Houston Oil and Gas Worker Injury Lawyers

If you sustained injuries while performing your job as an oil or gas worker, contact The DJF Law Firm, PLLC immediately. We could represent you in a workers’ compensation claim to recover various benefits.

Oil fields are familiar sights throughout the state. Workers face dangerous conditions whenever they set foot on the job site. Oil and gas are hazardous substances that could cause severe injuries. An explosion, well blowout, machinery failure, and numerous other scenarios could harm a worker.

At The DJF Law Firm, PLLC, we believe in protecting the rights of injured gas and oil workers. You are entitled to benefits through your employer’s workers’ compensation insurer. If they don’t provide coverage, you might be able to sue the negligent party responsible for the accident.

Call The DJF Law Firm, PLLC at 832-529-3476 for a free consultation with one of our Houston work injury lawyers to learn more about your available options.

Causes of Oil and Gas Accidents

At The DJF Law Firm, PLLC, we can represent injured oil and gas workers in a range of cases. The most common causes of oil and gas accidents include:

• Machinery failure – Workers often use machinery to drill and complete other job-related tasks. A defective part could cause the equipment to malfunction.
• Fires and explosions – Oil and gas are highly combustible. A fire could break out and lead to an explosion.
• Vehicle collisions – Commercial trucks are necessary to transport materials, haul away waste, and serve other purposes. An accident could occur and injure the occupants of the vehicle or anyone nearby.
• Fracking accidents – During fracking, workers use high pressure to inject water or a fluid mixture into boreholes to facilitate the flow of gas and petroleum through cracks in deep-rock formations. Chemical spills and other accidents can result from poorly maintained equipment and other factors.
• Falling objects – Unsecured tools, materials, and other objects could fall off a raised platform.
• Well blowouts – A well blowout happens when crude oil or gas spews from a well uncontrollably during drilling. A malfunctioning pressure control system is commonly the culprit.
• Hazardous conditions – A dangerous working environment could lead to a fall, exposure to toxic chemicals, and other catastrophic incidents.
• Lack of safety measures – Protective gear and equipment is essential to ensure the safety of oil and gas workers, as is appropriate safety training.
• Negligent hiring practices – Some companies fail to perform background checks on job applicants, provide training, or follow federal regulations. Errors can occur if workers don’t know how to do their jobs or handle an emergency.

You have the right to pursue workers’ compensation benefits for your workplace injury if your employer carries workers’ compensation insurance. Do not hesitate to contact The DJF Law Firm, PLLC for legal assistance and seek immediate medical care for your injury.

Injuries Suffered by Oil and Gas Workers

Gas and oil workers can sustain various injuries and illnesses in an accident. The most common injuries include:

• Chemical and electrical burns
• Loss of limb
• Paralysis
• Psychological trauma
• Broken bones
• Soft tissue injuries
• Overexertion injuries
• Back and neck injuries
• Spinal cord injury
• Cancer and other diseases from toxic exposure
• Heat exhaustion
• Traumatic brain injury
• Permanent disability
• Loss of hearing from an explosion
• Crush injuries

The DJF Law Firm, PLLC knows the struggles of getting hurt in a workplace accident. If you can’t return to work, paying for your daily living expenses and medical costs is challenging. You need financial assistance, so you don’t end up in debt.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Oil and Gas Worker Injuries

If your employer provides coverage, you could file a workers’ compensation claim for a job-related injury or illness. Income and medical benefits are available.

Medical Benefits

Medical benefits pay for all reasonable and necessary expenses to treat a workplace injury. Coverage automatically starts on the date of the accident.

You must see a doctor in the healthcare network selected by the workers’ compensation insurer to receive benefits for a claim. If you don’t seek treatment from an approved physician, you might have to pay out of pocket for those bills.

Income Benefits

Various circumstances entitle you to four different types of income benefits.

Temporary Income Benefits

You could receive temporary income benefits (TIBs) if your job-related injury or illness lasts for more than seven days. Your payments will be 70 percent of the difference between your average weekly wage (AWW) before the accident and your current wage due to the injury.

You are no longer eligible for TIBs if one of these events occurs:

• Your doctor indicates that you have reached maximum medical improvement (MMI), meaning your condition isn’t likely to improve with further treatment
• 104 weeks have passed since the eighth day of having a work-related injury or illness
• You start earning your AWW again

Impairment Income Benefits

Impairment income benefits (IIBs) cover injuries that affect a person’s body as a whole. Your doctor will give you an impairment rating based on how your injury affects your functional abilities. The rating is a percentage between one and 100.

Payments for IIBs are 70 percent of your average weekly wage. The number of weeks you receive payments depends on your impairment rating. You get three weeks of benefits for each percentage point. For example, if your impairment rating is 20 percent, you can collect benefits for up to 60 weeks.

Supplemental Income Benefits

Supplemental income benefits (SIBs) are available once your IIB payments end. Payments are 75 percent of your average weekly wage and increase by three percent each year.

You’re eligible for these benefits if you:

• Haven’t accepted a lump-sum payment for your injury
• Are actively looking for a job
• Have an impairment rating of at least 15 percent
• Haven’t returned to work or have but earning less than 80 percent of your AWW because of your illness or injury

Lifetime Income Benefits

You might receive lifetime income benefits (LIBs) if the accident caused a severe injury, such as:

• Loss of both hands at or above the wrist
• A physically traumatic injury to the brain that causes incurable imbecility or insanity
• Loss of one hand at or above the wrist and loss of one foot at or above the ankle
• A spinal injury causing permanent and complete paralysis of one leg and one arm, both legs, or both arms
• Total and permanent loss of vision in both eyes
• Third-degree burns on the face and most of one hand or both hands
• Third-degree burns that cover 40 percent or more of the body and require grafting
• Loss of both feet at or above the ankle

LIB payments are 75 percent of your AWW, increasing by three percent every year you have a qualifying injury.

Death and Burial Benefits

Burial benefits pay for burial expenses. The person who paid must file the claim within twelve months of the worker’s death and submit copies of the bills.

Death benefits are available when someone dies in a job-related accident. You must be a surviving family member to receive payments. Eligible family members include:

• Spouse
• Dependent grandchildren
• Children under 25 currently enrolled in an accredited college or university
• Minor children
• Other dependent family members
• Non-dependent parents if there are no other surviving dependent relatives

Coverage starts on the date after the worker’s death. Payments are 75 percent of the deceased’s average weekly wage.

Contact Us

The DJF Law Firm, PLLC will protect your rights during every step of the claims process. We will aggressively pursue the benefits you’re entitled to and try to reach a favorable outcome in your case.

If you were hurt in a work-related oil or gas accident, call us at 832-529-3476 for your free consultation with one of our dedicated Houston oil and gas worker injury lawyers.