When a person dies due to any intentional or unintentional act of a co-worker, the dead person’s family can apply for legal actions against the responsible person. Every state has a statute from which help can be taken in such types of cases. The family can apply for the compensation of any kind of sufferings and injuries, both mental and physical. Understanding your options is very necessary to file a case against the responsible person in time otherwise you may not have the chance of winning. The dead person’s will is going to decide who will get how much share from the compensation. Not only for the family but legal actions can be taken for the compensation of any dependant of the dead.
Reasons of wrongful death:
Following actions may be included in the list that suggests the wrongful death:
- Working in the presence of hazardous chemicals whose prolonged exposure led to a fatal disease and hence death
- Automobile accident either due to faulty automobile or company’s negligence
- Doctor’s or other medical staff’s negligence during treatment that led to the death of the patient
- Physical attack by a co-worker
- All such accidents that are caused when you are involved in a money-making activity at work
Appointing a representative is a very necessary action to take within a specific number of years if any intentional or unintentional action taken by a person at work has caused the death of another person as his family or other people may be dependent on him. The estimate of the compensation given by the responsible person or company can be measured by the damages it has caused. The dead may be supporting the dependants financially. It should include expenses from the date the person died including all the expenses of funeral arrangements.
While assessing the monetary compensation, following things should be taken into account to arrive at an estimated amount:
- Current and expected future income, if currently unemployed then last known income
- Life expectancy
- Health conditions of the dead
- Financial conditions and other living requirements of the dependants
The amount in terms of damages, you can claim, differs from one state to another, so, you should take advice from your attorney about how much claim you can make.
It is rightly said that prevention is better than cure. So, it is the duty of everyone to report if any kind of accident takes place at the working place. It will highlight the faults in the system so that they can be removed and further incidents can be avoided in the future. Understanding your options may help you to know where to report such incidents. Many people may hesitate in reporting because it will start a legal process, proper investigation will be done, responsible people will be penalized and most importantly costs will be incurred. But, if we keep in mind the end result reporting any accident will achieve, it will bring good to the company and people.