The law that applies to your claim
Industrial Code 23-9.8 — lift and fork trucks
Requires that lift trucks be operated only by trained and authorized persons, that loads not exceed rated capacity, that forks be lowered when traveling, and that the vehicle not be used to lift persons unless a proper platform is secured to the forks.
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 — powered industrial trucks
The federal standard covering operator training and certification, daily inspection, capacity plates, refuelling and battery changing, and travel rules. Untrained operation is one of the most frequently cited violations in the country.
Where the claim runs
On a construction site this is a Labor Law claim against the owner and general contractor. In a warehouse it is usually a third-party claim — against the equipment manufacturer, a maintenance contractor, or the property owner — alongside workers’ compensation. See our workplace accident page.
How people are hurt
- Tip-overs from turning with a raised load, or traveling on a slope
- Pedestrian workers struck, particularly when the forklift is traveling in reverse
- Loads falling from raised forks onto workers below
- Workers raised on the forks or on an unsecured pallet
- Crushing between the forklift and a wall, rack or trailer
- Trailer creep or dock-plate failure during loading
- Falls from the dock edge
The tip-over instinct that kills
Counterbalanced forklifts are designed so that in a lateral tip-over the operator is safest staying in the seat, braced, and leaning away — the overhead guard protects the space. The instinct is to jump, and jumping is what causes most tip-over fatalities.
That makes two things directly relevant: whether the machine had a functioning operator restraint, and whether the operator had ever been trained on it. Both are documented, and both are frequently absent.
What to preserve
The machine itself, before it is repaired or returned to a rental yard. Also: the daily inspection checklists, the capacity plate and the load actually being carried, operator training and certification records, maintenance history including any disabled alarm or seat switch, and any site traffic plan separating pedestrians from equipment.
A defeated seat-belt interlock or a disconnected reversing alarm is often the entire case.
How long you have to act
- Three years from the date of the accident for most negligence claims (CPLR §214).
- Two years for wrongful death (EPTL §5-4.1).
- 90 days to serve a notice of claim where a city, county, school district, transit authority or other public body is involved (General Municipal Law §50-e), with suit generally within one year and 90 days.
The 90-day rule is the one that quietly ends otherwise strong cases. If a public entity may be involved, that is the first thing to check — not the last.
What it costs
Nothing up front. These cases are handled on contingency: there is no fee unless we win, and the consultation is free. You will be told the percentage and how expenses are handled, in writing, before you sign anything.
Common questions
I was a pedestrian, not the operator.
That is the most common serious forklift injury. Responsibility usually turns on the traffic plan, sight lines, whether the alarm worked and whether pedestrians and equipment were separated at all.
I was lifted on the forks to reach something.
Using forks to raise a person without a properly secured platform violates both 23-9.8 and the federal standard. That instruction came from someone.
The forklift was leased.
The lessor, the maintenance contractor and the manufacturer may all be examined alongside the site defendants — particularly where a safety device was defeated or a repair was never made.
