Dallas Oilfield Accident Lawyer | Free Consultation

If you’ve been injured in an oilfield accident in Texas, you need a lawyer who understands both the complexities of Texas oil and gas law and the severe injuries these accidents cause. Oilfield work is one of the most dangerous jobs in America, and when safety failures lead to catastrophic injuries, employers and equipment manufacturers must be held accountable.

The stakes are too high to handle alone. Medical bills pile up fast, and oil companies have powerful legal teams working to minimize what they pay. You need someone in your corner who will fight for every dollar you deserve.

In this article, our Dallas Oilfield Accident Lawyers explain your legal rights, the common causes of oilfield injuries, who may be held responsible, and how we fight to recover maximum compensation for injured oilfield workers and their families.

Why Oilfield Accidents Are So Dangerous

Dallas sits at the center of Texas oil and gas operations. While most people think of Houston when they think of the oil industry, Dallas County and the surrounding areas are home to numerous drilling sites, equipment yards, and support facilities. Workers in these environments face daily hazards that most people never encounter.

Heavy machinery, high-pressure equipment, toxic chemicals, and extreme working conditions create a perfect storm for serious injuries. Many oilfield accidents result in life-changing injuries like burns, amputations, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord damage.

The industry’s push for productivity often comes at the expense of safety. Workers are expected to meet demanding quotas, sometimes working 12-hour shifts or longer. Fatigue sets in. Corners get cut. Accidents happen.

Common Types of Oilfield Accidents in Dallas

Oilfield accidents take many forms. Each type presents unique challenges when it comes to proving liability and recovering compensation.

Equipment failures are among the most common. Blowout preventers malfunction. Drilling equipment breaks down. When this happens, workers can be struck by heavy objects, caught in machinery, or exposed to dangerous chemicals. These aren’t minor mishaps. They’re catastrophic events that destroy lives in seconds.

Explosions and fires occur when flammable gases ignite. Natural gas, petroleum vapors, and other volatile substances are present throughout oilfield operations. One spark from faulty wiring or a static discharge can trigger an explosion that kills or severely burns multiple workers.

Falls from height happen on drilling rigs, platforms, and storage tanks. Workers climb ladders, operate lifts, and work on elevated surfaces every day. When fall protection equipment fails or isn’t provided, workers plummet to the ground, suffering broken bones, head injuries, or worse.

Vehicle accidents are another major concern. Oilfield workers drive heavy trucks on rural roads, often in bad weather or during nighttime hours. Collisions with other vehicles or single-vehicle rollovers cause serious injuries and wrongful deaths.

Toxic exposure doesn’t always show up immediately. Workers breathe in hydrogen sulfide, benzene, and other carcinogens. Years later, they develop cancer or respiratory diseases. By then, the statute of limitations may be running out.

Crush injuries occur when workers get caught between heavy equipment or objects. Pipes, drilling components, and machinery can weigh thousands of pounds. When something goes wrong, workers can be pinned, crushed, or dismembered.

Who Can Be Held Liable for Your Injuries

Oilfield accident cases are rarely straightforward. Multiple parties may share responsibility for what happened to you.

Your direct employer is the most obvious defendant, but workers’ compensation often limits your ability to sue them directly. However, workers’ comp rarely covers your full damages. That’s where third-party liability becomes important.

Equipment manufacturers can be held liable under product liability law. If a defective blowout preventer caused an explosion, or faulty safety equipment failed to protect you, the manufacturer may owe you compensation. Texas products liability law, governed by the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 82, allows injured workers to pursue claims for design defects, manufacturing defects, and failure to warn.

Subcontractors and staffing agencies often provide workers to drilling operations. If they failed to properly train you or provided inadequate safety equipment, they may be liable for your injuries.

Landowners can be responsible if dangerous conditions on their property contributed to your accident. This is especially true if they knew about hazards and failed to warn workers or fix them.

Other workers or companies operating on site may have acted negligently. If another crew’s carelessness caused your injury, their employer could be liable.

Types of Compensation Available

Texas law allows oilfield accident victims to recover several types of damages. Understanding what you’re entitled to is the first step toward getting fair compensation.

Medical expenses include all treatment related to your injury. Emergency room visits, surgeries, hospital stays, prescription medications, physical therapy, and future medical care all count. In severe cases, medical bills can reach hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.

Lost wages compensate you for income you’ve already lost due to your injury. If you missed two months of work while recovering, you should be paid for every hour you couldn’t work.

Loss of earning capacity covers future income you’ll never earn because of permanent disabilities. If your injuries prevent you from returning to oilfield work, you may never make the same money again. This damage accounts for that loss over your entire working life.

Pain and suffering compensates you for physical pain, emotional distress, and diminished quality of life. Living with chronic pain, disability, or disfigurement takes a toll that goes beyond financial losses. Texas law recognizes this through non-economic damages.

