A fellow worker who was backing up a semi-truck struck and killed a 58-year-old coworker in Elsmere.
The man was working at a loading dock located in the 7900 block of Foundation Drive when he was hit, investigators said. According to police, the 44-year-old driver was backing the truck into a parked trailer when he struck the victim. Hewas pronounced dead at the scene by the Kenton County Coroner. The truck driver was not injured.
No other details were available.
Fatal Workplace Injuries
These “caught between” injuries (a victim is caught between a large vehicle and a fixed object) are very common not only at loading docks, but at other job sites as well, especially construction sites. 
Frequently, the drivers have little or no experience behind the wheel of a large truck. That’s especially true if a worker is just moving a vehicle from one parking spot to another one, or just backing it up to make loading or unloading easier. Large trucks have such poor sight lines that many of these drivers might never see a worker behind them.
At the same time, most loading docks and other such job sites are very busy. People don’t always stop to look both ways. Additionally, many workers wear legally-required ear protection devices. So, they may not hear a large truck coming up behind them.
Falls, electrocutions, and struck by injuries round up the Occupational Safety and Health Association’s fatal four workplace injuries. 
Frequently, victims are at least partially at fault in these incidents, such as the aforementioned worker who didn’t look both ways or didn’t listen closely enough. Fault is irrelevant in a workers’ compensation claim. Even if the victim was partially at fault, or entirely at fault, for the injury, full benefits are available.
These benefits usually include lost wage replacement and medical bill payment. Usually, workers’ compensation pays two-thirds of all lost wages and all reasonably necessary medical bills.
Nonsubscriber Claims
Workers’ compensation covers most job-related injuries. However, it doesn’t cover all of them. Most nonsubscriber claims involve uninsured employers. Some employers ignore Kentucky law and don’t buy required workers’ compensation insurance policies. Others commit insurance fraud, such as lying about payroll size, and therefore invalidate their policies.
In these and other nonsubscriber claims, a Lexington personal injury attorney may file a claim against the employer in civil court. Uninsured nonsubscriber claims are easier to win. Although a lawyer must prove negligence, certain defenses, such as comparative fault, are unavailable.
Other major nonsubscriber cases are defective product claims and reckless employer claims. Let’s use the above story as an example. If the semi-truck’s brakes failed, the victim has a claim against the company that made the brakes, no matter where the accident occurred. If the boss allowed an unlicensed person to drive the truck, that’s probably employer recklessness.
Non-Work-Related Semi-Truck Crashes
Most truck wrecks are non-work-related. Largely because of the regulatory environment, these incidents have increased 47 percent in recent years. Persistent supply chain issues have prompted regulators to water down many key safety rules. Subtly, regulators also encourage enforcement officers to look the other way when they discover violations.
If they hau cargo and/or people for profit, drivers are common carriers in Kentucky. This designation, which applies to truck drivers, bus drivers, Uber drivers, and pretty much all commercial operators, means they have a higher duty of care. So, once again, it’s easier for a Lexington personal injury lawyer to prove negligence, or a lack of care, in these cases.
However, a full range of negligence defenses, including comparative fault, are usually available. As the name implies, contributory negligence states that the victim’s own negligence contributed to the accident. In most states, if the tortfeasor (negligent driver) is less than 51 percent responsible for the wreck, the victim isn’t entitled to damages. However, Kentucky is a pure comparative fault state. Even if a tortfeasor is a mere 1 percent responsible for a wreck, the tortfeasor, or rather the tortfeasor’s boss, must pay compensation.
The tortfeasor’s boss is financially responsible for damages because of the respondeat superior rule. Employers must pay for damage if their employees, a term which includes truck drivers in this context, negligently injured people during the course and scope of their employment.
Damages in a civil injury claim usually include compensation for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering. Additional punitive damages are available as well, in many extreme cases, such as a truck driver who fell asleep at the wheel.
Injury victims are usually entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Lexington, contact the Goode Law Office, PLLC. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available. The post Semi-Truck Kills Kenton County Loading Dock Worker first appeared on Goode Law Office, PLLC.