Pallet Jack Injury at Retail Store Lawsuit Lawyer

Types of Pallet Jacks Used in Walmart, Warehouse Stores, Target, Lowes and Home Depot

There are manual and electric pallet jacks that are used the most frequently at Walmart, warehouse stores, Target, Lowes and Home Depot. The manual pallet jack is hand operated and use hydraulic springs to life the pallets up to 6 inches off the ground to move products around. The load capacity of the manual pallet jack is around 1,000 to 5,500 pounds. The electric pallet jack is a battery-powered pallet truck that can be used to walk with or have an end rider model. They usually can only handle around 4,500 pounds as a maximum load, and still also go up to 6 inches off the ground.

When picking up merchandise with a pallet jack, the merchandise will be stored on a wooden pallet. That is a storage section that is on a pallet with slats, and the merchandise is usually tapped around that pallet. The prongs of the pallet jack go under the pallet, push it off the ground a few inches, and allow it to be moved to where the product needs to go. When the pallet is in the proper place, it is lowered to the ground again. For example, a truck comes to a warehouse, and it will get unloaded using a pallet jack. Then the pallet jack will be used again to take the merchandise to the stock room. It will be used one more time to take the products out to the floor of the business where products are sold to the customers. Then the pallet jack will be taken back to the back room again to wait to start the whole process over again.

The fork length of the pallet is usually around 48 inches. If there are 12 inches in a foot, then 48 inches is exactly 4 feet long. The width of the pallet is around 25 inches, which is around two feet wide. Manual pallet jacks do not have brakes! For this reason, many accidents happen with manual pallet jacks. Electric pallets have disc brakes to help stop the pallet when it is veering off course.

Other Types of Pallet Trucks

There are other types of pallet trucks, of which many are specialized to certain industries, and not as prevalently seen every day by consumers at a store. The other types of pallet jacks or pallet trucks are:

• Paper-roll or reel pallet
• Stainless steel pallet
• Weighing scale pallet
• Rider pallet jack
• Center rider
• Scissor pallets
• Walkie straddle stacker
• All-terrain pallet jack
• Adjustable pallet jack
• Narrow pallet jack
• Mini pallet jack

A “walkie” pallet jack or pallet truck is just referenced to a pallet jack that someone walks behind to operate. The electrical pallet jacks are able to lift a load with the press of a button, and the worker is not dragging or pulling the pallet jack to where it needs to go. The electrical pallet jack is battery operated, and has more moving parts that can malfunction or wear out. It also has more motors, lower speed, and may be difficult to operate safely if the person is not properly trained on it.

Walmart Pallet Jack Accidents from Block Exits and Stairways

Any time that a pallet jack is used at Walmart, it needs to be used safely. It cannot block exits, stairwells and emergency equipment (fire hoses and extinguishers). It the pallet jack blocks these areas, then the person needing to use this equipment or stairwells in an emergency, will be injured by tripping over the pallet jack that was stored directly in the way. Similarly, the pallet jack should never be stored in an area where people can trip over this large piece of equipment. The tiller lever needs to be left stored in a raised position, or people could trip over it on the ground. If it is black it can bleed into the background if it is left as a hazard on the ground. A serious injury can be sustained if it is left dropped to the floor when stored.

Warehouse Store Pallet Jack Accident While Unloading a Delivery Truck

When unloading a delivery truck in a warehouse, it is necessary to ensure that the pallet jack is used as safely as possible. If the pallet jack is pushed into a delivery semi-tractor trailer to unload the truck, the pallet jack needs to be carefully brought in and out of that area. For example, if there is a space between the pallet jack and the dock sill, then there is an accident waiting to happen at that point. The dock plates and levelers need to be at the center of the pallet jack, and should stay at right angles to the edge of the dock! It is dangerous if the dock plates have a steep slope to them, as it will be extremely hazardous to traverse the space with a load of product or equipment on the pallet jack.

Target Pallet Jack Accident Exceeding the Maximum Weight of the Pallet Jack

Target operators of pallet jacks can have accidents, when they use the pallet jack and exceed the maximum weight of the equipment. The pallet jack must be used under the maximum weight that the pallet jack can take. This means that the pallet jack must never be overloaded. If the pallet jack is overloaded, the forklift will not lift and lower safely, causing injury to anyone in the area.

The pallet jack should never be overloaded on a lift gate. It should be loaded carefully on a lift gate of a truck, to avoid serious injuries. To safely load a pallet jack on a lift gate, the forks need to be lowered, the tiller lever needs to be rotated as far as it can go, and the steering wheels need to be locked into place to prevent the pallet jack from moving while it is being loaded. If these instructions are not carefully attended to, then there can be serious damages that will occur in the process of loading.