Disfigurement and scarring are separate damages. Severe burns, amputations, and facial injuries permanently change how you look and how others perceive you. Compensation for these injuries acknowledges the social and psychological impact.

Loss of consortium allows your spouse to recover damages for the loss of companionship, affection, and intimacy caused by your injuries.

In cases involving gross negligence or intentional misconduct, punitive damages may be available. These are meant to punish wrongdoers and deter similar conduct in the future. Texas caps punitive damages at the greater of $200,000 or two times economic damages plus non-economic damages up to $750,000, as outlined in the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 41.

How Texas Law Affects Your Oilfield Injury Claim

Texas has specific laws that impact how oilfield accident cases work. Knowing these rules helps you understand what to expect.

The statute of limitations for most personal injury claims in Texas is two years from the date of injury. Miss this deadline, and you lose your right to sue. There are limited exceptions, so don’t wait to contact a lawyer.

Texas follows a modified comparative negligence rule. If you’re found partially at fault for your accident, your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault. If you’re more than 50% responsible, you recover nothing. This makes it critical to build a strong case showing the other parties’ negligence.

Workers’ compensation is not mandatory for most Texas employers, though many carry it anyway. If your employer has workers’ comp, you generally can’t sue them directly for your injuries. However, you can pursue third-party claims against equipment manufacturers, subcontractors, and others.

If your employer doesn’t carry workers’ comp, you can sue them directly. However, they lose common law defenses like assumption of risk and contributory negligence, making it easier to win your case.

What Your Case May Be Worth

Every oilfield accident case is different. Settlement values depend on the severity of your injuries, how clearly liability can be proven, and the insurance coverage available.

Minor injuries that heal within weeks might settle for tens of thousands of dollars. Serious injuries requiring surgery and months of recovery can reach into the hundreds of thousands. Catastrophic injuries like severe burns, amputations, or paralysis can result in million-dollar settlements or verdicts.

Several factors affect case value. The permanency of your injuries matters. Temporary disabilities are worth less than permanent ones. The impact on your ability to work is huge. If you can return to your old job, your damages are lower than if you can never work again.

Your age and life expectancy factor in, too. A 30-year-old with a permanent injury has more years of lost income ahead than a 60-year-old.

The strength of the evidence matters. Clear proof of negligence and causation leads to higher settlements. Weak evidence means insurance companies fight harder and offer less.

Available insurance coverage caps what you can recover in many cases. If the at-fault party only has $500,000 in coverage, you can’t collect $2 million from them, even if a jury awards it.

The Claims Process After an Oilfield Accident

Understanding what happens after an oilfield accident helps you make better decisions and avoid costly mistakes.

Immediate medical treatment is your first priority. Get to a hospital or emergency room as soon as possible. Your health comes first, but prompt treatment also creates medical records that document your injuries.

Report the accident to your supervisor immediately. Texas law requires workplace injuries to be reported promptly. Failing to report can jeopardize your workers’ comp claim if one applies.

Document everything you can. Take photos of the accident scene, your injuries, and any equipment involved. Get contact information from witnesses. Write down exactly what happened while it’s fresh in your memory.

Don’t give recorded statements to insurance adjusters without talking to a lawyer first. Adjusters work for the insurance company, not you. They’ll use your words against you to minimize what they pay.

Contact a Dallas oilfield accident lawyer as soon as possible. The sooner you have legal representation, the sooner we can start preserving evidence, interviewing witnesses, and building your case.

Investigation and evidence gathering comes next. We’ll obtain accident reports, safety records, maintenance logs, and other documents. We may hire experts to inspect equipment, analyze what went wrong, and testify about industry standards.

Demand and negotiation follow once we’ve documented your damages. We’ll send a detailed demand letter to the at-fault parties and their insurers, outlining your injuries, damages, and the legal basis for liability. Most cases settle during this phase if the offer is fair.

Filing a lawsuit becomes necessary when insurance companies refuse to negotiate fairly. Once we file suit, the discovery process begins. Both sides exchange documents, take depositions, and gather additional evidence.

Mediation or trial comes last. Many cases settle at mediation, where a neutral third party helps both sides reach an agreement. If mediation fails, we take your case to trial and let a jury decide what you should receive.

Why Insurance Companies Fight Oilfield Injury Claims

Insurance companies aren’t on your side, no matter how friendly the adjuster sounds. Their job is to pay as little as possible.

They’ll investigate your claim, looking for reasons to deny it or reduce what they pay. They’ll dig into your medical history, looking for pre-existing conditions they can blame. They’ll hire their own experts to say you’re not as hurt as you claim.

