Construction sites often use excavators to move heavy objects, digging, and trenching. They consist of a boom, dipper, bucket, and cab which all attach to the base which rotates, sitting on two tracks to move around. These massive instruments can help in construction, but can also cause serious injury or death if people are not careful. If you or a loved one were injured in an excavator accident, contact us for a free consultation to see if you may be entitled to compensation.
What kinds of accidents and injuries can occur?
Excavators can weigh over 12 tons and have an incredible amount of power. This means that the excavator’s operator must be very experienced and well-trained to do the job. When they are inexperienced, poorly trained, or simply reckless, chaos can ensue. The excavator’s bucket, which is the end part that holds materials, can hit people working on the site and throw them long distances or kill them. They may also run into or over buildings, structures, drivers, and even pedestrians, which would certainly cause immediate death from crushing injuries. Excavators can also have a defect in its design and malfunction, thus resulting in its operator losing control of it.
Who is liable?
Negligence is the basis of these types of accident lawsuits. Negligence occurs when one party breaches the duty of care that they owe to others on the road and injuries directly resulting from the accident. When the accident is due to driver inexperience, poor training, or recklessness, the driver, as well as the construction company that owns the excavator, can be liable. The rationale for the company being liable is that they were negligent in hiring or failing to properly train the operator, so they can be at fault. When the accident is due to the bucket’s movement hitting something or someone, the operator of the vehicle can be held liable for negligently operating the vehicle. When the accident is from running a person or object over or running into them, the excavator would likely be found liable since they have a dominant position in their surroundings, given the powerful heavy machinery, and should exercise great care with regards to its surroundings. If the accident is due to a design defect, the excavator’s manufacturer can be held liable for releasing a flawed product for construction use.
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