Warehouse Accidents and Lawsuits

Warehouses Can Be Potentially Dangerous Environments

Many of our clients and workers in Indiana work in warehouses. They have jobs with delivery companies, trucking companies, manufacturers, fulfillment centers, temp agencies, or even in management.  Warehouses are fast-paced, have a lot of industrial equipment including forklifts, and can be quite dangerous.

Warehouse Accidents Happen in Spite of Safety Protocols Being in Place

While we’d like to think that safety protocols protect workers from injury, the truth is that many warehouse workers still get injured each year. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports that over 2.8 million workers reported work-related injury or illness in 2019. People who call us have injuries to their backs, spines, shoulders, knees and heads. Oftentimes their injures have happened as a result of falls or being hurt by heavy machinery including forklifts, cherry pickers, order pickers, and many other types of equipment.

Injured Warehouse Employees Should File a Workers Compensation Claim

If you are hurt as an employee working at a warehouse, or for a warehouse, you certainly have an Indiana workers compensation case.  To have a workers compensation case, your injury must occur by accident and arise out of and in the course of employment.  Workers compensation benefits pay certain monetary amounts including medical expenses, some lost wages, and oftentimes an impairment settlement.

Filing a Lawsuit Over a Warehouse Injury

We get asked a lot about lawsuits.  Lawsuits are when you can present a case to a civil jury and receive monetary damages much higher than a workers compensation claim provides.  Lawsuits entitle an injured person, if successful, to damages such as future wage loss, pain and suffering, future medical expenses, and many other damages not available under the workers compensation laws.

Do You Have a Valid Third-Party Lawsuit?

If you’ve been injured in a warehouse accident and are curious if you have a personal injury lawsuit in addition to a workers compensation claim (you can have both), you must identify another party responsible for your accident other than a co-worker or your employer.  If you work for a temp agency, Indiana law considers your employer to be both the temporary agency and the facility where you are placed to work.  As such, to have a legitimate case for a lawsuit, you must identify another entity or company other than your employer or a co-worker as responsible for your injury.  Some examples would be: if you work alongside employees of another company at a warehouse and that employee of the other company rides over your leg with a forklift, if your injury is a result of a malfunctioning defect to a forklift, or if a  general contractor holds some responsibility for your injury.

Lawsuits Can Result in More Money for An Injured Worker

Lawsuits are generally worth more money than workers compensation cases, but a responsible third party must be identified.  If you have been hurt in a warehouse accident, and want to pursue a lawsuit for personal injury, a spine injury, back injury or head injury due to a fall or due to heavy machinery causing injury or illness to yourself, please let us know and we can screen your case.  We will talk with you for free.

Injured People Should Focus on Their Recovery First

If you’ve been injured in a warehouse accident and want an attorney to help you file a lawsuit against a third party, consult with an experienced attorney at Klezmer Maudlin. We are experienced, honest and successful when we take on cases for those who have suffered injuries from warehouse accidents throughout the state of Indiana.