How Do Pallet Jack Accidents Happen at Lowes?

Pallet jack accidents can happen quite frequently at Lowes, and quite unexpectedly. People using a pallet jack at Lowes need to be trained on how to use it safely. When using a pallet jack, it is important to follow the safety tips that include:

• Never carrying extra riders on the pallet riding truck
• Making sure the forks are centered under the load for better balancing of the load
• Not overloading the truck
• Keeping the load stable while being pushed or pulled
• Using both forks evenly for lifting a load
• Pulling not pushing loads to improve maneuvering of the load
• Putting loads in a neutral position to not tire out the worker
• Never leaving pallet jacks unattended with a full load
• Keeping pallet jacks out of high customer traffic areas
• Keeping pallet jacks at a low speed to control the movement of the items being moved
• Understanding how to use the brakes on an electric pallet jack, or how to properly slow down a manual pallet jack

Home Depot Pallet Jack Accident

Pallet jack operators at the Home Depot can cause serious injuries to anyone who is in the way of the pallet jack. The operators need to be trained on safety issues to use a pallet jack, or other people may suffer injuries from the pallet jack, such as:

• fractures leg while using pallet jack, walking too fast in the warehouse
• fractures leg when pallet jack load falls on him and crushes left side of the body
• toes are amputated by an electric pallet jack negligently driven by an inexperienced operator
• fractures foot when caught between jack and rack
• worker falls from loading dock, and pallet jack falls on top of worker, instantly crushing him to death
• fractured ankle when struck by pallet jack sideways
• fractures leg while wrapping boxes on pallet jack, when pallet jack tips over suddenly
• fractures ankle when pinned by pallet jack
• thumb tip is struck by object knocked over by a pallet jack, and is amputated

If you have been injured by an operator using a pallet jack at a big box retail store, you need to give us a call right now. When you call us, you will have the opportunity to sit down with an attorney to discuss the winning strategy for your claim. We are here to initiate your lawsuit, to get you the recovery compensation that you need to pay your mounting medical bills. Just give us a call today.

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Can I Sue a Big Box Retail Store for Injuries from a Pallet Jack?

Yes, we can sue Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, Target or a warehouse store for any injuries that you sustain from being hurt by a pallet jack operator in those store environments. You can call us to talk about your case today. You can trust our Los Angeles case lawyers can file a lawsuit on your behalf, and get you the recovery compensation that you need in this case. We are here for you and are ready to talk to you about your case. When you give us a call, you will have access to our case attorneys in Los Angeles, who are ready to sue and get you the money you deserve in this case.

How Much Money Can I Receive If I Win My Claim?

If your lawsuit is successful, you could have grounds to recover monetary compensation for your injury claim. How much could you receive? Whether you file a pallet jack injury claim against a retail store or any other store including BJ’s Wholesale Club, Publix, TJ Maxx, Ross, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Save-A-Lot, Bass Pro, WinCo Foods, Sears,Walmart, Kroger, Walgreens, Costco, The Home Depot, CVS, Target, Lowe’s, Albertsons, Best Buy, Marshalls, Dollar General, ALDI, Macy’s, Dollar Tree, Trader Joes, Big Lot’s, Ralph’s, Ace Hardware, Shoprite, or Sam’s Club, you could be entitled to receive a significant injury based on the details surrounding you injury claim.

Unfortunately, there is no average settlement amount that can apply to all pallet jack injury claims because these claims are so different. Rather than trying to find an amount that covers every claim (which can be misleading), it is more effective to find amounts based on the severity of the case. Consider the following:

• The average value of cases with minor to moderate injuries range anywhere from $75,000 to $350,000, depending on the type and number of injuries.
• The average value of cases with more serious injuries can range from $350,000 to $750,000.
• The average value of cases with critical injuries that cause permanent harm or even death can sometimes reach and even surpass the $1 million mark.

It is important to note that case values are affected by the insurance policy limits that apply to the accident claim. For more information about the possible value of your pallet jack injury claim against a retail store, do not hesitate to seek legal assistance with the experts at our firm immediately. We are ready to help you recover the payout that you are owed.

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We want to hear from you if you are injured by a pallet jack being operated by someone in a Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, Target or a warehouse store. We understand that this is a confusing time for you, and that you need to heal for any injuries that you sustain from being hurt by a pallet jack operator. You can have a free consultation, with an attorney who cares about you and your recovery, when you give us a call now.