Struck-By Accidents on Texas Construction Sites: Falling Objects, Moving Equipment, and Liability

Carabin Shaw is one of the leading personal injury law firms in Texas. With more than 34 years of experience representing injured workers and accident victims, the firm has secured hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation for clients across San Antonio, Houston, Austin, and beyond. When a construction site accident changes your life, Carabin Shaw fights to make sure you are not left to carry that burden alone.

When Objects and Equipment Become Weapons on a Job Site

Struck-by accidents are one of OSHA’s Fatal Four — the four categories of construction accidents that account for the majority of worker deaths on job sites. A falling tool, a swinging crane load, a backing dump truck, or a piece of debris launched by a saw blade can strike a worker with enough force to cause fatal injuries. The San Antonio construction accident attorneys at Carabin Shaw have handled struck-by cases across Texas, and the common thread in every one of them is that the accident was preventable.

Texas construction sites are busy, crowded, and often poorly organized. Materials are stacked at height without toe boards. Vehicles operate in areas where workers are on foot without spotters or barriers. Tools are left on elevated surfaces where vibration or wind can send them over the edge. Every one of these conditions is a known hazard with a known solution — and when employers choose not to implement those solutions, workers get hurt.

Video Transcript

I’m Jamie Shaw with Carabin Shaw. Hurt at work in Texas? Your path depends on one thing — does your employer carry workers’ comp? Texas is unusual. Employers aren’t required to. If they have it, you file a comp claim. If they don’t — what’s called a non-subscriber — you may be able to sue them directly, sometimes for more. And if someone other than your employer caused your injury, a defective machine or a contractor, you may have a separate third-party claim. Most injured workers never learn they had options. Find out yours. Call Carabin Shaw in San Antonio. 210-222-2288.

Types of Struck-By Accidents on Texas Job Sites

Falling Objects

Tools, materials, and debris that fall from elevated work areas are responsible for a significant portion of struck-by fatalities. OSHA requires toe boards on scaffolding and elevated platforms to prevent objects from rolling off the edge, and hard hat zones below elevated work areas. These requirements are frequently ignored, particularly on residential construction sites where enforcement is less consistent.

Struck by Moving Vehicles and Equipment

Heavy equipment — dump trucks, forklifts, backhoes, and concrete mixers — operates in close proximity to workers on foot. Backing vehicles are particularly dangerous because drivers have limited visibility behind them. OSHA requires spotters when vehicles are backing in areas where workers are present, and physical barriers between vehicle traffic and pedestrian areas. When these measures are absent, workers are struck and killed.

Struck by Swinging or Dropped Crane Loads

Crane operations require careful coordination between the operator, the rigger, and ground workers. When loads are improperly rigged, when workers stand in the swing radius of a crane, or when loads are moved over occupied areas without clearance, the consequences can be fatal. Crane-related struck-by accidents frequently involve multiple parties — the crane operator, the crane company, the general contractor, and the rigging subcontractor.

Struck by Projectiles from Power Tools

Nail guns, grinders, saws, and other power tools can launch debris at high velocity. Workers who are not wearing appropriate eye protection, or who are working in areas where projectile hazards are not controlled, can suffer severe eye injuries, lacerations, and penetrating wounds.

Establishing Liability in a Struck-By Case

Struck-by cases require a thorough investigation to identify every party whose negligence contributed to the accident. The general contractor is responsible for overall site safety and can be held liable when safety protocols are not enforced. Subcontractors who operate the equipment or perform the work that caused the injury have independent liability. Equipment manufacturers whose defective machinery malfunctioned can be held responsible under product liability law.

In many struck-by cases, the employer’s workers’ compensation coverage is not the only source of recovery. When a third party — a subcontractor, an equipment operator from a different company, or a manufacturer — contributed to the accident, a separate personal injury claim can recover the full measure of damages including pain and suffering, which workers’ compensation does not cover.

What Carabin Shaw Does in Struck-By Cases

Carabin Shaw moves quickly after a struck-by accident to preserve the evidence that matters. The firm photographs the scene, secures surveillance footage before it is overwritten, obtains equipment maintenance records, and interviews witnesses while their memories are fresh. In cases involving vehicles or cranes, the firm works with accident reconstruction experts who can establish exactly what happened and who was responsible.

The firm also issues immediate legal hold notices to prevent the destruction of records — a critical step in cases where employers or equipment operators might otherwise dispose of evidence that documents their negligence.

Call Carabin Shaw After a Struck-By Accident

If you were struck by a falling object, a moving vehicle, or any other hazard on a Texas construction site, you have the right to hold every responsible party accountable. Carabin Shaw handles these cases on a contingency fee basis — no fees unless the firm recovers compensation for you.

Call (800) 862-1260 for a free consultation, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The investigation needs to start now, before evidence disappears.