Wrongful Death on a Texas Construction Site: What Families Need to Know

When a Job Site Takes a Life

No family expects the phone call that tells them a loved one was killed on a construction site. The grief is immediate and overwhelming. The legal questions that follow — who is responsible, what rights does the family have, what compensation is available — come at the worst possible time. The San Antonio construction accident lawyers at Carabin Shaw have guided Texas families through wrongful death claims after construction accidents, and the firm handles every aspect of the case so families can focus on each other.

Construction is one of the most dangerous industries in the United States, and Texas leads the nation in construction worker fatalities. Falls, electrocutions, struck-by accidents, and trench collapses kill workers across the state every year. Most of these deaths are preventable. When an employer’s negligence, a contractor’s safety failures, or a manufacturer’s defective equipment takes a life, Texas law gives the family the right to hold every responsible party accountable.

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.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in Texas

Texas law allows the surviving spouse, children, and parents of a person killed by another’s negligence to file a wrongful death claim. If none of these family members files within three months of the death, the personal representative of the estate may file on behalf of the beneficiaries. The statute of limitations for wrongful death claims in Texas is two years from the date of death.

A wrongful death claim is separate from a survival action, which allows the estate to recover for the pain and suffering the deceased experienced between the time of the injury and the time of death. Both claims can be filed simultaneously, and both are important components of a complete wrongful death case.

What Damages Are Available in a Construction Wrongful Death Case

Texas wrongful death damages are designed to compensate the family for the full scope of their loss. Economic damages include the deceased worker’s lost future earnings, the value of household services they would have provided, and the cost of funeral and burial expenses. Non-economic damages include the family’s loss of companionship, care, guidance, and the mental anguish of losing a spouse, parent, or child.

When the employer’s conduct rises to the level of gross negligence — a conscious disregard for the worker’s safety — Texas law allows the family to seek exemplary damages on top of these compensatory damages. Construction wrongful death cases frequently involve conduct that meets this standard, particularly when the employer had prior OSHA citations for the same hazard that killed the worker.

Workers’ Compensation and Wrongful Death

When a Texas employer carries workers’ compensation insurance, the workers’ compensation death benefit is typically the exclusive remedy against that employer. However, it is not the exclusive remedy against every responsible party. When a third party — a subcontractor, an equipment manufacturer, a property owner — contributed to the death, the family can file a wrongful death claim against that party regardless of the workers’ compensation coverage.

Identifying every responsible third party is one of the most important steps in a construction wrongful death case, and it is where the experience of the attorneys handling the case makes the most difference.

Call Carabin Shaw After a Construction Wrongful Death

If your family lost someone in a Texas construction accident, Carabin Shaw is ready to fight for the justice and compensation your family deserves. The firm handles wrongful death cases on a contingency fee basis — no fees unless we recover for you.

Call (800) 862-1260 for a free consultation, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.