Crane Accidents in New York City: Two Kinds of Victims, Two Sets of Rules

How crane accidents happen

Most crane injuries trace back to a handful of causes:

• Falling loads. Materials slip from rigging, a sling fails, or a load is hoisted without being properly secured.
• Boom and load strikes. A swinging load or boom hits a worker, a structure, or a power line.
• Rigging failures. Worn wire rope, overloaded hooks, or improperly attached slings.
• Overloading and tip-overs. Lifting beyond the crane's rated capacity, or setting up on unstable ground without proper outriggers or mats.
• Collapses during erection, jumping or dismantling. Tower cranes are most vulnerable when they are being assembled, raised, or taken down.
• Wind. Operating when wind exceeds the limits set for the crane.
• Signal and communication failures between the operator, the signal person, and the riggers.

Crane work in New York City is regulated closely by the NYC Department of Buildings, which licenses operators and requires permits, plans and inspections for many lifts, and by federal OSHA crane standards. Violations of those rules are often central evidence in a case.

Track one: the worker on the site

Workers' compensation comes first

A construction worker hurt by a crane is generally entitled to workers' compensation benefits from their own employer, regardless of fault. In most cases, workers' compensation is also the only claim the worker can bring against their direct employer. But it is rarely the only claim available. The real recovery usually comes from a lawsuit against the other companies on the job — the property owner, the general contractor, the crane company, and other subcontractors. Our article on workers' comp vs. personal injury explains how the two fit together.

Labor Law § 240(1): the Scaffold Law

New York's Labor Law § 240(1) requires owners and contractors to provide proper protection against elevation-related hazards. It covers workers who fall from heights, and it also covers workers struck by objects that fall because they were being hoisted or needed to be secured and were not. A load dropping from a crane is a classic example.

Section 240(1) imposes absolute liability on owners and general contractors when a violation is a cause of the injury. The worker's own carelessness does not reduce the recovery under this section unless it was the sole cause of the accident, and the owner is responsible even if it did not supervise the work. It is the most powerful tool a crane-accident victim has. We explain it in detail in our article on the Scaffold Law.

Not every falling object qualifies. The courts have held that the object must have been one that was being hoisted or secured, or should have been, and that the injury must flow from the absence or failure of a safety device. Whether a particular accident fits is often the first legal battle in a case.

Labor Law § 241(6) and the Industrial Code

Labor Law § 241(6) requires owners and contractors to comply with specific safety rules in the state's Industrial Code, which includes detailed provisions governing cranes, derricks, rigging and hoisting. To recover under this section, the worker must point to a specific Industrial Code rule that was violated. Unlike § 240(1), the worker's own comparative fault can reduce the recovery. It is still a strong claim, and it covers accidents that § 240(1) does not reach, such as a worker crushed by a swinging load at ground level.

Labor Law § 200

Section 200 restates the general duty to provide a safe workplace. It applies where the owner or contractor controlled the work method or knew about a dangerous condition. It is usually pleaded alongside the other two.

Track two: the person outside the site

Pedestrians, drivers, and people in neighboring buildings are not protected by the Labor Law, which covers workers. Their claims are based on ordinary negligence: the companies running the job failed to take reasonable care, and that failure caused the injury.

In practice, crane accidents that injure the public tend to be strong negligence cases. Heavy loads and booms do not ordinarily fall into the street unless someone was negligent, and New York's doctrine of res ipsa loquitur can allow a jury to infer negligence where an accident of that kind happens with equipment under the defendant's exclusive control. Violations of DOB rules — operating in excessive wind, lifting without a required permit or flag person, failing to protect the sidewalk — are also evidence of negligence.

Responsible parties typically include the general contractor, the crane rental or operating company, the rigging contractor, the property owner, and sometimes the crane manufacturer if equipment failed. Bystanders hurt in a collapse often suffer head injuries, fractures, and crush injuries, and when the injury is fatal, the family has a wrongful death claim.

Sidewalk sheds and protective netting are part of this picture too. If you were hurt by something falling through or around a shed, see our article on sidewalk liability in New York City for how the city's rules allocate responsibility for the street level.

Evidence in crane cases

Crane accidents are investigated by the DOB, OSHA, the police, and often the crane company's own insurers within hours. Your side needs its own evidence just as quickly:

• DOB records: permits, crane notices, inspection reports, violations and stop-work orders for the site.
• OSHA records: any inspection or citations after the accident.
• The lift plan and load charts for the lift that failed.
• Operator licenses and logs, and the identity of the signal person and riggers.
• Weather data for wind conditions at the time.
• Video from site cameras, neighboring buildings, and bystanders' phones.
• The equipment itself — the rigging, hooks and wire rope — which should be preserved for expert inspection before it is discarded or repaired.

Construction cases often involve several defendants and contracts that shift responsibility among them through indemnification and insurance provisions. Sorting that out is part of the work, but it does not change the injured person's claim; it only changes who ultimately pays.

Damages

Crane injuries tend to be severe: fractures, spinal cord and spine injuries, traumatic brain injuries, amputations, and deaths. A construction worker's recovery can include lost wages and lost future earning capacity, past and future medical costs, and pain and suffering. A bystander's recovery includes the same categories. A spouse may have a separate loss of consortium claim. Workers' compensation carriers that paid benefits generally have a lien on a third-party recovery.

Deadlines

Most personal injury claims arising from a crane accident must be filed within three years. A wrongful death claim generally must be filed within two years of the death. If a city agency or public authority owned the site or the equipment — a public school construction project, a transit authority job — a notice of claim is generally due within 90 days under General Municipal Law § 50-e. Workers' compensation has its own notice and filing deadlines. See our guide to New York filing deadlines.

What to do after a crane accident

• Get medical care immediately and follow up consistently.
• If you are a worker, report the injury to your employer in writing and file for workers' compensation.
• Write down the address of the site, the names of the companies on the site fence and permits, and any crane company name.
• Photograph the scene if you can do so safely, and save any videos.
• Get names of co-workers or witnesses.
• Do not sign statements for any company's insurer before getting advice.

Our construction injury practice handles crane and hoisting cases for workers and bystanders on a contingency fee.

Common questions

Can a construction worker sue after a crane accident in New York?

Usually not their own employer, which is covered by workers' compensation. But a worker can typically sue the property owner, general contractor, crane company and other contractors under Labor Law §§ 240(1), 241(6) and 200.

Does the Scaffold Law cover being hit by a falling load from a crane?

Often, yes. Labor Law § 240(1) covers injuries from objects that fall because they were being hoisted or needed to be secured and were not. Whether a particular accident qualifies depends on the facts.

What if I was a pedestrian hurt by a crane accident?

You can bring a negligence claim against the companies responsible for the crane and the site. Accidents involving falling loads or collapses often support an inference of negligence, and safety code violations are strong evidence.

Who regulates cranes in New York City?

The NYC Department of Buildings licenses crane operators and regulates crane permits, inspections and lifts, alongside federal OSHA standards. Their records are often key evidence.

How long do I have to file a crane accident lawsuit?

Generally three years for personal injury and two years for wrongful death. If a public entity is involved, a notice of claim is generally due within 90 days.

This page is general information about New York law. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship with Davidov & Cohen Law. To talk about your own situation, tell us what happened.