BIf you or a loved one were injured in a bus accident or were hit by a bus due to the negligence of the driver or the bus company you may be eligible to file a claim for monetary compensation. Bus accidents can leave victims with a wide variety of injuries, from minor bumps and bruises to a traumatic brain injury. Regardless of the damages suffered, victims of bus accidents, have every right to pursue legal action against the party responsible for their damages. Buses, often vastly outweigh standard four-door passenger sedans, and in most cases, bus passengers are left without seatbelts putting them at a further risk of injury. While every injured party has a right to file a bus accident lawsuit, these suits are incredibly difficult to settle without the assistance of a Bus accident lawyer. At Normandie Law Firm, our Tulare injury attorneys have expertise in bus accident cases filed against bus companies and bus drivers. If you have any questions after reading this article, please feel free to reach out to our law offices for a free consultation by one of our Tulare city legal advisors.
The City of Tulare
The city of focus in this article is the city of Tulare, located in the heart of the California Central Valley. An estimated 62,278 people live in the city, and it sits just miles away from the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Like most modern cities in America, Tulare has a wide variety of transit companies that ferry people through the city. Besides the public city transit in Tulare, there are also a variety of private bus charter companies that Tulare locals and visitors can use, like Tulare InterModal Express, and Charter Empire. All of these bus transit and charter companies are considered common carriers. A common carrier is defined as a person or company that offers transport services to goods or passengers on regular routes for a fixed fee. Common carriers are expected to offer a certain standard of safety to their passengers. If a common carrier fails to live up to this expectation, they could face truly damaging injury lawsuits. For example, if a bus is going too fast, and the passenger slips fall and hit their head against a seat, that injured passenger has every right to sue for the bus not living up to the expectation of all common carriers. However, when filing this kind of lawsuits can be somewhat tricky, which is why it is highly recommended that you seek legal representation from a lawyer to help you sue the bus company or bus driver for the injuries you have had to endure.
The Causes and Damages of Bus Accidents
As mentioned before, bus accidents can be far more damaging than accidents involving four-door personal passage sedans, or any other common private car. These buses, when filled with people or cargo can vastly outweigh personal use vehicles, and as such the force behind them is more likely to cause severe injuries. When filing a lawsuit against these common carriers, it is essential that you can both identify the damages suffered, and what caused the accident specifically. Listed below are some of the common causes of bus accidents and bus injuries:
- Bus striking another motor vehicle
- Bus Company Negligence
- Bus Driver Negligence
- Passenger slipping and falling on a bus
- A Bus striking another bus
- Bus Driver Fatigue
- Sudden Stops and Starts
- Blind Spots
- A lack of bus seatbelts
- Other Drivers
- Passenger hitting their head if the bus suddenly starts or stops
- Bus Fires
These are just some of the incidents that can cause bus accidents. When filing a suit against a bus driver or bus company it is vital that you can prove that the reason why the accident occurred is through negligent actions. One of the crucial aspects of proving this is being able to identify the injuries that you suffered. While bus accidents can result in any number of injuries, we’ve compiled a list of some of the more common injuries that can occur after a bus accident:
- Back and Neck Injuries: back and neck injuries can vary in severity from minor neck pain to serious damage such as dislocated spinal discs. In their more serious instances, back and neck injuries can prevent victims from returning to work and performing daily activities.
- Broken Bones: The force behind a collision with a bus or being hit by a bus can be truly devastating, so much so that the force can break bones. Broken bones often take a long time to heal, especially injuries like a broken pelvis, ribcage, or even hip. These injuries could prevent a victim from returning to work and their previous state of life immediately.
- Head Injuries: The force from a bus accident can cause severe head injuries that can result in prolonged seizures, and other life-threatening Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs). In some, more severe cases, victims can never fully recover from their damages.
- Internal Injuries: Internal bleeding to organs like the bladder, liver, kidneys, pancreas, and spleen can be challenging to treat, and in some cases can result in a case of wrongful death
- Lacerations: Often caused by broken glass and sharp metal, lacerations can be particularly painful and can leave massive scars that never heal entirely.
- Rib and Torso Injuries: The rib cage protects a multitude of the body’s vital organs, and when it breaks the whole system beneath is at risk of prolonged damage.
- Seat Belt Injuries: While seatbelts are put in place for protection, seat belts can cause injuries like whiplash which can be especially painful.
- Spinal Cord Injuries and Paralysis: The spinal cord is an incredibly sensitive part of the body and when damaged can lead to devastating nerve damage, and may result in paralysis.
While identifying the cause and the damages play a crucial part in any bus accident lawsuit, it is still a small part of a larger, more complicated legal process. For this reason, it is in your best interest that you seek legal representation from an attorney with experience in filing cases against bus companies and bus drivers. Having the right attorney by your side can make the difference between filing a successful claim for compensation and having your case dismissed from court entirely.
The Process of Filing A Suit
When bus accident victims from Tulare come into our law firm seeking assistance for their case, they often ask our Tulare bus accident lawyers a variety of questions regarding the best way they can seek compensation for their damages. While no one case is the same, we’ve compiled some of the questions our attorneys are frequently asked:
- Can I sue if I was injured as a passenger during a sudden stop?
- Can I sue if I was injured during a sudden start?
