Any injury that happens on a construction site is a terrible thing, but when a construction death occurs it affects families, friends and work colleagues to a deeper degree. Even though the Health and Safety Authority reports that a construction death is less likely now than it has ever been, this is of little consequence to a mother, father, wife, daughter or son who has just lost a loved one due to a construction death.
Despite regulations present in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2006 and the Safe Pass scheme, working on a construction site continues to be a hazardous occupation. During times of economic cutbacks and pressure on employers to deliver construction projects quicker and cheaper, short cuts may frequently be taken in health and safety training and protection for employees. Where these short cuts lead to a construction death, the employer should rightly be sued for construction death compensation.
Claiming Construction Death Compensation
There is no amount of compensation that can ever bring a loved one back from a construction death. Although provision is made by the State and the Construction Workers Pension Scheme to ensure that dependents are cared for in the short term, the death-in-service benefit (currently €63.500) would scarcely cover several years income. Whenever there is sufficient evidence to suggest that an employer has been negligent – even partly – and responsible for causing the accident which led to the fatality, you should consult a solicitor about making a claim for construction death compensation.
There are a number of good reasons for using a solicitor when claiming construction death compensation. Most importantly, your grief may impair your ability to compile a thorough application for construction death compensation. A solicitor will be more familiar with the process and paperwork required, and would make an appropriate application. Furthermore, if there are any issues regarding the deceased´s employment status, this is something you may not be in an emotionally fit state to handle. Again, a legal representative would be able to sort these types of issues out, and negotiate on your behalf should an employer´s insurance company approach you with an offer of early settlement.
If you have recently suffered a loss due to a construction death and need to speak to somebody in respect of the legal issues, please do not hesitate to give our free advice telephone service a call. You will be able to speak directly with an experienced solicitor, discuss any legal problems you may have and talk about your entitlement to make a construction death claim for compensation. The phone call and the advice are both free of charge, and you are under no obligation to proceed with a claim once you have spoken with us.
Call us now or if you cannot speak now please fill in the form on the left and we will call you back.
What You Can Expect When You Call
A construction death is one of the saddest types of compensation claim we have to deal with, and you will find us considerate of your grief when you call. Throughout our conversation, you can expect us to be courteous and respectful and if there is any point at which you wish to stop and get back to us later, we understand.
We would like you to tell us the circumstances surrounding the construction death, what reports have been made by the appropriate authorities and where they believe the cause of the accident which led to the fatality originated. If you have any further information that would help us to construct a claim for construction death, that would help us also.
If there any questions that you have about legal status, employment legislation or your entitlement to make a construction death claim for compensation, please do not hesitate to ask. Also, if there is any advice we give which you do not completely understand, kindly let us know and we will phrase it differently or explain it in a different way.
Wherever possible, we will make a preliminary assessment of your right to claim compensation for a construction death while you are on the phone. You are under no obligation to proceed with a claim once you have spoken with us, but it is better if you make a decision with the full facts in front of you and having had time to consider them.
Our main consideration is that you have somebody impartial to speak to, who can offer clear and practical advice and provide all the information that you need. Therefore, please give our free advice line a call at your earliest convenience, or leave your details in our call-back form below and one of our team will be back in touch with you.