San Antonio Oil Field Injury Lawyer

Crosley Law Fights for Victims of Natural Gas and Oil Field Accidents

When oil and gas prices rise, Texas begins to see frenzied hiring, “man camps” filled with out-of-town contract oil field workers, and a boom in truck traffic. All these factors contribute to spikes in oil- and gas-related accidents and injuries.

Crosley Law handles a wide variety of oil and gas field injury claims in Texas, including those involving truck accidents, workplace incidents, and catastrophic injuries (including traumatic brain injuries).

Keep reading to learn more about oil field accidents and how our law firm can help you with your personal injury claim and recover physically and financially after a serious injury. And if you’re ready to schedule your free consultation, contact Crosley Law today.

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A Comprehensive, Cutting-Edge Approach to Oil Field Accidents and Personal Injury Claims

At Crosley Law, we rigorously investigate oil and gas field and truck crashes and demand accountability from negligent drivers, trucking companies, maintenance companies, oil and gas companies, and other entities when their negligence plays a role in your accident. We have handled many cases involving oil field injuries to rig workers, roustabouts, as well as injuries caused by heavy trucks, tankers, and frack sand haulers.

We use cutting-edge strategies to investigate our clients’ accidents and the severe injuries that result—assessing electronic data, sifting through corporate documents, consulting with experts, and interviewing witnesses. Crosley Law sets itself apart by being willing to go deeper, work harder, and bring in whatever experts are necessary to get the best possible settlements and jury verdicts for our clients.

Although our firm is based in San Antonio, we frequently handle oil truck and oil field injury claims throughout Texas, and we work closely with crash investigators on the ground throughout the state. That means we can get someone out to investigate rapidly, whether the injury occurs in a San Antonio oil field, or hundreds of miles away in the Permian Basin.

Our Oil Field Accident Results Speak for Themselves

$12 Million

Our client, a married father of two young children, was killed in an explosion on an oil field drilling site in West Texas. We filed a lawsuit against several companies that caused or contributed to dangerous conditions that led to the explosion.

$2.1 Million

We represented the family of a 72-year-old man who was killed while driving his pickup truck to work in the oil fields near Odessa, Texas. A concrete pumping truck had pulled out in front of our client’s pickup, causing the fatal crash.

Confidential Settlement

Our client, a young father and oil field worker returning home, was killed when his vehicle crashed into a frac-sand hauler that had broken down and was partially blocking a highway on-ramp. Although he was initially blamed for the crash, extensive investigation by Crosley Law revealed substantial negligent truck maintenance. In the end, we were able to win a favorable settlement for the family.

Michael and Jill’s Story

Confidential Settlement

In this case, an 18-wheeler was pulling out of a drilling site onto a two-lane rural highway and blocked both lanes of the highway as it tried to make a left turn. Our clients came around a bend in the highway at 70 mph and could not stop in time, causing a serious collision.

Confidential Settlement

We represented the widow of a roustabout who was killed when a top drive used on the drilling rig violently spun out of control and fatally struck our client.

Busy Texas Oil Fields Lead to Injured Workers

Oil and natural gas fields are incredibly hazardous places. When you work on or visit an oil field, you’re exposed to dangerous equipment, rough terrain, and harmful chemicals.

Texas’ history is deeply intertwined with the oil and gas industry. Near San Antonio, the Eagle Ford Shale formation contains immense amounts of oil and gas-rich marine shale. Although the pace of production in the Eagle Ford Shale region has slowed since 2015, it remains the second most active oil and gas drilling basin in the United States, and production is projected to exceed pre-pandemic levels within the next few years.

The Permian Basin, which spreads across West Texas and New Mexico, is the United States’ largest shale oil region, producing more than 5 million barrels per day—nearly half of the nation’s total production. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects that output to increase even more in the next few years, up to 5.7 million barrels per day by 2023.

While an oil boom provides jobs and economic stability for many communities, it also creates challenges and hazards. Our roads become filled with heavy equipment, trucks, and workers who flock to our communities during a boom. And when those workers get to the fields, they work under dangerous conditions and sometimes suffer serious injuries. Data from OSHA shows that oil and gas workers have some of the highest rates of severe injuries among all professions in the United States.

Truck Accident Rates Skyrocket When Oil and Gas Prices Rise

Historically, the rates of car crashes in Texas have strongly correlated with oil and gas prices, particularly in and around oil fields. In 2017, for example, 93 people died in wrecks near the Permian Basin on Route 285, a highway that some experts have called the most dangerous in the United States.

Increased oil and gas production contributes to Texas car crashes in many ways, including the following:

• Heavier truck traffic as 18-wheelers carry crude, machinery, sand, water, and other supplies to and from the fields.
• Many Texas roads were not designed for their current truck volumes. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, traffic along U.S. 285 between Pecos and the New Mexico state line increased an incredible 500% in just one decade, between 2010 and 2020.
• Trucking companies often encourage drivers to work long hours and break safety regulations.
• There aren’t enough experienced truck drivers to meet the industry’s demands, which means companies often hire inexperienced drivers instead.
• Oil and gas production can cause sinkholes that damage roadways.

Many times, multiple factors contribute to a crash, which leads to multiple defendants and insurance companies becoming involved in any claims that follow.

RELATED POST: What Causes Texas Oil Truck Accidents (and What to Do If You’re Injured

Who Is Responsible for Oil Field Accidents?

Liability in oil field injury cases is often extremely complicated, with many potentially liable parties. For example, you may have a case against on or more of the following:

• A truck driver who violates the rules of the road.
• A trucking company that failed to properly screen or train its drivers or pressured them to violate safety regulations.
• Maintenance companies who did not properly inspect and maintain oil field equipment or trucks as required by law.
• Equipment manufacturers that sold defective parts or machinery.
• The oil or gas company, supervisors, contractors, or other employers or individuals who were negligent in maintaining a safe work environment.
• A property owner or manager.

If your direct employer was at least partially responsible for your injury, you may or may not be able to file a personal injury lawsuit against them in Texas, depending on whether they provide sufficient workers compensation benefits. However, you may still have a personal injury case against other negligent parties.

However, successfully proving negligence and obtaining fair compensation after an oil field accident is no simple matter. You will need extensive evidence regarding the accident itself, much of which may be difficult to obtain, or even intentionally withheld by a responsible party. You will need significant medical evidence as well, particularly if you have a traumatic brain injury or other severe injuries.

Most oil field workers and family members have no idea where to even begin. That’s where an experienced San Antonio oil field law firm, such as Crosley Law, steps in.

Crosley Law: San Antonio’s Oil Field Injury Lawyers

Crosley Law focuses its practice on serious injury claims, including those involving oil- and gas-related injuries.

If you or someone you love suffered injuries in an oil truck crash or at an oil field, we’d love to speak with you and help you understand your legal options at no cost to you. To schedule your free consultation with an experienced attorney from the Crosley Law legal team, complete our quick and easy online contact form or call us at 210-LAW-3000 | 210-529-3000.

The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.