Personal Injury 

Injuries from Oil Rig Accidents are Both Physical and Economic

Any type of accident can have serious consequences for the parties involved. A traffic accident will affect the drivers and passengers of all vehicles involved, and, perhaps, bystanders unfortunate enough to be too close to the accident when it occurs. Likewise, oil rig accidents have serious consequences, however, an oil rig injury will likely be worse than those sustained in a routine traffic accident. Because oil rig injuries have the potential for serious physical and economic damages, it is important to have an attorney that specializes in these types of cases involved as soon as practicable. A short delay in contacting an attorney can have serious ramifications on the recovery received for all injured parties.

Those most likely to suffer a physical injury are those employed on the oil rigs. Working on an oil rig is dangerous work and employers do everything in their power to fight safety regulations passed by the government. This means that despite the best efforts of the government, accidents and injuries are still likely to occur in the dangerous world of offshore oil rigs. Because the nature of these accidents and injuries are so severe, the amount of money required to compensate injured employees will be higher than typical workplace accidents. Furthermore, the facts of these cases are more specialized than the average injury. Because of this it is important for the injured employee and their family to have an attorney that specializes in these cases in their corner. An average injury attorney is not enough for the complexity of these cases. Indeed, the oil rig company will spend all the money necessary to hire attorneys to fight these cases and limit the recovery of injured workers. A proper injury attorney will be able to counter company lawyers and help the injured worker begin to rebuild their life.

Workers are not the only ones injured as the result of an oil rig accident. Yes, the physical injuries are severe, but oil rig accidents also cause severe environmental damages that cause unique types of injuries to those who may not even be near the rigs. For example, the DeepWater Horizon accident caused approximately sixty two billion dollars in economic damages to those in the gulf area. This figure included damages to both private citizens and small businesses.

When there is an oil rig accident in an area where there is a lot of commercial fishing, the commercial fishermen will often loss a significant source of their revenue stream. Similarly, other businesses that depend on clean water will lose significant revenue and be injured as the result of an oil rig accident. Private homeowners might also see the value of their homes plummet if they are close enough to the water to be affected. These types of economic injury deserve compensation just as much as physical injuries do. However, the process to receive compensation is often complicated and will need the participation of an attorney that specializes in these matters. Regardless of the nature of the injury caused by an oil rig accident, an attorney should be involved.

 

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