A McAllen oilfield accident lawyer helps oil and gas workers hurt on the job hold the responsible parties accountable and recover for their medical care, lost wages and pain and suffering. The Lopez Law Group represents injured oilfield workers and their families in McAllen and across South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley, in English and Spanish. As a personal injury law firm, we work on contingency, so you pay no attorney's fee and no case expenses unless we recover for you. Contact us for a free consultation and free case review.
A McAllen oilfield accident lawyer helps oil and gas workers hurt on the job hold the responsible parties accountable and recover for their medical care, lost wages and pain and suffering. The Lopez Law Group represents injured oilfield workers and their families in McAllen and across South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley, in English and Spanish. Phone: (956) 968-7800.
The risk oilfield workers face in South Texas
The oil and gas industry drives the South Texas economy, but oilfield workers face some of the highest injury rates of any job. Long shifts, heavy equipment and pressure to keep production moving put injured workers at real risk every day, and when an oil field accident happens the harm is rarely minor. Many oilfield workers injured on a rig assume workers' compensation is their only option, but that is often not true in Texas. An oilfield injury lawyer can explain the full set of options, and a Texas oilfield accident lawyer can pursue the parties who are responsible for the accident. Oilfield accident cases are often complex, with several companies and contracts on one site, so early legal help protects an injury case before evidence is lost.
Why oilfield accident cases are different
Oilfield work is among the most dangerous jobs in Texas, and an oilfield accident is rarely a simple workplace injury. Texas lets many oil companies operate as workers' compensation non-subscribers, which means an injured oilfield worker can often pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the employer instead of a limited comp claim. On top of that, an oilfield accident case usually involves several companies on one site, the operator, the drilling contractor, a service company and an equipment manufacturer, so more than one party can be liable. An experienced oilfield accident lawyer sorts out who contributed to the accident and pursues each one.
Common oilfield accidents in McAllen and South Texas
Oilfield accidents can occur anywhere on a site, from the rig floor to the access road. The common causes we handle include:
- Explosion and fire from well blowouts and gas releases
- Falls from derricks, platforms and elevated work
- Heavy machinery and equipment failures
- Struck-by and caught-between injuries around moving equipment
- Toxic chemical exposure such as hydrogen sulfide
- Transportation and vehicle crashes hauling to and from the field
Each of these can trace back to negligence, a missing guard, a skipped safety step or defective equipment, and an experienced oilfield accident attorney reads the details of the accident to prove it. Oil field injuries put oilfield accident victims in Texas out of work for months, and every oilfield claim we take gets the same investigation.
Common oilfield injuries we handle
Because of the forces involved, oilfield injuries are usually severe. The common oilfield injuries we handle include:
- Severe burns from explosion and fire
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
- Crushed and amputated limbs from heavy machinery
- Broken bones and internal injuries
- Fatality in the worst oilfield accidents, which becomes a wrongful death claim for the family
Serious injuries like these need long-term medical treatment, so we bring in doctors and life-care planners to show the full impact and the future medical care an injured worker will need.
What to do after an oilfield accident
What you do after an oilfield accident protects your health and your injury claim:
- Get medical treatment right away and follow up
- Report the accident to your employer, in writing, and keep a copy
- Photograph the equipment and the scene if you can
- Get the names of witnesses and other companies on site
- Do not give a recorded statement to the insurance company before talking to a lawyer
These steps make an oilfield accident case far easier to prove and keep evidence from disappearing when a site is cleaned up.
Who is liable in an oilfield accident
An oilfield accident often has several liable parties. If the employer is a non-subscriber, the injured worker can sue the employer directly. A third party, an equipment manufacturer whose machinery failed, a service company whose crew was careless, or the operator who ran an unsafe site, can also be liable. Oil companies and their insurance companies move fast to limit what they pay and to blame the worker. Under Texas law and its comparative negligence rule, an injured oilfield worker can still recover as long as the worker is not more than 50 percent at fault, so an experienced oilfield accident lawyer builds the evidence early to protect the claim.
