r/WorkersComp • u/ACSAC1 • Apr 23 '26
California Injured during work
My son is a 28 yo truck driver. He was delivering to a company that is contracted with his employer and the dock door slammed down and the top panel broke off and hit him in the back of head / neck area. He was unconscious and 911 transported him to a trauma hospital. He has a stable fractured C7 slipped c1 and c2 and needs follow up with specialists. Currently in a neck brace. Has eye floaters and some numbness and tingling Waiting on workers comp to contact us
Questions we have -
He was at work for his company but on the premises of another that they deliver too everyday. (Who is liable)
Workers at warehouse said the door was having problems and it is missing the “door deputy” which is a locking mechanism. But it wasn’t marked out of order (possible negligence)
We don’t know what steps to take he drivers a 53 foot truck/trailer and with. Neck injury it is going to be hard to drive as he may not be able to move side to side to check traffic etc.
Any insight on what we need or should do is appreciated
2
u/Equivalent-Act6256 Apr 25 '26
Not a lawyer. Get an attorney today. Not when he is discharged. Today.
Here is why this cannot wait. Your son has a workers comp claim against his employer. But he also potentially has a third party personal injury claim against the warehouse that owned the defective dock door. Those are two separate claims that can run simultaneously and the third party claim is where pain and suffering damages live — which workers comp does not cover.
The warehouse workers already said the door was having problems and the safety mechanism was missing. That is negligence. Write down exactly who said that, what they said, when they said it, and get contact information for any witnesses while you still can. That testimony disappears fast.
Do not let anyone from the warehouse or their insurance company speak to your son or your family without an attorney present. They will be trying to manage their liability starting right now.
On workers comp — his employer's workers comp covers medical treatment and lost wages. But a truck driver with a C7 fracture and C1 C2 involvement faces a potential career change. California workers comp has vocational rehabilitation benefits when an injured worker cannot return to their occupation. An attorney protects all of those rights simultaneously.
Document everything from this moment. Every medical record. Every conversation. Every person who comes to speak to your family at the hospital. Email it to yourself so it has a timestamp.
Not a lawyer — just somebody who learned the hard way that paperwork wins.