Maryland Road Construction Accidents: This Summer, Know The Risks And Your Rights To Compensation

Summer is peak season for road construction in Maryland. As crews work hard to repair, repave, and improve infrastructure across the state, they face long hours, extreme heat, and constant exposure to traffic hazards. Unfortunately, this high-risk environment also leads to an increase in work-related injuries, which are often severe and potentially life-threatening.

Our Maryland workers’ compensation attorney helps injured workers in these cases. We explain more about the risks and your rights in filing a claim.

Common Causes of Road Construction Injuries in Maryland

Maryland road construction zones are hazardous by nature, and the summer season only increases the risks. Longer daylight hours and increased traffic from vacationers, commercial trucks, and beachgoers mean more exposure for workers and more opportunities for accidents to happen.

Maryland’s Department of Transportation (DOT) reports that nearly 1,500 road construction workers get injured each year. Common causes of road construction injuries in Maryland include:

• Struck-by accidents, where workers are hit by passing vehicles or construction equipment;
• Falls from scaffolding, ladders, or highway overpasses;
• Heavy machinery accidents, including rollovers, caught-in or caught-between incidents, and mechanical malfunctions;
• Heat stroke, dehydration, and other heat-related injuries;
• Electrical injuries, from contact with power lines or improperly grounded equipment;
• Slips and falls, due to uneven surfaces, loose gravel, or poor lighting.

Unfortunately, even a seemingly minor road construction accident in Maryland can leave workers suffering severe harm.

Maryland Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Liability: What Injured Road Workers Should Know

If you get hurt while working on a road construction site, workers’ compensation benefits may be able to help. Available through the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission (WCC), these benefits can help cover the costs of the following:

• Medical testing, treatment, prescriptions, and follow-up care that are determined to be causally related to your injury;
• Temporary total disability if you can’t work due to your injury, which is 2/3 of your average weekly wage tax free up to the state maximum;
• Permanent partial or total disability, in the event you suffer long-term impairments;
• Vocational rehabilitation if you’re unable to return to your prior job.

Maryland workers’ compensation is a no-fault system, meaning you can receive benefits even if no one is directly to blame, with some exceptions. However, some road construction injuries also involve third-party liability, meaning another person or entity outside your employer may share responsibility. This might include reckless drivers, subcontractors who fail to follow safety standards, and equipment manufacturers, if defective tools or machines contributed to the injury.

In these cases, you may be entitled to compensation in a personal injury claim, which provides additional payment for pain and suffering, the full cost of lost wages, and other damages not covered by workers’ comp.

Injured While Doing Road Construction Work? Contact Our Maryland Workers’ Compensation Attorney

Road construction is dangerous work. If you get injured on the job this summer, contact Berman | Sobin | Gross LLP. We can review your case, advise you on your options in filing a claim, and fight to get the maximum compensation you need to recover. For trusted legal guidance, request a consultation today with our experienced Maryland workers’ compensation attorney.

Source:

blog.mdot.maryland.gov/work-zone-safety