Bus Accident Attorney in Lamar, MO

Bus Accident Attorney in Lamar, MO. If you or a loved one has been harmed in a destructive bus accident, take the first step in your recovery by calling Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or by contacting us online.

Bus accidents almost never receive the same attention as plane or train crashes, even though the can oftentimes be similarly hazardous and deadly. In 2020, there were 964 bus accidents in Missouri that resulted in personal injury or death. We trust Lamar, MO bus drivers and bus companies to keep us safe and follow the rules. When they eschew their obligations and disregard the rules it can have ruinous, sometimes lifelong effects for you or the people you care about. Your Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will ensure that you collect the full compensation that you are entitled to for your injuries.

At Burger Law, our bus accident attorney team has more than 20 years of experience defending the injured in Lamar and throughout Missouri and standing up to bullies like dishonest insurance companies and people who selfishly do not want to be held accountable for their careless behavior. Our Lamar, MO clients have put their cases and their futures in our trustworthy hands, and in total we have secured for them over $175 million in verdicts and settlements. Our bus accident attorney team uses their hard work, commitment, resolution, knowledge and experience to help right wrongs in personal injury cases and help Lamar, MO residents on their road to recovery. You should not have to lose work, pay for ridiculous medical costs and also manage the emotional trauma of your injury only because another person broke the rules. If you or someone you care about has been hurt in a Lamar, MO bus accident, contact the bus accident attorney of Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online for a complimentary case review. We begin working on your case right away, and you do not owe us any fees until we win your case.

If you were injured in a bus accident in Lamar, MO because of somebody else's thoughtless actions, find out how much your damages may be worth by using our personal injury calculator.

Do I Need a Lamar, MO Bus Accident Attorney?

If you were caused injuries in a bus accident, you are likely feeling especially powerless. After all, you were not the driver and you got on the bus supposing that the correct safety protocols were adhered to. Lamar, MO bus companies and drivers have strict laws they are supposed to respect, but sometimes they neglect those obligations and they leave us to pick up the pieces. Because of the force that is frequently caused by bus accidents, injuries can take years to really heal from, may have lifelong effects or in the most terrible cases can even result in wrongful death. The Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will fight on your behalf so you are not required to face an uncertain future alone. When you hire us we get to work on on your case straight away, and work relentlessly until you are awarded the best possible compensation you deserve. We have made a claim for every type of bus accident injury and know every trick insurance companies use to try and defraud injured Lamar, MO individuals and families into settling for less money than they deserve. Those Lamar, MO insurance companies are afraid of us because they know our bus accident attorney team takes on – and wins – the complicated cases. Call us today and let the empathetic, accomplished and aggressive bus accident lawyers at Burger Law help you protect your family’s future and help make you whole again.

Legal procedures are complex and can be difficult to comprehend for Lamar, MO residents who do not have the litigation and trial skills of an accomplished bus accident attorney. We have more than 20 years of experience standing up to bullies and fighting the hard fight. When you hire our Lamar, MO bus accident attorney team, we oversee every aspect of your claim. You can bank on an accomplished and savvy bus accident attorney at Burger Law to:

• Investigate the crash site immediately. When you call us, we can have a bus accident lawyer on the scene at any time of the day or night in order to secure essential evidence for your case.
• Interview eyewitnesses who were either also experienced injuries in the crash or were close by. As buses carry multiple passengers, there are typically many people who want the same answers and compensation you seek. We will perform official depositions of eyewitnesses to help in your case.
• Collect further evidence such as tire marks, security videos, police reports, in additional to important details such as how many miles the driver had driven without taking a break or when the last inspection and repairs were done on the bus. Several different factors give rise to bus accidents, and your Burger Law Lamar, MO bus accident attorney will determine the "whys" of the crash and who needs to be held accountable.
• Work with our network of Lamar, MO accident and medical experts to determine liability for your bus accident injuries and calculate precisely how much your damages are worth. You deserve every dime of what you are owed and we will use our experience and expertise to make certain you get it.
• Fight back against resistant Lamar, MO insurance companies who are more interested in their bottom line than your health. We have seen every trick in the book that insurance companies use to try and avoid their obligation to compensate you. When you hire us, you can be sure those deceptive maneuvers will not work in your case.
• Take your case to trial if the insurance company will not offer a fair settlement, we will use our finely honed litigation skills to secure you a great financial recovery for your damages.

Furthermore, our bus accident attorney team will be by your side the whole time. We oversee all communication, documentation and litigation so that you can spend all of your energy on healing and making your family whole again. We collect no attorneys fees until you are fairly compensated. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a disastrous bus accident, contact an expert and devoted bus accident attorney at Burger Law today.

