Roofing Accidents
A construction site is a dangerous place, and rooftops are exceptionally dangerous. About 1,000 workers are killed each year on the job in Massachusetts, and about one-third of these deaths arise from roofing accidents. Roofers are also at particular risk for falls that result in brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, or paralysis. These falls may be a result of improper training, lack of safety equipment, or OSHA violations. If you have been hurt in a roofing accident, you may have grounds to file a workers' compensation claim for benefits. At Pulgini & Norton, our Boston workers’ compensation attorneys can evaluate your claim and represent you if appropriate.
Benefits for Roofing AccidentsThe benefits to which you may be entitled include the costs of medical treatment, medical mileage, temporary or permanent disability benefits, vocational rehabilitation, and permanent loss of bodily function or disfigurement. You may receive a one-time payment if your roofing accidents results in permanent loss of bodily function, scarring, or disfigurement. You may receive this benefit for scars if they are on your hands, neck, or face.
If you are not able to go back to your work as a roofer, you may be eligible for vocational rehabilitation services, the goal of which is to return you to the position of earning close to what you were earning before suffering work-related injuries. Services may include workplace modification, counseling, job placement assistance, vocational testing, and formal retraining. You are required to attend a meeting with a vocational rehabilitation review officer if requested. A refusal to come to the meeting may result in benefits being discontinued, and if you do not participate in a rehabilitation program after it is determined that the program is suitable for you, your weekly benefits may be reduced.
The loss of a loved one to a roofing accident may create a financial and emotional crisis for a family. Workers' compensation insurance is supposed to pay reasonable burial expenses of up to $4,000 to families of workers who have died in a job-related accident. A surviving spouse may also receive weekly benefits in the amount of two-thirds of the decedent's average weekly wage, up to the maximum of the state weekly wage. Benefits may be received as long as the spouse stays dependent and does not remarry. A spouse may receive yearly cost of living adjustments two years after the date that the worker was injured. If a surviving spouse remarries, each eligible child may receive $60 a week, but the total amount paid to dependents may not exceed what was paid to the surviving spouse before the remarriage.
Benefits may be stopped or reduced for a variety of reasons, including your return to work. However, in case benefits are stopped because you went back to work, the insurer is required to resume paying you benefits if you need to leave work again because of the same injury within 28 days of returning.
Explore Your Options with a Workers’ Compensation Attorney in BostonIf you are injured on the job, or a loved one is killed in a roofing accident, you may be entitled to workers' compensation benefits. At Pulgini & Norton, our experienced Boston workers’ compensation lawyers can guide you through this challenging process. In some cases, roofers are entitled to bring a claim for benefits as well as a civil lawsuit against a non-employer, such as a manufacturer of defective safety equipment. We represent injured employees in Weymouth, Newton, and Waltham, as well as other Massachusetts cities. Contact Pulgini & Norton at 781-843-2200 or through our online form to set up a free consultation with a work injury attorney.