Compensation in a McAllen oilfield accident claim
Depending on the path your case takes, an injured oilfield worker can seek both economic and non-economic damages:
- Medical care and future medical treatment
- Lost wages and lost earning ability
- Pain and suffering
- Disability and disfigurement
- In a fatality, wrongful death damages for the family
How much an oilfield accident case is worth depends on the injury and the evidence, so no honest lawyer quotes a figure or an average settlement before a review. Our job is to prove the full value and get you the compensation the law allows.
The deadline to file an oilfield accident claim in Texas
Texas gives you two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit under the statute of limitations in Section 16.003. A claim filed late can be blocked no matter how strong it is, and oilfield evidence, equipment, logs and witness memories, fades fast. Contact an oilfield accident lawyer soon so nothing is lost.
How our McAllen oilfield accident lawyers handle your case
The legal process gets the same care whether your case settles or goes to trial. It starts with a free consultation, in person or by phone, where we explain your legal options and legal rights in plain words. Our legal team investigates, sends preservation letters so equipment and logs are not destroyed, identifies every company that contributed to the accident, builds the damages with experts, and files a personal injury lawsuit with a full demand. When there is no fair offer, we take the matter to court. That is how an experienced oilfield accident law firm handles a claim and moves it from a low first offer to a result the facts support. For an injury off the oilfield, our McAllen personal injury attorney page and our McAllen work injury lawyer page cover other workplace accidents.
Why injured oilfield workers choose The Lopez Law Group
We are a bilingual personal injury law firm with roots in Hidalgo County and offices serving McAllen and Weslaco. You get an experienced McAllen oilfield accident lawyer, direct access to attorney Fernando J. Lopez, and personal injury attorneys who have represented more than 2,500 clients over 18 years. A Texas oilfield injury lawyer here can help with the full range of personal injury cases, and a personal injury lawyer walks you through the personal injury claim and the compensation claim step by step. We work only on contingency, so you never pay unless we recover money for you, and Spanish-speaking families get everything in their language. You pay no attorney's fee and no case expenses unless we recover for you, and the consultation is free. Anyone involved in an oilfield accident should call today for a free case review.
Frequently asked questions
What is the hardest injury to prove in an oilfield case?
Injuries with no clear scan, like soft-tissue damage, some brain injuries and chemical-exposure illness, are the hardest to prove because insurers argue they are exaggerated or unrelated to the work. This is exactly where an experienced oilfield accident lawyer and the right medical and safety experts matter most.
What should I not say after an oilfield accident?
Be fully honest with your own lawyer and your doctor. The caution is about the company and its insurer: do not give them a recorded statement, do not sign anything, and do not accept quick money before a lawyer reviews the claim. Anything said early can be used to cut what you recover.
How much does an oilfield accident lawyer cost in Texas?
Personal injury cases in Texas are handled on a contingency fee. The attorney's fee is a share of the recovery, agreed in writing before the case begins. You pay no attorney's fee and no case expenses unless we recover for you. The exact percentage is stated in the written agreement you sign.
Do you help Spanish-speaking oilfield workers?
Yes. Our team represents oilfield accident victims and their families in English and Spanish across McAllen, South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley.
Contact a McAllen oilfield accident lawyer today
If you were injured in an oilfield accident, or you lost a loved one, in McAllen or anywhere in South Texas, contact our law firm for a free consultation. You pay no attorney's fee and no case expenses unless we recover for you. The attorney responsible for the content of this page is Fernando J. Lopez. Our primary office is in Weslaco, Texas.
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The Lopez Law Group, PLLC — 2611 N Texas Blvd #1, Weslaco, TX 78599 · (956) 968-7800 · Serving McAllen, Weslaco, Brownsville, Edinburg and the Rio Grande Valley. Hablamos español.
