Forklift Accident

Forklifts can be quite dangerous if they’re not operated by a trained forklift driver, if the load has not been properly secured, or if the forklift tips and falls due to excess weight. There are countless other scenarios through which you might find yourself in a forklift accident.

You may be entitled to recover damages beyond workers’ compensation benefits, depending on the facts of your case, but that comes with its own set of challenges you must overcome. You’ll learn a bit more about these challenges here and also receive several valuable tips on what you need to do in order to secure your rights for fair compensation.

Legal Avenues You Can Explore Following a Forklift Accident

It’s important to utilize every available legal action after a forklift accident so you can recover damages and be fairly compensated by all parties responsible for your workplace injuries. While you won’t be able to sue your employer on personal injury grounds if you accept workers’ compensation benefits, you may have a case against third parties.

• Workers’ Compensation: Employees injured on the job must be paid workers’ compensation to compensate them for medical expenses and lost wages. If you claim these benefits, you give up the right to sue your employer in a personal injury lawsuit.
• Personal Injury Claim: People who suffer personal injuries in a forklift accident can also file a personal injury lawsuit against the liable parties through construction site accident lawyers.
• Third-party Liability Claim: You may be able to pursue personal injury lawsuits against third parties, such as the forklift manufacturer if the accident was caused by a defect. You’ll need to hire a Chicago product liability lawyer for this lawsuit.
• Wrongful Death: If a loved one suffered fatal injuries in a forklift accident, you can file a wrongful death lawsuit to recover funeral and burial costs as well as damages for loss of consortium.

Do You Have a Forklift Injury Case?

You may have a forklift injury case against the negligent party, including the operator and employer, depending on what role they played in the accident. The other party must have owed you a duty of care.

For example, it’s the employer’s responsibility to properly maintain equipment like forklifts. Forklift accidents caused by poor maintenance create liability for the employer.

Evidence such as accident reports and medical records will be required to show you suffered injuries because of the accident due to a breach of this duty of care. Only when this is clearly established can you expect to win damages from most forklift accidents.

Liability in Forklift Accident Claims

The circumstances of your accident will primarily dictate who’s liable. Liability may rest on one or more parties and you may be entitled to pursue claims against them for compensation.

• Operator’s Liability: The forklift operator can be personally liable if their negligent acts, such as disregarding occupational safety rules, are directly responsible for the accident.
• Employer’s Liability: The employer will be liable for the victim’s personal injuries if it’s found they didn’t provide adequate safety training or failed to enforce OSHA guidelines in the workplace.
• Manufacturer’s Liability: If mechanical failures in the forklift caused the accident, the manufacturer may be liable, particularly if they knew of the defects and hid them.
• Third Party Liability: Other parties, such as subcontractors and maintenance contractors, may also be liable if they were negligent in conducting their duties.

Forklift Accident Statistics

Forklifts are a necessary, yet dangerous, part of construction sites. While they make it easy to lift large and bulky loads, those same loads could end up fatally injuring multiple people nearby. Data from OSHA and other agencies also shows forklifts are among some of the most dangerous vehicles on job sites. [1] [2]

• Latest data shows forklifts were responsible for 73 work-related deaths
• Between 2011 and 2022, between 54 and 85 workers died each year from forklift accidents
• Roughly 1% of forklift accidents result in death
• Forklift injuries to pedestrians resulted in the highest median days away from work
• Forklift accidents account for around 9% of all workplace fatalities [3]

Common Causes of Forklift Accidents

There can be any number of reasons why a forklift accident happens. Forklifts are widely used in warehouses, construction sites, major retail stores, and other work sites. Even a minor oversight can lead to serious forklift truck accidents. Some of the most common causes of a forklift accident include:

• No Proper Training or Operator Error: Lack of proper training or errors from forklift operators resulting from distractions, fatigue, or misjudgment routinely cause forklift accidents.
• Lifting an Elevated Load: An elevated load may reduce the operator’s visibility, making them unable to maneuver the forklift safely and raising the possibility of a forklift injury due to operator error.
• Insecure or Unbalanced Loads: Forklifts are considered heavy machinery used to lift heavy loads. If the load is not secured properly or unbalanced, it may fall and cause serious injury to people nearby. This can also lead to the forklift tipping and falling.
• Mechanical Failures: You may be injured in a forklift due to failures, either from defective equipment or lack of maintenance, leading to an accident caused by someone else’s negligence.
• Unsafe Working Conditions: Forklift accidents can happen in work environments that are inherently unsafe, don’t feature safety warnings, fail to use protective equipment, or otherwise fail to uphold OSHA’s occupational safety standards.

