The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) defines a bus as any vehicle used to transport nine or more people. There are many different types of buses on the roadways. These buses include school buses, tour buses, airport shuttle buses, municipal transit, and so many more. Despite the number of buses on the roadway, bus accidents are not that common..
Unfortunately, when bus accidents do occur, they are likely catastrophic or cause catastrophic injuries. When you encounter a bus accident on a personal level, you need a bus accident lawyer who can get you the compensation you deserve. Firouzbakht Law Firm provides victims of bus accidents the legal representation needed for cases..
For the most part, buses offer a safe method of transportation. The passengers inside the bus are high enough off the ground that they are less vulnerable to direct impact. Even without safety features like seatbelts, buses exhibit a compartmentalization phenomenon that ensures each of the passengers is offered protection from the narrow spaces between the seats.
That is why when car accidents do occur, they can be devastating. There are factors that contribute to the unique circumstances of bus accidents. Buses have longer starting and stopping distances, creating risks that other vehicles don’t necessarily have. Bus drivers are often tasked with trying to stop on a dime, where there is nowhere for them to go.
Due to how a bus is constructed, these transportation vessels are much more likely to tip over on their side in an accident. Since the bus mass is larger and longer than the area around them, it is more likely for a bus to take out anything in its path during an accident. This puts pedestrians and other vehicles in direct danger during a bus accident.
The role of a bus accident attorney is to prove that the other party's negligence is what caused the victim's injury in the bus accident. There are four elements required to prove negligence and fault in a bus accident case – duty, breach, harm, and causation.
Everyone on the roadway has the responsibility and legal duty to drive safely, with regard to the written and basic safety laws of the road. If a bus driver breaches this duty and it is the direct cause of harm to another party, the negligent bus driver may be held liable for monetary compensation for damages. Some instances may even show that the bus companies are liable for the damages requested.
Negligence can be easy to prove in some cases. For example, suppose a bus driver runs a red light and crashes into an automobile. In that case, they can be found liable because they broke the law that led to the accident. Lawyers refer to this as negligence per se.
Other instances of negligence may be a little harder to prove that the defendant is liable in the accident. It will become the plaintiff's duty with the help of their legal counsel to prove that the defendant did not act in a manner that a "reasonable person" would act. The reasonable person standard is one that relies on legal precedent to define what is construed as reasonable behavior.
When injuries occur, they can take a toll on the livelihood of an individual. In fact, injuries can completely devastate families to the point they have to start all over due to tremendous loss. That is why a personal injury lawyer handles the insurance company, other legal counsel, and even bus companies to get the financial compensation that their clients deserve. When the negligent party is found at fault, accident victims get compensated.
Economic damages are the damages that can be measured in the lawsuit. The most common damages awarded in this category are medical bills, funeral costs, and lost wages. If there is a way to assign a quantifiable amount, it is considered economic damage.
Non-economic damages are the ones that a monetary amount cannot be easily assigned to. Things like pain and suffering and loss of livelihood may fall into this category. For those who end up totally disabled from a bus accident, an experienced bus accident and personal injury attorney, like Firouzbakht Law, will fight to get every compensatory penny owed to these victims..
Time is of the essence when you decide you want to file a bus accident claim. The statute of limitations for a bus accident victim is three years from when the accident occurred. If you wait until after that time to file a claim, all legal action may be quickly dismissed. To file your personal injury claim, you should ensure that you have a copy of the motor vehicle accident report.
The sooner you obtain legal counsel the sooner you can begin working on getting back to normal. Many of these cases end in settlement offers, but the insurance company will try to go for a lower amount than your economic damages are worth. Don't settle for less, when you can settle for more with the help of Firouzbakht Law Firm.
If you or a loved one has been injured or seriously affected by a bus accident, Firouzbakht Law Firm has the expertise that is specific to your case type. We always settle for the highest amounts and aren't afraid to take on the "too big to fail" companies. As always, you won't pay us unless we win your case.
