Legally Reviewed by Daniel Setareh on October 21, 2026
A fall from scaffolding, a hand caught between machines, or a load dropped from the floor above can change a life in seconds, and the company that issues your paycheck is often not the only business that shaped what went wrong. A California construction site usually brings together a general contractor, several subcontractors, equipment suppliers, and a property owner, each with its own duties and its own insurance. That crowded setup is why a job site injury can lead to a claim against a party other than your own employer, and why a visitor, delivery driver, or passerby who was never on the payroll may have a claim too.
With 60 years of combined experience, more than 900 five-star reviews, and seven California offices, Setareh Law, APLC Personal Injury & Accident Lawyers helps injured people sort out which companies may be responsible and what options exist. Our injury attorneys serving California take construction accident cases on a contingency fee basis, so you pay a fee only if we get results. Home and hospital visits are available, and se habla español.
⚠ Time-Sensitive Notice for Injured Workers and Visitors
Most California construction accident lawsuits against a third party must be filed within 2 years, and claims involving a public entity can have a deadline as short as 6 months.
60 years of combined experience, more than 900 five-star reviews, and no fee unless we get results. Home and hospital visits are available.
Third-Party Claims After a California Construction Injury
A third-party claim is an injury claim against a person or company other than your own employer whose carelessness or defective product helped cause your injury, and it is a different path from workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation is a separate system with its own rules, and a lawyer should look at both paths before you make decisions about either.
Third-Party Injury Claim
A civil claim against a contractor, owner, equipment maker, or other outside party, based on proof that it failed to use reasonable care or sold a defective product.
Workers’ Compensation
A separate system for job injuries that runs through the employer, with its own forms, deadlines, and rules that this page does not cover.
The two paths can exist side by side. Labor Code section 3852 says an employee’s claim for compensation does not affect their right to seek damages from anyone other than the employer, and it lets an employer who pays or becomes obligated to pay compensation make a claim against that same third party. Because the claims can affect each other, review them with a lawyer early.
Who May Be Responsible for a Construction Site Injury
Any company or person other than your employer that controlled the site, created the hazard, or supplied faulty equipment may share responsibility for a construction injury, and each may carry its own insurance.
- General contractors, who usually coordinate the schedule, site layout, and safety plan.
- Subcontractors and other trades whose work or materials created a hazard for people nearby.
- Property owners and developers who control the site or know of a dangerous condition.
- Makers, distributors, and rental companies for scaffolds, harnesses, tools, and equipment that fail.
- Vehicle operators and delivery companies whose trucks or loads cause a strike on or beside the site.
- Public agencies, when a government body owns the project, road, or property.
On a site with more than one employer, Labor Code section 6400 allows Cal/OSHA citations to the employer whose workers were exposed, the one that created the hazard, the one responsible by contract or actual practice for safety conditions, and the one responsible for correcting the hazard. Subcontracts and safety plans that show who held those roles can become important evidence.
You do not have to be a construction employee to have a claim. Visitors, delivery drivers, inspectors, and passersby hurt by a site hazard may be able to seek damages from the responsible companies directly, and drivers hurt in a work zone crash may have a separate path, covered in how legal claims work for construction zone car accidents.
Common Construction Hazards in California
Falls, electrocution, struck-by incidents, caught-in or between accidents, trench and scaffold collapses, and defective equipment are the hazards behind many serious construction injuries. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 81 fatal work injuries in California’s construction industry in 2024, and 43 of them were falls, slips, or trips. That count covers deaths only, not the many non-fatal injuries.
Falls From Height
Unguarded edges, floor openings, roofs, and poorly built scaffolds or ladders. Who set up and inspected the protection can point to responsibility.
Electrocution
Contact with overhead lines, buried utilities, and live wiring, including another trade’s exposed wiring.
Struck-By Incidents
Falling tools and materials, swinging loads, and moving vehicles, where netting, exclusion zones, and crane and truck operators often matter.
Caught-In or Between
People pinned or crushed by equipment or shifting materials, often where guards were missing or shutdown steps were skipped.
Trench and Scaffold Failures
Trench walls can cave in and scaffold platforms can give way when shoring, bracing, or assembly is wrong.
Equipment and Product Defects
A faulty harness, hoist, brake, or power tool can fail even when used correctly, which may support a claim against the maker or supplier.
