Oil fields are big places, and danger lurks around almost every corner. Working in an oil field can be very dangerous, and workers must be on high alert for anything that seems amiss. Below are just a few common causes of accidents our oil field injury lawyers have seen. Even if you do not see your case described here, you should call our team for help.
Machinery and Equipment Accidents
Oil fields require all sorts of heavy machinery, tools, and equipment to run safely. The drilling rig is perhaps the most recognizable and arguably most important machinery on an oil field. These are large, complicated machines that drill into the ground to extract crude oil, natural gas, and possibly other hydrocarbons.
These rigs often must drill very deep. Once the hole is deep enough, metal pipes or tubing may be dropped in the hole to help extract crude oil. This process sounds simple but requires highly skilled workers using highly technical equipment. Workers might be badly hurt if something goes wrong with the drilling rig.
Fires and Explosions
Oil fields often have a high risk of fires and explosions because they are filled with, well, oil. This is an incredibly flammable and explosive substance, and it is imperative that the people leading the work on an oil field maintain safety precautions to avoid fires.
Even something as small as a lit cigarette on the job site could ignite a powerful explosion. Not only should the person who lit the cigarette be held responsible, but their employer might be responsible, too. The employer’s job is to enforce safety rules. If they failed to do so, it might explain why someone thought it was a good idea to light up on an oil field.
Exposure to Hazardous Material
When working in an oil field, workers routinely work in the vicinity of hazardous chemicals and other materials. Drilling rigs frequently extract crude oil, and the substance can be very dangerous if workers are exposed.
Acute or chronic exposure might lead to serious health issues. For example, pregnant people exposed to crude oil might give birth to babies with birth defects. Many other people exposed to crude oil develop cancer, as crude oil is known to be a harsh carcinogen.
Generally, exposure should be acute, meaning you are exposed to a lot of crude oil at once, or chronic, meaning you are exposed over a long period of time. Talk to an attorney and get to a doctor immediately if you work in oil fields and begin noticing a decline in your health.
Falling Accidents
Workers in oil fields often work from high places. You might be atop large machinery or high scaffolding. If the equipment or scaffolding is not secured, you might fall and become very badly injured. It is important that employers and supervisors check this kind of equipment regularly to make sure it is safe for workers. If you were injured in a falling accident, talk to your lawyer about it. We can help you determine who should be held responsible.
Suing for Injuries for Texas Oil Field Workers
When you face workplace injuries in Texas, there are two options for how you can file for compensation. When you start working, you have 5 days to decide whether to accept or reject Workers’ Compensation coverage. If you accept the coverage, you may have to file injury claims through Workers’ Compensation. If you reject the coverage, you retain your right to sue and can take your employer to court for injuries, potentially resulting in higher damages.
When you sue for injuries, you must prove that the defendant was somehow responsible for your injuries. Many oil field injuries are the result of dangerous or negligent workplace conditions. Many of these conditions are avoidable, and your employer may owe you and other employees a duty to prevent the harms that make up the most common workplace accidents. Some examples of the duties an oil field employer might owe you include the following:
- The duty to screen coworkers for drug and alcohol use on the job
- The duty to properly train you and your coworkers in a language they can understand
- The duty to provide workers with proper safety gear and OSHA-compliant workplaces
- The duty to maintain and replace heavy machinery and other equipment
- The duty to test and maintain blowout prevention devices and other emergency safety processes on the oil rig
- The duty to keep work areas safe from avoidable dangers
If your employer fails to uphold one of these duties and you are injured because of that breach of duty, your employer may be considered “negligent.” They can be held responsible for the injuries you face. This allows you to claim damages from them in court to help pay for the injuries you face.
Damages for Oil Field Injuries in Texas
If you or a loved one was injured or a member of your family was killed in an accident on an oil rig, you may be entitled to substantial damages for the harm you and your family faced. The primary damages you can claim in a personal injury lawsuit against an oil field employer typically include financial compensation for the monetary losses you suffered, but you can also claim damages for intangible harms.
Any medical expenses stemming from the accident and injury can usually be claimed in full in court. These damages can pay you back for the cost of any medical treatment related to the injury, including emergency medical transportation, medical imaging, and ongoing care like physical therapy and rehabilitation.
If you missed work because of the injury, you may be entitled to claim the full value of any lost wages you suffered. This can reimburse you for the wages you missed during your recovery period, as well as ongoing wages you will miss if your injury interferes with your ability to work going forward.
You can also claim substantial damages for the pain and suffering you face. These intangible harms cannot be proved by pointing to medical bills or bank statements. Your testimony about how the injury affected your day-to-day tasks, the activities you previously enjoyed, and the changes to your quality of life can help prove how much these damages are worth.
You can also claim substantial damages if you lost a loved one to wrongful death in an oil field injury. If the employer was responsible for your loss, they might be liable to you for the cost of medical care, lost wages going forward, lost inheritances, lost companionship, pain and suffering, and funeral and burial expenses. Talk to an attorney for help understanding what a wrongful death and survivorship case is worth in Texas.
Gathering Evidence to Prove Your Claims in a Texas Oil Field Injury Case
Evidence might come from almost anywhere. What is important and relevant to the case varies based on how you were injured. Our legal team has experience with evidence and can help you gather what you need quickly and efficiently.
As with many workplaces, oil fields are often monitored by security cameras. Security cameras might be around large machinery and other dangerous places specifically to watch for accidents so employers can review the footage to determine what went wrong. We can ask for this footage as part of the discovery phase of your case, where both sides exchange evidence. If the defendant does not hand over security camera footage, we can ask the court to order them to do so.
We should also speak to potential witnesses about the accident. Witnesses in oil field accident cases often include coworkers. They might have watched the accident happen and can offer first-hand knowledge of exactly what happened the day of the accident. Alternatively, they might not have been present for the accident but can attest to the unsafe working conditions that caused the accident.
Are there OSHA reports related to your accident? Perhaps the unsafe conditions that caused your accident were previously reported to OSHA, but your employer did nothing or made inadequate improvements. If so, there might reports about the unsafe working conditions that we should review.
Why You Should Work with an Attorney on Your Texas Oil Field Injury Case
Taking legal action can be extremely challenging for several reasons. First, it is a major time commitment, and many people are unsure about pledging themselves to a lawsuit for weeks, months, or even years. Second, as an oil field worker, you might fear retaliation from employers. If you sue your employer or other people in charge of the il field, you might be afraid of being backlisted from working in the industry ever again. Our team will help you through your lawsuit and can also help make sure your employer does not unjustly retaliate.
Our legal team has handled accidents like this before and understands the responsibility in oil field accident cases. Lawyers know how to determine who is to blame and who is not.
Your attorney can also help you work through complex legal procedures. Lawsuits must adhere to rigid procedural rules, including how forms and paperwork are submitted, how attorneys conduct themselves in the courtroom, and how to file motions, raise objections, and generally navigate the case from start to finish.
Call Our Texas Oil Field Injury Lawyer for a Free Legal Consultation on Your Case
After sustaining serious injuries in an oil field accident, it is important to consider taking your case to court with the help of our experienced Texas oil field injury lawyers. The Queenan Law Firm’s personal injury attorneys represent the victims of workplace accidents on oil fields and represent their loved ones in injury and wrongful death lawsuits against their employers. For help understanding what your case is worth and how to proceed, call our law offices for a free case review. Our number is (817) 476-1797.