Common Forklift Injuries

Forklift accidents can lead to serious injuries with severe consequences for victims, including permanent disability and even death. You may be entitled to recover compensation for one or more of these injuries. The most common forklift injuries that happen include:

• Crushing Injuries: If the forklift’s heavy load falls on someone nearby, it may crush the injured worker, break their bones, cause traumatic brain injuries, or require amputations.
• Internal Bleeding: Impact with a forklift or its cargo may result in internal bleeding due to the force of the impact. It may go unnoticed immediately but could have serious consequences nonetheless.
• Lacerations or Cuts: In most forklift injuries, the victim’s skin may suffer significant damage due to punctures or lacerations, requiring surgery or they may never heal.
• Burn Injuries: If the cargo being carried includes chemicals or flammable materials, any exposure to the skin in an accident may cause serious injuries.

OSHA Safety Procedures & Forklift Operator Guidelines

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has created the following guidelines for forklift operators, helping them understand at a glance the procedures they should follow to safely operate these vehicles and limit the risk of serious injury to themselves and others. [4]

• Observe speed limits and watch out for pedestrians
• Maintain safe distance from ramps and platforms
• Forklift operators should ensure adequate clearance when raising loads
• Don’t use forklifts to give rides or lift people
• Make sure loads are balanced
• Use horns at obstructed areas
• Forklift operators should be properly trained and never exceed the rated load

What to Do After a Forklift Accident in Chicago, IL

The aftermath of a forklift accident can be very stressful and overwhelming. You need to make sure you or anyone else who is hurt gets immediate medical attention. What you do after the accident will influence how strong your case is to recover compensation, so be mindful of the following:

• Seek Medical Attention: Make sure to get emergency medical treatment on site, even if you feel fine, as you’ll need to have medical records, such as treatment summaries and medical bills, that you can later rely on as evidence for your claim.
• Report the Accident: The accident must be reported to your employer as this is necessary to claim your workers’ compensation payout. The accident report also serves as a vital piece of evidence.
• Hire a Chicago Forklift Accident Lawyer: You should get in touch with a lawyer as soon as possible for unbiased legal assistance, and to ensure all evidence can be secured, an independent investigation conducted, and the claim filed within time to get you the fair compensation you deserve.

Never say you were at fault for the accident during the forklift operation or sign anything your employer or their insurance company provides you without consulting your Chicago forklift accident lawyer first. You don’t want to fall victim to anything preventing you from recovering compensation down the line for forklift-related accidents.

You Have a Limited Time to File a Forklift Accident Claim

The clock starts ticking on the statute of limitations right after your accident. This is the deadline for when your forklift accident claim must be filed. The statute of limitations for a personal injury claim in Illinois is two years. Your lawsuit has to be filed within two years of when you were injured. If you miss the deadline, your chances of recovering compensation are low.

There are time limits for workers’ compensation claims as well. The accident has to be reported to your employer within 45 days of when you became aware of your injuries. After it has been reported, you can file a claim for workers’ compensation up to three years from that date.

Damages Our Chicago Forklift Accident Lawyers Can Help You Recover

Our forklift accident lawyers can help you claim workers’ compensation benefits after an accident, but keep in mind this only includes economic damages such as medical bills, lost wages, medications, home care, and rehabilitation. Workers’ compensation doesn’t give you any non-economic damages for pain and suffering or emotional trauma.

However, you may have a lawsuit against parties other than your employer, such as the forklift’s manufacturer, if negligence on their part can be proven. Victims other than the operator can also sue for damages, including personal injury lawsuits against the operator.