Safety Rules That Can Support a Construction Injury Claim
California’s Construction Safety Orders set minimum protections for job sites, and a company’s failure to follow them can help show that it did not use reasonable care. These Cal/OSHA rules are examples of what lawyers look for after a serious fall or collapse.
| Hazard | What the Rule Says |
|---|---|
| Fall protection | Title 8 section 1670 requires fall arrest, restraint, or positioning systems for employees exposed to a fall of more than 7½ feet from unprotected edges, openings, and steep sloped surfaces that are not otherwise adequately protected. |
| Railings | Title 8 section 1621 calls for railings along open sides and edges of scaffolds, platforms, and wall openings 7½ feet or more above the level below, unless otherwise protected. |
| Excavations | Title 8 section 1541.1 requires a protective system against cave-ins for each employee in an excavation, except in stable rock or in excavations less than 5 feet deep where a competent person finds no indication of a cave-in. |
A rule alone does not decide a case. Labor Code section 6304.5 says that neither the issuance of a Cal/OSHA citation nor the lack of one is admissible in a personal injury or wrongful death action, except between an employee and their own employer. The same section says Evidence Code section 669 applies to Cal/OSHA safety standards like any other regulation, so a violation can support a presumption of failure to use due care when that section’s requirements are met. Whether it helps depends on who was hurt and what the rule was meant to prevent.
Evidence That Can Prove Who Controlled the Site
The strongest construction injury claims are built on records that show who controlled the work, who knew about the hazard, and what was done about it. When a worker is seriously hurt or killed, Title 8 section 342 requires the employer to report it to Cal/OSHA immediately, and no later than 8 hours after learning of it unless exigent circumstances allow 24, so a report and inspection file may exist. Companies control most of these records, so a lawyer can send a written request asking them to preserve evidence before it is overwritten or discarded.
| Record | What It Can Show |
|---|---|
| Incident and Cal/OSHA reports | What happened, when it happened, and what each company said at the time. |
| Site logs and daily reports | Who was on site and which crews were working above or beside one another. |
| Training and inspection records | Whether operators were qualified and whether scaffolds, trenches, and fall protection were checked before use. |
| Equipment maintenance records | Whether a machine, harness, or tool was serviced, modified, or already known to be faulty. |
| Contracts and subcontracts | Who had authority over the schedule, safety, and the specific work area. |
| Photos, video, and witnesses | The condition of the scene and what coworkers and bystanders saw. |
Your own records matter as well, including medical bills, treatment notes, pay stubs, and photographs of your injuries.
Statute of Limitations for California Construction Accident Cases
Most California construction injury lawsuits against a third party must be filed within 2 years, and a claim involving a public entity can require action within 6 months. Missing a deadline usually ends your right to recover.
| Type of Claim | Deadline | What to Know |
|---|---|---|
| Third-party injury or wrongful death | 2 years | Counted from the date of the injury, or from the date of death in a wrongful death claim. |
| Property damage | 3 years | Covers damaged tools, equipment, vehicles, and belongings. |
| Claim involving a public entity | 6 months | A written claim must be presented first. This can apply when a city, county, state agency, or other public body owns or runs the project or property. |
| Injured minors | May be extended | The clock can be paused while the injured person is under 18, but government claims follow their own rules. |
When a public entity rejects a claim in writing, a lawsuit generally must be filed within 6 months of that notice under Government Code section 945.6. Exceptions depend on the facts, and workers’ compensation has its own separate deadlines that this page does not cover, so speak with a lawyer as soon as you can.
Hurt Around a California Job Site? Talk With Setareh Law Today
The consultation is free, and you owe no fee unless we get results. We can review both claim paths with you, and home and hospital visits are available.
How Comparative Fault Affects a Construction Injury Claim
California follows a pure comparative fault rule, so you can still recover compensation if you were partly to blame, although your damages are reduced by your share of fault. On a job site, defendants often argue that the injured person ignored a rule or skipped a safety device.
Fault may also be spread across several companies, and under Civil Code section 1431.2 each defendant is responsible for non-economic damages only in proportion to its own share of fault. A lawyer can examine whether a company’s own failures, such as missing guardrails or weak supervision, account for more of the blame than it admits.