- Can I sue if I was injured as a pedestrian?
As mentioned prior, if you or a loved one were injured as a result of a bus accident, or were struck by a bus due to the negligent actions of the driver or bus company you have every right to seek legal representation for your damages. As common carriers, these parties are expected to provide a reasonably safe form of transportation. When this safety is neglected, the injured party can pursue legal action. However, it is crucial to identify whether or not you can effectively place liability on the bus driver or bus company. For instance, if you were injured in a sudden start or stop, but were not following the recommended safety protocols, it is incredibly unlikely that you will be able to sue for damages successfully. On the other hand, if a passenger slips and falls on a bus as a result of poor and hazardous conditions on the bus in question, that injured party has every right to file a bus passenger injury lawsuit against the bus driver responsible.
When filing these lawsuits, it is recommended that you take note of, and follow the statute of limitations that influence your case. The statute of limitations is the period an injured party has to bring their case to court. If that injured party fails to bring their case to court within the dictated time frame, they could find their case dismissed from court because they failed to follow the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations varies from state to state, and as such it is in your best interest that you seek assistance from an attorney familiar with how the statute of limitations influence cases in your state. For your reference, the statute of limitations in the State of California, dictate that if you were injured in a bus accident, you have two years to bring your case to court. There are also some exceptions to the statute of limitations that should be taken into account before filing your case. These exceptions are as follows:
- The Defendant was out of State for a period: If a defendant was absent from the state, the statute of limitations pauses until the defendant returns.
- The plaintiff is a minor: If the injured party is a minor, meaning below the age of 18, the statute of limitations does not run until the said minor turns 18.
- Mental incompetence of the plaintiff: If a plaintiff is judged as mentally incompetent during their injuries or the actions of the defendant, then the statute of limitations are paused throughout this incompetence.
- Death of the plaintiff: If a plaintiff dies before the statute of limitations runs its course, then a lawsuit can still be filed in the statute of limitations period. However, if six or fewer months remaining on the statute of limitations at the time of the plaintiff’s death, then the suit must be filed within six months of the plaintiff’s death.
- Plaintiff’s prison sentence: If a plaintiff is imprisoned, California law dictates that the statute of limitations is tolled until the plaintiff is released, or for two years whichever comes first.
- Plaintiff’s Military Service: If a plaintiff is serving in the military the statute of limitations is automatically tolled for the entire duration of the plaintiff’s service.
Another critical part of your case is collecting sufficient evidence. This evidence can take the form of photographs of the damages, security cam footage from the bus, and police reports detailing the incident. This evidence can then be used to prove a claim of negligence. Every successful claim of negligence requires that the following components are proven with supporting evidence:
- Duty: The plaintiff (injured or damaged party) must be able to show that the defendant (Common Carrier company or driver) owed a legal duty to the plaintiff under the particular circumstances of the case.
- Breach: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant breached said legal duty through specific actions or failure to act appropriately
- Causation: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant’s actions or lack thereof caused the plaintiff’s injuries
- Damages: The plaintiff must be able to show that they endured some specific damages. This can usually be shown through the presentation of medical records, a loss of wages, or a loss of potential income.
As mentioned prior, it is within every individual’s right to represent themselves in court, however, to better guarantee a positive outcome for your case, it is highly recommended that you seek legal representation from a Tulare law firm with experience in bus accidents.
How Normandie Law Firm
If you or a loved one have experienced damages as a result of a bus accident caused by the negligence or misconduct of a bus driver or company you may be eligible to file a claim for significant monetary compensation. However, it is highly recommended that you seek assistance from a Tulare law firm with experience in bus accident cases. At Normandie Law Firm, our well-versed bus accident attorneys are committed to ensuring all of our clients receive the resources they require to claim the compensation they deserve for their damages. Those who file a claim with our law firm can expect to find some if not all of the following damages compensable to them:
- All of you medical and hospitalization costs
- All of your future medical care and treatment
- A loss of income and loss of future earnings due to long-term recovery or permanent disability due to the accident
- Compensable economic damages include loss of property or damaged property.
- Compensable non-economic damages include emotional distress, trauma, PTSD resulting from the accident, pain and suffering and anxiety.
While our law firm is based near Tulare, our attorneys also practice in Oakland, San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, Orange County, Riverside, Fresno, and throughout the state of California.
Free Second Opinions
Other attorneys will sign you up for their firm but will disappear once your name is on the paper as they are busy signing up more cases. In these instances, their business is based more on volume and will attempt to sign up as many cases as possible. In turn, they will spend less time on cases resulting in severely reduced settlements. Our firm will not treat you like a number. We will be in communication with you throughout our lawsuit and will treat you like family. So if you already have an attorney don’t worry, we’ll give you a second review of your case 100% free of charge.
Zero Fee Guarantee-No Upfront Fees Ever
If you contact our law offices today, we can walk you through the complicated process of filing your claim completely free of charge. As a show this commitment to you and your case we offer our clients the benefits of a zero fee guarantee policy. Under our zero fee policy, all clients don’t pay for our services until their case is won. If you feel in need of a second opinion, second opinion case reviews are also free under this policy. Please, feel free to give us a call, and we can guide you down the path of receiving proper compensation for your damages.