Our forklift accident lawyers will evaluate the circumstances of your accident during the free consultation and provide all possible legal options for you to consider.

Financial Compensation in Forklift Accident Cases

The financial compensation a forklift accident victim receives varies significantly based on the factors unique to their case. There’s no standard amount paid to all victims regardless of how the accident happened or who’s at fault.

If you were injured on the job, you can claim workers’ compensation for average weekly pay and lost wages, but that takes away the right to file a lawsuit against your employer. You can sue other parties who may have played a role in the accident through a personal injury claim.

Our forklift accident attorneys are highly experienced in winning major settlements for forklift accident victims.

We recently secured a $3.5 million settlement for a factory worker who was struck by a forklift while loading a truck and suffered serious leg injuries. As their Chicago forklift accident attorney, we obtained workers’ compensation as well as a major settlement through a third-party lawsuit against the forklift operator.

Filing a Claim With Our Chicago Forklift Accident Attorneys

Our law firm is committed to securing justice for forklift accident victims in Chicago. We follow a comprehensive legal process to pursue compensation right from the moment you reach out to us so we can get you the maximum compensation. This process involves:

• Free Consultation: Our initial, no-obligation free consultation provides you an overview of the available legal action options and the payout you’ll likely receive.
• Accident Investigation: We work with experts in the field to independently investigate forklift related accidents, collect all relevant evidence, and start laying the groundwork for a successful claim for forklift accidents.
• Insurance Company Negotiations: Your forklift accident lawyer will represent you in all negotiations with the insurance company, relying on our experience to get you a favorable outcome.
• Going to Trial: Even if the settlement talks fall through, the lawyers at our law firm are always ready to take the case to trial and get you a jury verdict protecting your rights and interests.

The Time It Takes to Settle a Forklift Accident Case

A forklift accident case settlement might come very quickly if there are no delays with your workers’ compensation or settlement negotiations. However, things normally don’t go that smoothly, and whenever there’s conflict in the process, there’s going to be a delay.

Settlements are usually reached in a few months after the injury, but if the matter goes to trial, there’s inevitably going to be a wait of at least a few months before you can receive the compensation you rightly deserve.

The Cost of Hiring an Experienced Forklift Accident Lawyer

Forklift accidents can turn your entire life upside down, and getting justice might seem difficult, if not entirely impossible. At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, we empathize with your situation and to make access to justice simpler, we will handle your workers’ compensation claim and forklift lawsuit on a contingency fee basis.

This means you don’t have to pay anything while your Chicago forklift accident lawyer does everything. He will work tirelessly to get you the compensation you deserve, even if that involves taking the case to trial. Our fee is going to be a percentage of your confirmed settlement offer. This means we don’t get paid until you get paid.

Contact a Chicago Forklift Accident Attorney Today!

You don’t have to suffer in silence and never live life the same way. What you need is a trustworthy forklift accident lawyer who will go the distance for you, making sure your rights are protected, and your path to full compensation remains clear. Our forklift accident attorneys will discuss your legal options and how to best utilize them to ensure you are fairly compensated. As your forklift accident attorney, we will fight for you, no matter how long it takes, to recover all types of damages from all liable parties.

All you need to do now is call us at (888) 424-5757 for a free consultation from Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers.

Our downtown office, near the Richard J. Daley Center, Dirkson United States Courthouse, and the Chicago Workers’ Compensation Commission, offers convenient access from Aurora, Joliet, and Waukegan via I-90, I-94, and I-290.

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers

225 W Wacker Dr #1660
Chicago, IL 60606
Phone: (847) 835-8895
Toll Free: (888) 424-5757

We also serve clients from Buffalo Grove, Champaign, Naperville, Rockford and throughout Illinois.

Resources: [1] NSC, [2] BLS, [3] ForkCert, [4] OSHA,

All content undergoes thorough legal review by experienced attorneys, including Jonathan Rosenfeld. With 25 years of experience in personal injury law and over 100 years of combined legal expertise within our team, we ensure that every article is legally accurate, compliant, and reflects current legal standards.