What Are the Most Common Types of Scaffold Accidents?

Scaffolds are an important part of construction, but when they aren’t used properly or there are defects, accidents can occur. These accidents often result in severe and costly injuries.

At Laborde Earles, our construction accident lawyers in Lafayette discuss the most common types of scaffold accidents that occur on construction sites. Our team has over 250 years of combined experience helping injured construction workers.

Common Types of Scaffold Accidents on Construction Sites

Scaffolding provides essential elevated work platforms for construction jobs but can also present serious injury hazards if safety protocols are neglected. Some of the most common scaffolding accidents that occur include:

• Falls: These often occur due to issues like unsecured planking, missing guardrails, or lack of fall protection equipment when working at height.
• Collapses: Scaffold collapses tend to happen when the structure is not properly designed, utilized, braced, or lacks stability to support workers and materials.
• Struck-bys: Coming into contact with falling objects is a risk when working under or near an unsecured scaffold where tools or materials could dislodge.
• Electrocution: Working near exposed energized lines or on metal scaffolding brings the danger of electric shock or electrocution.
• Overexertion: Strains and weight-related injuries may occur without assistance lifting heavy loads or overextending on an elevated scaffold platform.
• Contact hazards: Exposure to harmful substances, sharp materials, pinch points, fire, and other dangers raises the risk of contact injuries on unstable or cluttered scaffolding.

Who Is Responsible for Scaffold Accidents on Construction Sites?

When you suffer injuries in scaffolding accidents, there are a few different parties that could be liable for your pain, economic damages, and non-economic damages. Our construction accident attorney in Lafayette can help you hold the following parties accountable:

General Contractor

The general contractor could be at fault if they failed to oversee the work of subcontractors properly and ensure that OSHA scaffolding requirements were being met on the jobsite. They may not have conducted adequate safety inspections of scaffolds during different construction stages. The general contractor is also responsible for enforcing safety policies, and if they didn’t, they could be liable.

Scaffolding Company

If a rented scaffold was involved in the accident, the scaffolding company could be at fault. The scaffold may have been improperly erected with insecure brace connections or ties that led to instability. 

Loose or unsecured planking that was too narrow could have also contributed to a fall. The fault could be on the company if the scaffold poles or frames were damaged, but the company did not structurally reinforce them before workers used them again. 

Employer

As the employer of injured workers, the fault could stem from failing to provide proper scaffold safety training. The employer may have permitted at-risk behaviors like working without fall protection or appropriate guardrails. 

There may also have been a lack of supervision and enforcement of safety rules for scaffold usage. Requiring work from visibly unsafe areas of the scaffold structure would make the employer culpable.

Individual Workers

Individual workers themselves could be at fault for ignoring established safety procedures. Not ensuring guardrails before entering open areas or failing to notice clear signs of damage to scaffold components puts fault on those workers. 

Working in an unsafe or reckless manner on the scaffold platform also makes workers partially responsible for any injuries. If you suffered an injury due to another worker’s recklessness, our workers’ compensation lawyer in Lafayette at Laborde Earles can help you.

What Are Common Injuries in Scaffold Accidents?

In addition to the various ways scaffold accidents can occur, there are different types of injuries you could suffer. These injuries can vary in severity and recovery period. Some of the most common injuries include: 

• Fractures: Falls often result in broken bones, especially fractures to the legs, pelvis, spine, arms, or ribs.
• Head injuries: Striking the head or ground in a fall can cause traumatic brain injuries like concussions.
• Sprains and strains: Overexertion can lead to pulled muscles or injuries to the back, shoulders, and limbs.
• Lacerations: Contact with sharp materials or equipment may cause cuts, punctures, and other serious wounds.
• Burns: Exposure to flames, molten substances, or electric currents can cause burns.
• Bruising: Blunt force impacts frequently result in severe bruising over large areas of the body.
• Organ damage: Substantial internal injuries to organs like the spleen, liver, or kidneys are possible from major falls.
• Electrical injuries: Electrocutions may cause nerve damage, burns, or cardiac arrest in addition to external wounds.

What Damages Can You Recover For a Scaffold Accident in Lafayette?

When you get injured in a scaffolding accident due to someone else’s negligence, you have a legal right to recover the damages you’ve suffered. Our team can help you recover damages like: 

• Medical expenses: This includes costs associated with treatment for injuries sustained from a fall while working on a scaffold, like fractures, head trauma, and musculoskeletal injuries requiring surgery and physical therapy.
• Lost construction wages: If your injuries prevented you from continuing your job on the construction site or in the industry, lost wages would cover what you would have earned on that job or future construction projects.
• Pain and suffering: Compensation sought for long-term physical therapy and mental anguish in recovering from severe injuries like broken bones or nerve damage incurred from a scaffolding collapse or fall at height.
• Disability: Damages apply if injuries impair the ability to do tasks involved in construction work or prevent working at elevated heights again due to scaffold accident injuries.
• Punitive damages: In cases where OSHA scaffolding requirements were flagrantly ignored, these damages aim to dissuade knowing safety violations that led to serious harm.

Learn More About the Most Common Types of Scaffold Accidents in Lafayette

At Laborde Earles, our construction accident attorneys can help you recover compensation after another person’s negligence causes your injuries. We’re a personal injury law firm that enjoys giving back to the community as one big team. Part of that is fighting for you to recover the compensation you need.

Contact us today to learn more about the most common types of scaffold accidents and how our team can help.