They’ll make lowball settlement offers early, hoping you’ll take fast money before you know the full extent of your injuries. Once you accept, you can’t come back for more when complications develop.

They’ll delay and drag out the process, hoping financial pressure will force you to settle cheap. Medical bills pile up. You’re not working. The pressure mounts. That’s exactly what they want.

They’ll use your own words against you. One offhand comment to an adjuster can be twisted to make it sound like you admitted fault or aren’t really injured.

This is why having an experienced lawyer matters. We know their tactics. We’ve seen it all before. We push back hard and make them pay what you actually deserve.

What to Expect From Varghese Summersett

When you hire Varghese Summersett to handle your Dallas oilfield accident case, you get a team that knows how to win. We’re not going to sugarcoat it. These cases are tough. The other side has resources and experience. But so do we.

We start by listening. Your story matters. We need to understand exactly what happened, how you’ve been affected, and what you need to move forward. We’ll explain your legal options in plain English, not legal jargon.

We investigate thoroughly. Our team will gather every piece of evidence that supports your claim. Accident reports, safety violations, maintenance records, expert opinions—we leave no stone unturned.

We handle all communication with insurance companies. You don’t have to talk to adjusters or worry about saying the wrong thing. We deal with them so you can focus on recovering.

We work with top medical experts who can document your injuries and explain their long-term impact. We consult with vocational experts who calculate your lost earning capacity. We bring in accident reconstruction specialists when needed.

We negotiate aggressively. Insurance companies know we’re not afraid to go to trial, so they take our demands seriously. We won’t recommend settling for less than your case is worth.

If we need to file a lawsuit, we’re ready. Our attorneys have extensive trial experience and a track record of successful verdicts.

You pay nothing unless we win. We work on a contingency fee basis, meaning our fee comes out of your settlement or verdict. If we don’t recover money for you, you owe us nothing.

If you’ve been injured in a Dallas oilfield accident, don’t wait. Schedule a Free Consultation with our team today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I sue my employer for an oilfield injury in Texas?

It depends on whether your employer carries workers’ compensation insurance. If they do, workers’ comp is generally your exclusive remedy against them, but you can pursue third-party claims against equipment manufacturers, subcontractors, and other negligent parties. If your employer doesn’t carry workers’ comp, you can sue them directly for negligence, and they lose several common law defenses that would normally protect them. Many oilfield contractors and staffing agencies don’t carry workers’ comp, making direct lawsuits possible.

How long do I have to file an oilfield accident lawsuit in Texas?

Texas law gives you two years from the date of your injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. This deadline is strict. If you miss it, you lose your right to sue in most cases. There are limited exceptions, such as when injuries weren’t immediately apparent or when the statute of limitations is tolled due to legal incapacity. Don’t wait until the last minute. Evidence disappears, witnesses move away, and memories fade. Contact a lawyer as soon as possible after your accident.

What if I was partially at fault for my oilfield accident?

Texas follows a modified comparative negligence rule. You can still recover compensation even if you share some fault, as long as you’re not more than 50% responsible for the accident. Your recovery will be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if you’re awarded $100,000 but found 20% at fault, you’ll receive $80,000. If you’re found 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing. This makes it critical to build a strong case showing the other parties’ negligence was the primary cause of your injuries.

Can I still get compensation if the accident happened at a remote drilling site?

Yes. The location of your accident doesn’t affect your right to compensation. In fact, remote drilling sites often have more safety violations because oversight is limited. Whether your injury happened in rural Dallas County, on a drilling pad in the Barnett Shale, or at an equipment yard, you have the same legal rights. The key is proving negligence and establishing liability. Our team has experience handling cases involving remote oilfield locations throughout Texas.

What should I do if the oil company offers me a settlement right away?

Don’t accept it without talking to a lawyer first. Early settlement offers are almost always lowball offers designed to save the company money. They’re counting on you not knowing the full value of your claim. Once you accept, you can’t come back for more money later, even if your injuries turn out to be worse than you thought. Many oilfield injuries have complications that don’t show up for weeks or months. Get a lawyer to review any offer before you sign anything.

Contact a Dallas Oilfield Accident Lawyer Today

Oilfield accidents cause devastating injuries that change lives forever. You shouldn’t have to face the aftermath alone. Our Dallas personal injury attorneys have the experience, resources, and determination to fight for the compensation you deserve.

We handle cases throughout Dallas County, including in Dallas, Irving, Garland, Mesquite, Carrollton, Richardson, and surrounding areas. Whether your accident happened on a drilling rig, at a processing facility, or during transportation, we’re here to help.

Don’t let the oil company and its insurance adjusters take advantage of you. Call (214) 903-4000 or contact us online to schedule your free consultation. We’ll review your case, explain your options, and help you understand what your claim is worth. Let us fight for you so you can focus on healing.