Compensation Available in a Third-Party Construction Claim
A third-party construction claim may seek payment for the full range of losses an injury causes, and the amount depends on the injuries, the care needed, the time away from work, and the insurance available.
| Category | What It May Cover |
|---|---|
| Medical expenses | Emergency care, hospital stays, surgery, medication, rehabilitation, and future treatment. |
| Lost income and earning capacity | Wages missed during recovery and reduced earning power if you cannot return to the same trade. |
| Pain and suffering | Physical pain, emotional distress, and the effect of the injuries on daily life. |
| Punitive damages | In limited cases involving malice, oppression, or fraud, California law may allow damages meant to punish the wrongdoer. |
| Wrongful death damages | Family members listed in Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 may pursue funeral costs, lost support, and loss of companionship, as explained in this guide to filing a wrongful death lawsuit in California. |
Workers’ compensation benefits, when they apply, are a separate matter that a lawyer can explain. No outcome can be promised, because each claim depends on its own facts, injuries, and available insurance.
How Insurers Respond to Construction Injury Claims
Insurers on construction claims often try to move responsibility onto someone else, using familiar arguments described in this guide on how an insurance company may try to deny or devalue your claim.
Pointing at Other Companies
Each contractor and insurer may say another company controlled the area, which can stall a claim.
Blaming Site Rules
An insurer may argue that you skipped a safety step, even when the setup was unsafe.
Disputing the Cause
Insurers often claim an injury came from an earlier condition or from something other than the accident.
Early Offers and Statements
A quick offer or recorded statement request can arrive before you know the full extent of your injuries.
What to Do After a Construction Site Injury
Get medical care first, then protect the evidence, because the site, the equipment, and the records can change quickly.
1. Get Medical Care Right Away
Call 911 for serious injuries, and tell every provider how the injury happened. Pain can be masked at first, and head, spine, and organ injuries are not always obvious.
2. Document the Scene
If it is safe, photograph the area, equipment, signs, and your injuries, and write down the name of every company on the site.
3. Keep Your Gear and Clothing
Hold on to your harness, helmet, boots, tools, and clothing from that day, and do not have them repaired.
4. Identify Witnesses
Collect names and contact details for coworkers, other trades, and bystanders, because memories fade quickly.
5. Be Careful With Statements
You can decline a recorded statement until you have spoken with a lawyer, and you should avoid posting about the accident online.
6. Ask a Lawyer About Both Paths
If you were working when you were hurt, workers’ compensation has its own rules and deadlines, so ask a lawyer promptly how it fits with a third-party claim.
How Setareh Law Handles Construction Accident Claims
Setareh Law starts with a free consultation and a close look at who controlled the site, then explains both claim paths so you understand your options. We work to identify every company and insurance policy involved, preserve records before they disappear, and handle communications with insurers, and our team speaks Spanish.
Setareh Law Offices Across California
Setareh Law serves injured people through offices in seven California cities, and you can meet with a construction accident lawyer at the location that is easiest to reach.
| Office | Address |
|---|---|
| Beverly Hills | 8484 Wilshire Blvd #870, Beverly Hills, CA 90211 |
| Fresno | 4005 North Blackstone Avenue #101A, Fresno, CA 93726 |
| Modesto | 931 10th Street #454, Modesto, CA 95354 |
| San Diego | 1855 First Ave. #103, San Diego, CA 92101 |
| Santa Rosa | 427 Mendocino Ave, Suite 100, Santa Rosa, CA 95401 |
| Stockton | 110 N San Joaquin St FL 2, #22, Stockton, CA 95202 |
| Tracy | 1005 E Pescadero Ave Ste 167, Tracy, CA 95304 |
To reach any office, call (310) 659-1826 and we will help you find the closest location or arrange a home or hospital visit.
Frequently Asked Questions About California Construction Accident Cases
Talk With a California Construction Accident Lawyer Today
If you were hurt on or around a construction site anywhere in California, you do not have to work out which companies are responsible by yourself. Setareh Law offers 60 years of combined experience, more than 900 five-star reviews, and contingency fee representation, so you can concentrate on healing while we look at who controlled the site.
To talk through what happened and which claim paths may apply, call us at (310) 659-1826 or reach out through our free case review form today.
