Thursday, September 11, 2008

Learning to Cope with an Offshore Oil Rig Injury

Offshore oil rig injury lawyers have seen some amazing survival stories. It is no secret that when an injury occurs, they can be remarkably serious and present exceptional danger. In most cases, the Jones Act covers the expenses related to the injury however, there have been a small percentage of injured individuals who have had to seek out an expert offshore oil rig injury attorney in order to get their expenses covered.

Let's not be foolish. There are risks that come with jobs, and some jobs involve a higher level of risk than others.

Oil rig companies cringe at the word injury. Offshore oil rig injury lawyers should most likely be the second phone call placed after the injured party returns to solid ground. The first phone call should always be to the family members, especially the mother. Any competent attorney will tell you, it's very important how you deal with the insurance company, doctors, and even fellow co-worker.



An innocent comment can cost you thousands upon thousands of dollars in medical expenses. The Jones Act is in place to protect the special needs of offshore oil rig workers. However, just like ordinary worker's compensation plans, the insurance company would love to find your claim voided. Insurance companies are in business to make money, not spend it, and the instant they can save a few thousand dollars, don't think that they'll be concerned with how this may affect your family or your house payment.

Ironically, a large number of injured rig workers are hesitant to call an offshore oil rig lawyer after an injury. Their loyalties to their company are admirable, but reality is clear and a company isn't worth the health of any employee. Cases almost invariably begin with an injured worker who didn't call a lawyer right away.

The majority of offshore oil rig injury cases begin with a compliant and willing injured worker who slowly begins to realize that their rights under the Jones Act are being subtly trampled. Only then do most sea going people reach for the phone and call an attorney. A good percentage of these cases end up going from a compliant injured party to a lawsuit in a matter of a year.

Many sea going employees live by a code of conduct that is highly honorable and notable. Too many of these highly honorable men and women do not realize that an offshore oil rig injury lawsuit is not taking more than (or asking for more than) is rightfully theirs. Many insurance companies rely in this unwritten code of conduct to dissuade potential litigants from filing a lawsuit. This "power of persuasion" is in fact illegal, yet it is employed by oil rig insurance companies throughout the world to keep their legal costs to a minimum whenever possible.

Offshore oil rig injury cases are nothing new and nothing that can be accomplished with a fly by night lawyer. Naturally, the nature of the lawyer will in effect determine the power of the outcome of any injury case. Violations of the Jones Act have been around for as long as the Jones Act.

Specialized lawyers were only too soon to follow and pretty soon a niche industry was born. The niche industry was born from necessity rather than desire, and before long offshore oil rig injury cases were becoming more commonplace with regard to the care that injured workers were receiving.

Every oil rig worker deserves the proper care for injury under law, and that's at a bare minimum. Insurance companies, which naturally need to be skeptical in regards to claims, are turning every long term case in to a lawsuit simply by denying the injured workers their most basic of rights.

Author: Nick Johnso


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