Farming Accident Lawyer

Farm workers face several major threats at work, including heavy machinery, chemical exposure, and injuries from animals. Farm work can also mean working at heights and walking on uneven or unstable terrain. If you are fortunate, you may come away with mere cuts, bruises, sprains, and strains. Yet, all too often, agricultural accidents result in permanent disabilities and even death.

Tractor overturns

Tractors working on uneven terrain can become unbalanced and topple over, trapping workers underneath. Having tens of thousands of pounds bearing down on you can cause broken bones at the least, crush injuries, or death.

Entanglement in heavy machinery

Although safety measures are usually in place, it is still possible to get fingers, hands, and arms caught in the moving parts of heavy machinery. This can result in lacerations, dislocations, and amputations in very serious cases.

Both operating and repairing heavy machinery can be dangerous. These injuries can cause permanent disabilities that may require you to retrain or may mean you cannot work in the future.

Toxic exposure

Modern farming involves the extensive use of pesticides (designed to kill unwanted bugs) and herbicides (weedkillers). Unfortunately, exposure to these chemicals can also be toxic to human health.

Short-term exposure may lead to sinus irritation and breathing difficulties. A 2021 study found that occupational exposure to pesticides can be a major trigger for various forms of cancer. If you think that your work in agriculture may have caused your illness, talk to a Fielding Law attorney to discuss your rights.

Injuries from animals

Both Texas and Utah are home to millions of farm animals, including hogs, sheep, goats, and – of course – prized cattle. While these beasts are mainly gentle creatures, they can sometimes turn on humans with devastating consequences.

Sadly, kicks, bites, and even gorings happen to farm workers at times. These injuries may require extensive treatment before a worker can return to the farm.

Suffocation

Utah and Texas both produce huge amounts of grain crops each year. Where there are grain crops, there are silos, grain bins, and elevators – major pieces of farming equipment that carry the risk of suffocation. 

Suffocation can occur when a worker becomes buried in grain. This usually happens when he or she attempts to tamp down the grain or walk on moving grain. Grain acts like quicksand, quickly engulfing the worker and making it difficult to breathe. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has strict guidelines in place for farms to follow. Sadly, these are sometimes ignored with tragic consequences.

It can take hours to locate a person who has been engulfed in grain, yet it may only take minutes for him or her to suffocate. If you have lost a loved one in a farming accident like this, speak to a Fielding Law wrongful death lawyer to discover your legal options. 

Before anyone can pursue compensation for a farm accident, it is essential to establish why the accident happened. Once this is understood, we can tackle the question of who was liable.

Some common causes of farm accidents include:

• Lack of routine maintenance: Farming equipment manufacturers supply maintenance schedules that detail how and when to carry out essential maintenance. If these schedules are not followed, the machines are more likely to wear out, malfunction, and cause accidents. 

• Failure to carry out repairs: Sometimes faults are reported but are ignored or not followed up. When there are no clear procedures for reporting faults, necessary repairs may be missed, leading to accidents. An attorney can investigate these procedures to try to uncover evidence of negligence that caused your accident.

• Inadequate training: Inexperienced or poorly trained workers are more likely to get injured than more experienced employees.

• Fatigue: Farm work often requires long hours and can be physically demanding. Fatigue can lead to poor judgment and slow reaction times that cause accidents.

• Defective machinery: Faults with farming machinery can lead to accidents. If a defective product is to blame for your injuries, the manufacturer could be held liable.

• Weather conditions: Farmers have a duty of care toward their workers. If weather conditions become dangerous, operators may need to bring work to a temporary halt. If operations continue, accidents can happen.

Some injuries and deaths may result from a combination of factors. It is important to work with experienced attorneys who will thoroughly investigate the circumstances of your accident. They may be able to uncover evidence that could build a strong case for liability and compensation.

A farm accident can place a huge financial burden on your shoulders. You will likely face hefty medical bills, lost wages, or, in serious cases, the cost of long-term care. If you are permanently disabled, you may no longer be able to do the job you love.

The farm accident lawyers at Fielding Law may be able to help in the following ways:

• Investigating the accident: As discussed, a lawyer will examine what caused the accident and who is liable.

• Explaining your legal rights: Personal injury law can be very complex, especially in work-related accidents. In some cases, you may be entitled to compensation under workers’ compensation insurance, but this is not always the case. Looking up your rights online is not enough; you need a lawyer to hear your story and provide bespoke advice for your unique situation.

• Building a strong case: A farming accident lawyer will gather evidence to demonstrate how the liable party violated its duty of care toward you and why you are entitled to compensation. Your attorney may need to call expert witnesses to add weight to your case and give you the best chance of receiving fair compensation.

• Negotiating with insurance companies: It is possible to settle many farming accident cases without going to court. Your Fielding Law attorney will play hardball in negotiations with insurance companies to fight for the best possible settlement.

• Filing a lawsuit: If it is not possible to settle the claim out of court, your farming accident lawyer can file a lawsuit and represent you in court. In this case, a judge or jury will make the final decision on who was liable, whether you are entitled to damages, and how much you may receive.

Do not represent yourself

It may be tempting to go it alone or simply accept the insurance company’s first offer. However, these could prove to be costly mistakes.

Firstly, insurance companies are not on your side. They want to pay you as little as possible and conclude the case fast. They do not care about your long-term needs. A hasty settlement could leave you with serious financial problems in the future.

Secondly, most of us do not have the legal knowledge or experience to fight successfully with insurance adjusters. On the other hand, Fielding Law attorneys have years of experience in fighting and winning cases against insurance bullies. When you are at your most vulnerable, you need a strong advocate to fight tenaciously for your rights. 

How to hire a farming accident lawyer

The process begins with a completely free case consultation with one of our attorneys. He or she will carefully listen as you explain your case. You can rest assured that our lawyer will consider all legal options and give you an honest assessment of your chances of securing compensation. If you have a strong case, our farming accident attorneys may agree to take it on.

At this point, the choice is yours. You can walk away without paying a penny for the advice you have received. Or if you choose to proceed with us, we guarantee that we will not charge you anything unless we win compensation for you.