Chilton County Worker Killed by Heavy Machinery: What Alabama Families Need to Know About Workers' Comp vs. Wrongful Death

By Benjamin Schoettker | J.D. | Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC | 25+ years | Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, Slip and Fall, Premises Liability, Car Accidents, 18-Wheeler Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents

Published: 2026-07-30 | Last updated: 2026-07-30

TL;DR: Deputies were dispatched to Bridge Builders of Alabama in Chilton County late Wednesday afternoon after a 23-year-old worker was fatally struck by heavy machinery, according to al.com. When a young worker is killed on the job in Alabama, the family's first call is usually to the employer or to workers' compensation.

Deputies were dispatched to Bridge Builders of Alabama in Chilton County late Wednesday afternoon after a 23-year-old worker was fatally struck by heavy machinery, according to al.com. When a young worker is killed on the job in Alabama, the family's first call is usually to the employer or to workers' compensation. That call matters, but it is often only half the story. Alabama law treats an on-the-job death as two potentially separate cases, and the family that only pursues one may leave the other track closed by the time they realize it existed.

Under Alabama's Workers' Compensation Act, comp benefits are generally the exclusive remedy against the employer itself. For a surviving spouse and children, that typically means a statutory death benefit and burial expenses — not a jury trial, and not the full measure of the loss. However, comp exclusivity does not shield everyone. If a piece of heavy equipment was defectively designed or maintained, if a separate contractor on the site caused the death, or if an outside driver or vendor was involved, a wrongful death action against that third party may still lie in Alabama circuit court. Those two tracks run under different deadlines and very different rules of proof.

It is important to understand that Alabama's wrongful death statute is unusual — damages are punitive only, measured by the wrongdoer's culpability rather than the family's economic loss, and the claim must be brought by the personal representative of the estate within two (2) years of the death. That is a hard deadline, and evidence at an industrial site (equipment, maintenance logs, witness memories) degrades quickly. While the criminal or OSHA investigation is still open, families and their counsel can begin preserving the machine, the service records, and the identities of every contractor on site that day.

Ultimately, the practical question for a family in Chilton County or anywhere else in Alabama is not "comp or lawsuit" — it is whether both tracks are in play, and who needs to be put on notice before evidence disappears. That answer depends on the facts of the incident, the equipment involved, and the contractual layout of the job site. It is not something a family should have to sort out alone in the first week.

“Families hear 'workers' comp' and assume that's the whole recovery. In Alabama it often isn't. Comp is the exclusive remedy against the employer, but a defective machine or a third-party contractor is a separate case, with a separate two-year clock, and if nobody preserves the equipment early that case can quietly disappear.” — Benjamin Schoettker, Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an Alabama family sue the employer directly after a worker is killed on the job?

In most cases, no. Alabama's Workers' Compensation Act makes comp benefits the exclusive remedy against the employer. However, wrongful death claims against equipment manufacturers, outside contractors, or third-party drivers are generally not barred and may proceed separately.

How long does an Alabama family have to file a wrongful death claim?

Alabama's wrongful death statute requires the claim to be filed by the personal representative of the estate within two (2) years of the date of death. That deadline is strict, and courts have generally refused to extend it even in sympathetic cases.

Talk to an Alabama Wrongful Death Attorney

If your family lost a loved one in a workplace incident in Chilton County or anywhere in Alabama, Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC is available at (334) 834-3444 for a free, no-obligation consultation. We can help sort out whether workers' compensation is the full picture or whether a separate third-party wrongful death claim needs to be preserved before evidence is lost.

Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC · 6771 Taylor Circle, Montgomery, AL 36117 · (334) 834-3444

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