Who is Liable for My Bus Accident Injuries?

Because bus drivers, companies and manufacturers all have a role to play in operating a bus in a safe manner you will first need to determine the cause of the accident before determining who is liable. Thankfully, an accomplished and skilled Lamar, MO bus accident attorney like those at Burger Law have seen every type of car accident, truck accident and bus accident case and will be able to discover who needs to be held responsible for your injuries.

What Causes Bus Accidents? | Lamar, MO Bus Accident Attorney

• The age of the driver and their experience. A 2012 Journal of Safety Research study found that beginner drivers under 25 years old, in addition to more experienced drivers over the age of 55 were more likely to be driving when a bus accident happened.
• Driver action. While the same study found that just 4 percent of bus accidents were owing to a serious offense such as the driver being intoxicated, a different study by the University of Michigan stated that 31 percent of bus drivers in metropolitan area bus crashes had committed driving errors, such as speeding, being drowsy or distracted driving.
• Driver fatigue. A good deal of bus drivers, particularly the ones that work for commercial bus companies such as Greyhound that require drivers to drive hundreds of miles at all hours of the day or night, become sleepy and can even fall asleep at the wheel. While most busing companies have regulations about how many hours a driver can drive during a day or how frequently they have to take a break, those rules are often <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2016/05/23/us/greyhound-investigation/" target="_blank” rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener title="CNN"not obligated or complied with.
• Road conditions. Given buses’ size and the awkwardness of maneuvering them, icy roads or Lamar, MO construction areas can be particularly hazardous for bus riders. Occasionally a third party such as a construction company will be negligent. Burger Law's bus accident attorney will help you discover if that is the case.
• Negligence by the bus company. Bus companies are overseen by regulatory entities, but not nearly as much as other transportation industries. A 2011 study by the National Transportation Safety Board found that The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has only 878 personnel responsible for reviews for more than 765,000 motor carriers, or just 1.15 inspectors per 1,000 motor carriers. This means inspectors typically cannot stay ahead of the number of inspections needed. Some Lamar, MO bus companies do not correctly repair their vehicles, causing them to be dangerous. Additionally, bus companies need to ensure that their drivers are sufficiently trained and are not overworked.
• Hazardous roads. Hazards in the road and road conditions can cause a driver to lose control and crash. Some typical examples are:
  • Potholes
  • Uneven pavement or cracks in the pavement
  • Faulty or missing traffic lights
  • Obstacles on the road, for example branches or vehicle wreckage
  • Poor lighting
  • Excessive grades

  The longer the hazardous condition has been on the Lamar, MO street, the better chance you have of holding the at-fault parties accountable. The liable party may be a local Lamar, MO government, or a third party whom the government paid to eliminate the condition but either did not do so soon enough or did not correctly repair it.

Once your knowledgeable Lamar, MO bus accident attorney ascertains the cause of your wreck, they will be able to determine who is at-fault for your injuries and how to proceed with delivering you full compensation. Below are some examples of parties who are generally found negligent in bus accident cases.

Commercial Bus Companies

Transport buses such as Greyhounds are regarded as common carriers under the law, which means they have a duty of care to their riders to look out for their safety. One aspect of that duty of care is to make sure that their drivers are not being overworked. In despite of insisting that safety is their highest priority, a CNN report in 2016 found that Greyhound is not complying with its own rules in regards to driver fatigue. Drivers are theoretically obliged to stop every 150 miles and get out to inspect the bus to inhibit drowsiness. However, the rule is not enforced and is rarely obeyed as too many breaks could cause financial losses for the company. A 2012 government study reported that 37 percent of all passenger bus crashes were due to driver fatigue. Furthermore, many Greyhound riders have reported that their driver was eating during the time of an accident, which constitutes distracted driving.

Making sure that Lamar, MO buses are adequately inspected and maintained and that they have safety equipment such as seatbelts are also part of the bus company's duty. A bus accident may be a consequence of a bus company either neglecting to provide routine maintenance or neglecting to fix a broken part or component. Older buses are especially at risk of breaking down and bus companies need to keep their fleets updated.

Finally, bus companies need to be vigilant in their hiring practices. All drivers need to be sufficiently licensed and trained, and should only be allowed to drive after passing stringent background checks. Your Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will conduct a complete investigation into the bus company's hiring practices and the person who was driving when the accident transpired.

A Bus Manufacturer

Like car and other motor vehicle manufacturers, bus manufacturers have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their vehicles and immediately announce recalls in the event of a faulty product. If they approve an inherently defective design or do not recall a component that they knew or should have known was not functioning correctly, they are guilty of product liability. While they might try to shift the blame to somebody else, your Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law has over two decades of experience making sure negligent parties are held accountable for their actions.

