Generally, you are most likely to survive a bus crash if you are sitting toward the middle of the bus. This prevents injuries from other vehicles colliding with the front or the back of the bus. It is also a good idea to sit in the aisle seat as opposed to close to the window in the event that a vehicle collides with the middle of the bus. If you or a loved one was the victim of a bus accident, consider working with a personal injury attorney.
Louisiana School Bus Accident Lawyer
Louisiana School Bus Accident Attorney
School bus accidents happen much less often than other vehicle accidents, but their consequences can be more severe. Due to the large size of a school bus, collisions can lead to more injuries for other vehicles if they are involved in an accident with them. If the driver was not properly operating the vehicle or it was not being properly maintained, you might be able to recover damages with the help of a Louisiana school bus accident lawyer.
Navigating Uncertain Situations
At Murphy Law Firm, we understand how complicated an accident involving a school bus can be. There are often many different factors involved in each case, so we listen to the unique elements of every situation to make a thorough evaluation of our client’s claim. Our goal is to truly hear our clients and provide straightforward answers to their legal questions. We have decades of experience in holding other drivers accountable for vehicle accidents.
Why Do School Bus Accidents Happen?
There are many reasons for school bus accidents. Some of the more common causes include:
- Reckless Driving: Some drivers use negligent or dangerous tactics to pass buses on the road, including tailgating, speeding, and cutting them off in traffic. All these behaviors increase the odds of an accident, especially when you consider that a bus takes longer to stop or slow down due to its large size.
- Lane Departures: It takes additional care and diligence for a bus to stay in its lane in traffic. They have less margin for error than smaller vehicles on the road, especially in sharp turns.
- Driver Issues: If a driver is not properly trained or is inexperienced, they can be at a higher risk for accidents. This also applies to drivers who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol while they are operating a vehicle, leading to slower reaction times and nonsensical decisions.
- Vehicle Issues: A school district is usually responsible for properly maintaining its vehicles. If it does not do so, this can increase a school bus’s risk of an accident. Parts like tires, brakes, and engines are critical to maintain to ensure that the bus runs smoothly in traffic.
- External Factors: It can be more difficult to operate such a large vehicle when there are external factors involved, including harsh weather or heavy traffic. It can be more dangerous to drive a school bus through roads that are not properly maintained or are iced over due to frost.
If a collision with a school bus occurs, it’s important to call 911 as soon as possible for medical services. It is also a good idea to get law enforcement involved so that a police report is generated for your accident.
Why Do I Need an Attorney?
Any kind of claim for a vehicle accident can benefit from legal representation, but this is especially true with school bus accidents. This is because collisions with school buses often involve multiple parties and are usually more complicated to resolve than traditional car accidents. Additionally, filing a claim against a government entity usually requires additional items and different procedures than filing against a private driver.
Don’t let a large insurance company try to pressure you out of receiving enough compensation to cover your injuries. Working with a personal injury attorney in Louisiana can help you bargain effectively with insurance companies to make sure you are treated fairly in your school bus accident claim.
FAQs
What Should You Do If You Are in a School Bus Accident?
If you are involved in a school bus accident, first check and see if there are any injuries. Call 911 and ask emergency personnel as well as law enforcement to come to the scene. Next, request insurance and contact information from all the drivers who were involved in the accident. If you were injured, seek medical treatment as soon as possible after the accident. Then, contact a personal injury lawyer to review your case and inform you of the damages you could receive.
Who Is Liable for a School Bus Accident?
Who is liable in a school bus accident depends on the context of the situation. If a driver was not driving safely, then they might be liable for the accident. The school district that operates the buses could also be liable if it failed to train the bus driver properly. If the bus was not maintained properly, then the company that maintains and repairs the vehicle could be held liable for the accident. It’s possible that multiple parties could be held liable.
Would Seat Belts on a School Bus Prevent Bus Accidents?
There are no seatbelts on a school bus because these vehicles distribute the force from a collision differently from passenger vehicles, making them generally safer than most other vehicles on the road. Most seats on a school bus are created so that they absorb a lot of the impact of the collision, making seat belts on a school bus unnecessary in many cases. Most school buses are big enough to absorb the impact, but some smaller buses have seat belts.
Understand Your Rights
Accidents involving school buses are often more complicated than a standard car accident. There might be more individuals involved, making it more difficult to assign fault and determine damage amounts. This is why it is so important to contact a school bus accident attorney as soon as possible after a collision with a school bus. For assistance with your school bus accident claim, schedule a consultation with Murphy Law Firm today.
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