An Oil Field Injury Lawyer Set on Preventing Tragedy
Oil field workers are more likely to be killed on the job compared to the average worker. All too often, the cause of the gas pipeline, oil rig, or oil transportation tragedy is completely avoidable. To make matters worse, the oil or gas company responsible for this inexcusable negligence often rushes to protect itself rather than address the inevitability of similar incidents. When these companies fail to put their workers first, Bob Schuster and his team fiercely represent victims and their families to not only mitigate their irreparable damages, but to also ensure that another family will not have to experience the same tragedy.
Defective Equipment and Insufficient Safety for Oil Field Workers
As oil and gas drilling continues to rapidly expand in the United States, companies have a vital responsibility to hire capable workers, properly train them, and equip them with the latest safety gear and protocols. When oil and gas companies prioritize demand for production over caution for human life, the dangerous results are typically overworked or undertrained employees, defective or misused equipment, and exposure to harmful environmental conditions – or worse – explosions.
Robert P. Schuster, P.C. is an accomplished workplace injury law firm that conducts extensive investigations into the physical and cultural factors surrounding on-the-job oil and gas incidents. These liabilities are often endemic within the workplace, and our goals are to hold the company accountable to our clients while also identifying its missteps so that they can be avoided in the future.
Typically, a claim can be filed if an oil field injury was the result of the following:
- Unsecured rigs, infrastructure or machinery
- Defective tools or materials
- Lack of updated safety equipment
- Outdated pipelines that result in explosions or environmental contamination
- Inadequate break or rest periods leading to inability to focus while operating machinery (including oil and gas transportation vehicles)
- Lack of proper signage or labeling
- Lack of employee training or certification requirements
When your employer and their insurance company conduct their internal investigation, they will try everything to avoid being found negligent. Unfortunately, this often means the blame is passed on to the victim. We have extensive experience recovering fair compensation and defending clients when it comes to these situations.
Examples of Oil Field Injuries Include:
- Loss of fingers or limbs
- Bone fractures
- Severe burns
- Back, neck and spinal cord injuries
- Severe hearing loss
- Eye injuries, including those resulting in blindness
- Head and brain injuries
- Exposure to toxic chemicals or fumes that may result in chronic illness
- Exposure to environmental contamination due to exploding pipeline
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Common Oil Field Injuries
Even though there are risks associated with working in the oil industry, workers still have the right to a safe work environment with all the proper precautions and tools to prevent injury. When oil and gas companies prioritize production over safety for employees, they need to be held accountable for the dangerous consequences that follow.
When Should You Hire an Oil Field Injury Attorney?
If you or a loved one experienced an accident and suffered an oil field injury, you may be entitled to file a claim for compensation. it’s crucial to work with an expert oilfield injury attorney as soon as possible so you don’t lose your right to claim fair compensation.
Widespread Oil field and Gas Transportation Tragedies
While the number of oil and gas drilling fatalities has increased as companies hire more inexperienced workers, transportation incidents are still the leading cause of death in the oil and gas industry. A motor vehicle safety program is essential for any oil or gas company that puts its workers on the roads – particularly one that affords drivers the rest they need to be in full control of their large trucks and tractor trailers. Sadly, these oil and gas truck crashes frequently involve the fatalities of other travelers after the company vehicle collides with theirs.
Oil and gas transportation crashes are not limited to the road either – they are increasingly occurring on railroads across the country. From 2008 to 2014, the amount of crude oil transported by train in the United States surged by more than 5,000 percent to accommodate the boosted production from new oil fields in states like Wyoming, Colorado, and North Dakota. This trend has been accompanied by an influx of oil-related train incidents, as many of the tank cars were designed in the middle of the last century and are not properly equipped to handle flammable materials. In their hurry to meet production demand, the oil and railroad industries have also been slow to implement the necessary safety measures for transporting crude oil, such as stricter inspections and slower speed limits when traveling through densely populated areas.
When a company’s safety protocols and transportation infrastructure have proven inadequate in oil and gas accidents, Robert P. Schuster, P.C. has successfully represented both the workers and bystanders involved.
Rampant Neglect in Oil field and Gas Pipeline Explosions
More than 300,000 miles of interstate and intrastate oil and gas pipelines traverse the nation, sometimes buried beneath ground in vast and vacant areas of the countryside. But too often they are buried beneath homes, schools, businesses, and heavily-traveled roadways. It is an ancient and crumbling system, with most of the pipelines being more than 70 years old. The U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration cites more than 200 “Significant Pipeline Incidents” every year. These oil and natural gas tragedies include fatalities, serious injuries, explosions, and environmental contamination. Because the natural gas industry is not required to replace this aging infrastructure, more incidents will occur. It is only a matter of when and where.
Bob Schuster has more experience representing victims of natural gas and oil pipeline explosions than any other oil field injury attorney in the United States. His accomplishments are not only recognized by the families of those who have been killed and maimed, but also by the pipeline companies themselves. Schuster was the only plaintiff’s attorney in the nation who was invited to the International Pipeline Conference convened in Calgary, Canada, in the fall of 2010. Representatives of the pipeline industry throughout the world were present in Calgary, including major international companies from the United States, Canada, the European Union, China, and elsewhere. His lecture to the pipeline companies was clear and direct: Your practices must change and pipelines must be made safe. The deaths must stop.
If you have been impacted by a recent oil field injury accident, gas pipeline explosion, or a related transportation incident, contact Robert P. Schuster, P.C. to find out how we can help with your case.
Our Client Approach
After a devastating oil field accident, your life can be turned upside down. In addition to the physical pain and psychological stress caused by the injury, your family could be financially burdened and suffer the consequences of unpaid medical bills. We are committed to working as advocates for our clients, making sure each one is treated fairly and not taken advantage of by insurance companies looking out for their best interests.
Our experienced oil injury attorneys will quickly get to work on your case so you don’t have to worry about fighting with your employer or insurance reps to cover your medical expenses. Depending on the severity of your injury, it could also affect your ability to return to work or secure employment in the future. We take all your losses into consideration when filing your claim, so you have the confidence of our proven, professional legal team fighting on your behalf.
Injured in an Oil Field Accident? We Can Help!
The claims process can be long and complicated, but we’re here to help. Our personal injury attorneys are the most knowledgeable and experienced legal team when it comes to oilfield injury claims. To speak to one of our oilfield accident attorneys about your case, contact us today.
Representing Oil Field Accident Victims in:
- Texas
- Utah
- North Dakota
- Wyoming
- Oklahoma
Additional Oil Field Injury Resources:
Do I Need to Hire an Oilfield Injury Lawyer?
What to do After an Oilfield Accident?
Oil & Gas Pipeline Explosions – Case Study