At the Law Offices of Franks, Koenig & Neuwelt, we offer a free case review with an airport ground operations injury lawyer who handles serious-injury matters.
If you were hurt working the ramp in Fort Lauderdale, you already know what the public never sees: the vehicle traffic, the jet blast, the heat coming off the tarmac, and the pace that never slows for weather or fatigue. Now you’re injured, and the company that set that pace is questioning your claim. The bills arrive on schedule even when your paycheck doesn’t, and the adjuster assigned to your file works for the insurance company, not for you.
We represent injured workers and no one else, and we have for more than 20 years. Our Fort Lauderdale, FL airport ground operations injury lawyer can review your claim at no upfront cost and tell you what it should pay. We work on contingency, meaning we’ll receive a percentage of the final settlement or court award, but you’ll only pay if we win.
Airport Ground Operations Injury Lawyer Fort Lauderdale, FL
Our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyer represents the workers who keep aircraft moving on the ground: ramp agents, fuelers, marshallers, cabin cleaners, caterers, cargo handlers, and the mechanics who maintain the ground equipment. Most of their claims run through Florida’s workers’ compensation system, and many involve a second claim against an outside company that shares the crowded ramp.
Transportation incidents were the leading cause of Florida’s 284 fatal work injuries in 2024, and the ramp concentrates that exact risk: workers on foot surrounded by tugs, fuel trucks, and moving aircraft. OSHA’s airline industry guidance catalogs the hazards of apron work for good reason. Our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury attorney exists because those hazards produce injuries every week, and carriers underpay them just as often.
Types of Airport Ground Operations Injury Cases We Handle in Fort Lauderdale
Ground operations at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International run around the clock, staffed by airlines, ground handling contractors, fuel companies, and caterers working shoulder to shoulder. Every one of those jobs produces its own injuries, and we handle them all.
- Baggage handler injuries. Backs, shoulders, and knees worn down by thousands of lifts in cargo holds and bag rooms. These are the ramp’s most common claims and the ones carriers dismiss most quickly.
- Work-related truck accidents. Tugs, belt loaders, catering trucks, and fuel vehicles operating in tight quarters. When another company’s driver causes the injury, the case reaches beyond workers’ compensation.
- Struck-by and pushback accidents. Workers hit by vehicles, jet bridges, moving equipment, or shifting cargo containers. Ramp traffic gives no second chances, and these injuries tend to be severe.
- Ladder injuries at work. Falls while accessing aircraft holds, servicing equipment, or working maintenance stands. Hard tarmac turns a short fall into a serious one.
- Construction accidents. Terminal expansions and airfield projects put construction crews inside an already hazardous environment. These claims often involve multiple employers and contractors.
- Heat-related illnesses. South Florida tarmac heat is an occupational hazard in its own right. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke on the ramp are work injuries, not personal weaknesses.
- Hearing loss and noise injuries. Sustained jet engine exposure damages hearing over years. Gradual occupational injuries are compensable in Florida, though carriers rarely volunteer that.
- Chemical and fuel exposure. Jet fuel, hydraulic fluid, and solvents cause burns, respiratory harm, and eye injuries. Proving the exposure is the fight, and it is one we know.
Why Choose the Law Offices of Franks, Koenig & Neuwelt as My Airport Ground Operations Injury Lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, FL?
Attorneys Who Have Spent Their Careers on the Workers’ Side
Lissa Dorsey has spent every year of her practice, going back to 1999, representing injured workers. Her advocacy has drawn media attention, including news coverage of her client, a Florida Amazon delivery driver bitten by a rattlesnake on the job. She brings that same visibility and persistence to ground crew claims, and she serves clients in French and Haitian Creole as well as English.
David Schweiger has devoted his career to representing injured workers in disputes with insurance carriers, and the contested, complex claims in our office tend to land on his desk. Between them sit decades of the exact experience you want from a legal team. Our workers’ compensation lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, FL understands when your livelihood depends on the outcome.
Results in Serious Ramp-Type Injuries
Our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury attorneys have recovered millions of dollars for injured workers, including in the fall, vehicle, and exposure claims that define ground operations work:
- $2,450,000 for a worker who fell from a ladder
- $659,479 for a workplace struck-by accident
- $245,000 for a fall from height
- $200,000 for an eye injury from chemical exposure
We handle every airport ground operations injury case on contingency, with no upfront costs and no fee unless we recover for you.
Understanding Airport Ground Operations Injury Cases
Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Airport Ground Operations Injury Cases
Workers’ compensation in Florida is no-fault, so you do not need to prove anyone did anything wrong to receive benefits. If the injury arose out of the job, the claim covers:
- Medical benefits, including surgery, therapy, and prescriptions through authorized providers
- Temporary total disability checks while you cannot work at all
- Temporary partial disability payments when you return on restrictions at lower pay
- Impairment income benefits after a permanent rating
- Permanent total disability benefits for career-ending injuries
- Death benefits for the families of workers killed on the ramp
The ramp adds a second layer because airlines, handlers, fuelers, and caterers all share the same ground, the company that hurt you is frequently not the company that employs you. That opens a third-party negligence claim with damages workers’ compensation never pays, including pain and suffering. Our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury attorneys evaluate every ground operations case for both, because the difference in recovery can be substantial.
What Are Important Aspects of an Airport Ground Operations Injury Case?
Airport claims come with complications most workplaces never see. A few deserve attention from the start, which our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyers can help with.
- Employer identity. Staffing at the airport layers airlines over contractors over agencies, and your claim must name the right one. What an insurance adjuster legally can and cannot do also matters, because ramp workers get recorded statements requested constantly.
- Travel and multi-state work. Crews based in Fort Lauderdale get hurt in other cities, and work travel coverage questions follow. Workers who live and work in different states may have a choice of systems, and the choice affects the benefits.
- Reporting. Fla. Stat. § 440.185 gives you 30 days to notify your employer. On a ramp where everyone is in motion, a written report is the one that survives.
What Is the Airport Ground Operations Injury Case Timeline?
Claims often follow a predictable path, which our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyers can help you understand:
- Report the injury to your employer within 30 days
- The carrier accepts the claim and begins benefits, or denies it
- Authorized treatment continues while disability checks arrive
- Your doctor determines you have reached maximum medical improvement and assigns any impairment rating
- Disputes proceed by petition for benefits, generally due within two years under Fla. Stat. § 440.19, then mediation and a final hearing if needed
Third-party claims run on their own clock alongside the comp case. We track both from the first meeting, because a deadline missed on either side cannot be recovered.
What to Bring to Your Airport Ground Operations Injury Consultation
Come with whatever you have when you meet with our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyers. Airport employers control most of the records, and part of our job is obtaining them for the information we need.
- Any incident report, badge records, or shift documentation
- Medical records, imaging, and work-status notes
- Pay stubs from the 13 weeks before the injury, including overtime and shift differentials
- The names of your direct employer and the other companies working the area
- Anything the insurance carrier has sent you
Your consultation with our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyer is free. We will listen to what happened, sort out the employers and insurers involved, and give you an honest assessment of every avenue of recovery available.
Reach Out to the Law Offices of Franks, Koenig & Neuwelt to Schedule a Consultation
An injury on the ground shouldn’t put your family’s finances in a difficult predicament. Our consultations are free and confidential, and you owe no attorney fees unless we recover benefits or compensation for you. We will review your claim, answer every question you bring, and lay out what happens next before you leave. Our office represents injured ground crews in Fort Lauderdale and throughout the surrounding Broward County communities. Contact us online or by phone, and we will respond to schedule a time with our Fort Lauderdale airport ground operations injury lawyer.
