Suffering serious injuries in a car crash is always a traumatic experience, but it is even more heart-wrenching if the accident was caused by drunk driving.

Thankfully, North Carolina law allowed people injured by drunk drivers to file a personal injury claim and pursue compensation. A successful claim may result in significant compensation, known as damages, that addresses the victim’s financial losses.

Compensation Available to Drunk Driving Victims

The injured party may be entitled to damages that compensate them for injuries they incurred as a direct result of the defendant’s wrongdoing. Damages are intended to make the victim “whole again.” 

Agriculture is the largest industry in North Carolina, employing more than 100,000 workers throughout the state each year. However, it is also one of the most dangerous industries for work-related injuries due to the physical labor involved and the presence of occupational hazards. Farmworkers who are injured on the job may be able to obtain relief through workers’ compensation benefits, or by filing a personal injury claim against the at-fault party.

Injury Risks for Farm Workers

Agricultural workers may be at risk of on-the-job injuries due to all of the following causes:

• Overexertion and repetitive stress - Farm labor often requires heavy lifting, bending, stooping, and repetitive motions over long periods of time. Workers may suffer injuries of the bones, muscles, tissues, and joints, whether due to one-time overexertion or ongoing stress.
• Heatstroke - Farm work takes place largely outdoors, often in high temperatures. Workers can suffer from injuries and conditions including heatstroke, heat exhaustion, hyperthermia, and dehydration.
• Equipment and traffic accidents - Agricultural employees often work with or around machinery and equipment including tractors, combines, planters, plows, and rakes. They may also be responsible for transporting agricultural materials on the roadway. Injuries may happen due to equipment malfunctions or rollovers, negligent operation, or traffic accidents.
• Chemical exposure - Farmworkers may be responsible for spraying pesticides or herbicides or working closely with crops that have been treated. These chemicals can be dangerous if they are ingested or inhaled, or if they come into contact with the skin or eyes.
• Grain bin accidents - Grain bin workers can suffer injuries due to particle inhalation or suffocation.

Options for Compensation

Some agricultural workers, especially those who work full-time for large farming operations, are eligible for workers’ compensation benefits through their employer if they are injured on the job. These benefits cover an employee’s medical expenses and part of their lost wages due to temporary or permanent disability. However, depending on the type of injury, employees may sometimes face challenges in demonstrating that their injuries were caused by their work.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 3,000 North Carolina construction workers suffered an occupational injury or illness in 2019. Around 1,800 of those workers either had to miss time at work or return to work with restricted abilities. Work-related injuries can have severe financial consequences due to the costs of medical treatment and the loss of wages and earning ability. If you have been injured in the course of your work duties on a construction site, it is important to understand your options for securing financial compensation.

Filing a North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Claim

In most cases, an employee who is injured in the course of their work for a North Carolina employer is entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. This is true whether the injuries were caused by the negligence of the employer or another party, a freak accident, or the employee’s own actions (provided that the injuries were not a result of the employee’s intoxication, willful violation of a safety rule, or intentional self-harm). Workers’ comp benefits provide for the full cost of necessary medical care for the employee’s injuries, and in some cases, temporary and permanent disability benefits that cover two-thirds of the employee’s lost wages for a duration determined based on the length of recovery and the extent of the employee’s impairment.

For the best chance of success in securing workers’ compensation benefits, it is important that you notify your employer and file your claim as soon as possible so as to avoid missing deadlines. You may also want to hire an attorney to help you resolve any disputes with your employer or their worker’s comp insurance provider, or to appeal a denied claim.

According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, more than 600,000 car accidents each year involve a hit-and-run driver, accounting for around 6.5 percent of all car crash injuries and around 4.5 percent of all fatalities. If you or someone in your family has been the victim of one of these accidents, recovering compensation for your injuries can be quite difficult. However, it is by no means impossible, and an experienced attorney can help you identify and pursue the best course of action.

Identifying the Fleeing Driver

Any time you are injured in a car accident, you should call 911 as soon as possible so that you can get medical help and the police can arrive to create an accident report. This is especially important after a hit-and-run, as there may be a limited window during which the police are best able to locate the at-fault driver. You should give the responding officer as much information as possible about the driver, including the color, make, and model of their vehicle; their license plate number; the direction in which they left the scene; and any details about their physical appearance. Witnesses to the crash may also be willing to provide helpful information that you might have missed yourself.

It is also a good idea to hire an attorney as soon as possible after your accident. Your lawyer can work with law enforcement and help you identify any other possible sources of evidence that could be used to locate the driver, including video footage from nearby security or surveillance cameras. If the police can pinpoint the identity of a hit-and-run driver based on the available evidence, the driver can face felony charges and driver’s license suspension, in addition to civil liability for the injuries you have suffered.

Work-related injuries are unfortunately common, especially for employees in high-risk industries like construction and others that involve heavy equipment or physical strain. If you are injured on the job in North Carolina, you are usually entitled to benefits under your employer’s workers’ compensation coverage. However, it can be difficult to understand the full amount and types of benefits to which you are entitled in order to ensure that you receive them. An experienced attorney can help you ensure fair compensation, but it is also a good idea to educate yourself about the types of benefits available in North Carolina.

Types of Workers’ Compensation Benefits in North Carolina

North Carolina workers’ comp benefits help to reimburse you for many different economic losses associated with your injuries. Depending on the type of injury you have suffered and the severity of its effects, you may be owed compensation for one or more of the following:

• Medical treatment - Your employer is required to provide for the costs of all treatment deemed medically necessary for your injuries. This may include surgery, hospital stays, medication, rehabilitation, and up to 20 chiropractor visits. If you need to travel at least 20 miles round trip for your treatment, you will also be reimbursed at a rate of $0.56 per mile for travel in 2021.
• Lost wages - Workers’ compensation also provides benefits for lost wages, but only if your injury causes you to miss work for at least 7 days. These are also known as temporary disability benefits, and they are usually paid weekly at a rate of two-thirds of the wages lost. Temporary disability payments last until you are able to return to work at full capacity, or for up to 500 weeks.
• Permanent disability - If your injury has lasting effects from which you will never fully recover, you are entitled to permanent disability benefits. The amount is determined based on the type of injury and the impairment rating according to your doctor’s report, and it can be paid weekly or all at once. Some injuries, including severe brain and spinal cord injuries, severe burn injuries, and the loss of more than one eye or limb, are considered permanent total disabilities, and in this case, you can receive compensation for the rest of your life.
• Vocational rehabilitation - If your injury prevents you from returning to your previous job with at least 75 percent of your previous wages, you are entitled to vocational rehabilitation services, including training, education, and vocational assessment, to help you increase your earning capacity and find new work.
• Death benefits - If your spouse or someone upon whom you are financially dependent dies in a work-related accident, you are entitled to compensation for a portion of their lost wages, as well as up to $10,000 in funeral and burial expenses.

Contact a Raleigh, NC Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

At Vasquez Law Firm, PLLC, we are committed to helping injured workers and their families secure all of the compensation they deserve. We can represent you throughout the process of your workers’ compensation claim, and we may also be able to help you recover pain and suffering damages from a negligent third party who was responsible for your injuries. Contact our Wake County workers’ comp attorneys today at 919-533-7000 or 844-967-3536 for a free consultation. Hablamos español.