The Lamar or Missouri Government or a Public Entity

Public transportation accidents can frequently be devastating because of the number of people involved and because they usually take place in densely populated areas. While you can seek a financial recovery from the Lamar, MO government, there are particular procedures for doing so. Missouri has stricter protections for governmental bodies and government employees than for the average citizen in injury liability suits. If you want to make a claim against a municipality or government employee, you must file it within 90 days of the injury with the Office of Administration’s Risk Management Division. That is why it is imperative to reach out to a Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at once after your accident. There is no time to wait, call the trusted Burger Law bus accident injury lawyers now at (314) 500-HURT.

Missouri Revised Statute §537.600 grants sovereign immunity to government entities and employees except against a government employee who was driving a motor vehicle “within the course of their employment.” This means that you can sue or make a claim against an at-fault or reckless public bus driver in Missouri.

The Bus Driver

Even a properly licensed and trained bus driver can cause a crash because of recklessness. If they became distracted by eating or talking, did not stop when they were feeling sleepy, did not pay attention to the Lamar, MO road conditions and driving laws while they were driving or made the horrible decision to drive drunk, they need to be held responsible just like bus companies sometimes have to be. When you go on board a bus you trust that driver with your well-being and your life. If a bus driver does not take that obligation to heart and causes you injury, you can be confident that the committed and relentless bus accident attorney at Burger Law will make them pay.

The Other Driver

Like any type of auto crash, there are often two or more drivers, and in some cases they each may bear a percentage of the blame. Another driver’s negligence, such as speeding, driving while intoxicated or pulling in front of the bus too quickly can harm you. If you were hurt in a bus accident where there was another driver or drivers involved, your talented and accomplished Lamar, MO bus accident attorney will help you ascertain if they are at fault and if you should make a claim against their insurance company.

School Districts

School bus accidents are the most common type of bus accident in Lamar and Missouri. Nationally, school bus accidents account for 40 percent of all fatal bus crashes. While often the driver, bus company or bus manufacturer is responsible, a school district in Lamar, MO may also be held responsible, for instance if they did not cancel school on a day when weather conditions were particularly bad or they did not perform sufficient background checks when hiring drivers.

Below are some helpful links and frequently asked questions for bus accident injuries and other types of injuries:

• Do I have to Talk to the Insurance Company Before I Talk to a Lawyer?
• How Much to Expect in an Auto Accident Settlement
• What Happens During Litigation?
• Does My Family Have a Wrongful Death Claim?
• Proving Negligence in a Personal Injury Claim

What Compensation Can A Bus Accident Attorney in Lamar, MO Recover For Me?

The compensation you get in a bus accident case will generally depend on the gravity of your injuries and the repercussions they have on your life. You may have gotten a sprained ankle that only needed a quick trip to an emergency room in Lamar, MO and a short time off work. Or, you may have experienced a disastrous spinal cord injury that leaves you disabled and in need of assistive devices for the rest of your life. When you hire a dedicated and accomplished Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law, we will make sure that you secure a great financial recovery for all of the pain and inconvenience your injury has caused and will continue to cause. Missouri Senate Bill 239 defines the damages you can receive as:

• Economic damages, including:
  • Medical expenses, such as hospital bills, physical therapy, assistive devices and medications
  • Lost wages
  • Lost earning capacity

  We work with our network of medical and economic experts to determine the exact dollar amount you are entitled to, accounting for inflation for future lost earning potential or future medical expenses.

• Noneconomic damages, including:
  • pain and suffering
  • mental anguish
  • inconvenience
  • physical impairment
  • disfigurement
  • loss of capacity to enjoy life
  • loss of consortium

However severe your injuries and however much they have affected your life, Burger Law's Lamar, MO bus accident attorney team will fight tirelessly to ensure that you get the best possible compensation for all of your damages.

Learn more about our various practice areas by clicking the links below:

• Truck Crash Lawyers in Missouri
• Semi-Truck Accident Lawyer in Missouri
• Car Accident Attorney in Missouri

Call Our Lamar, MO Bus Accident Attorney Today

We have seen every variety of bus accident case and know the incalculable pain and catastrophic effect it can have on your and your loved ones. Your Lamar, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law is passionate, accomplished, honest and determined and will use every bit of the knowledge and abilities we have obtained over the past 20 years to win you the the best possible recovery you are rightfully owed. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a bus accident, do not delay. Call Burger Law immediately at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a complimentary consultation.