When Workers’ Comp Isn’t Enough

Workers’ compensation provides limited benefits to injured employees, but it often falls far short of covering the true cost of a serious workplace injury. What many injured workers don’t realize is that when a third party other than their employer contributed to their injury, they may have a separate personal injury claim that can provide significantly greater compensation, including pain and suffering, full lost wages, and punitive damages.

Attorney Tobin Lanzetta focuses on these third-party workplace injury claims, particularly cases involving defective equipment, dangerous machinery, and negligent contractors or property owners. His $3.5 million jury verdict for a catastrophic forklift injury in Ventura County is a prime example of the kind of recovery that would never be available through workers’ compensation alone.

Third-Party Workplace Injury Claims

A third-party claim arises when someone other than your employer is responsible for your workplace injury. Common examples include equipment manufacturers who designed or built defective machinery, property owners who maintained unsafe conditions, subcontractors whose negligence caused an accident, vehicle drivers who caused a crash while you were working, and companies that provided defective safety equipment or tools.

These claims are separate from and in addition to your workers’ compensation benefits. You can pursue both simultaneously, though the workers’ compensation carrier will typically have a lien on any third-party recovery.

Industries and Accident Types

Our firm handles serious workplace injury cases across many industries, including construction site accidents such as falls, scaffolding collapses, and crane incidents, manufacturing and factory injuries involving industrial machinery, warehouse and distribution center accidents including forklift and loading dock injuries, oil, gas, and refinery explosions and chemical exposures, agricultural and farming equipment injuries, and transportation and delivery vehicle accidents.

Heavy Machinery and Equipment Failures

Tobin Lanzetta has particular expertise in cases involving heavy machinery and equipment failures. These cases sit at the intersection of workplace injury and product liability law, and they require an attorney who understands both. When a forklift, crane, press, conveyor, or other industrial machine malfunctions and causes injury, the investigation must determine whether the failure was caused by a design defect, a manufacturing defect, inadequate warnings, improper maintenance, or operator error often involving multiple parties and complex engineering questions.

Free Consultation

If you’ve been seriously injured at work and believe a third party may be responsible, contact Lanzetta Law for a free consultation. Licensed in California and New Mexico, with offices in Downtown Los Angeles and Santa Fe, we represent injured workers in both states. We will evaluate whether you have a claim beyond workers’ compensation and fight to get you the full compensation you deserve.