Bus Accident Attorney in Park Hills, MO

Bus Accident Attorney in Park Hills, MO. If you or someone you care about has been injured in a catastrophic bus accident, take control of 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 frequently be similarly hazardous and fatal. In 2020, there were 964 bus accidents in Missouri that resulted in personal injury or death. We trust Park Hills, MO bus drivers and bus companies to keep us safe and follow the rules. When they break that trust and disregard the rules it can have terrible, sometimes lifelong outcomes for you or your loved ones. Your Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will make sure that you get the best possible compensation that you are entitled to for your damages.

At Burger Law, our bus accident attorney team has more than 20 years of experience fighting for the rights of the injured in Park Hills and throughout Missouri and fighting back against bullies like dishonest insurance companies and people who egotistically do not want to be held responsible for their negligent behavior. Many Park Hills, MO residents have put their claims and their futures in our trustworthy hands, and in total we have gotten them over $175 million in verdicts and settlements. Our bus accident attorney team uses their hard work, dedication, persistence, knowledge and experience to help right wrongs in personal injury cases and help Park Hills, MO residents heal. You should not have to lose wages, pay for sky-high medical bills and also handle the emotional shock of your injury just because another person broke the rules. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a Park Hills, MO bus accident, call the bus accident attorney of Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online for a free consultation. We start working on your claim at once, and you do not owe us any fees until we win your case.

If you were injured in a bus accident in Park Hills, MO because of someone else's negligent actions, find out how much your injury may be worth by using our personal injury calculator.

Do I Need a Park Hills, MO Bus Accident Attorney?

If you were caused injuries in a bus accident, you are likely feeling especially unshielded. After all, you were not the driver and you got on the bus assuming that the correct safety arrangements were obeyed. Park Hills, MO bus companies and drivers have stringent regulations they have an obligation to respect, but sometimes they fail in those duties and they leave us to pick up the pieces. Because of the force that is often exerted by bus accidents, injuries can take years to fully heal from, may have permanent consequences or in the most tragic cases can even result in wrongful death. The Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will stand by your side so you do not have to go it alone. When you hire us we begin investigating on your case at once, and work relentlessly until you receive the maximum compensation you deserve. We have made a claim for every type of bus accident claim and know every trick insurance companies use to try and defraud injured Park Hills, MO individuals and families into settling for less compensation than they are owed. Those Park Hills, MO insurance companies fear us because they know our bus accident attorney team takes up – and wins – the difficult cases. Call us today and let the compassionate, veteran and relentless bus accident lawyers at Burger Law help you safeguard your family’s future and help make you whole again.

Legal procedures are complex and can be unforgiving to Park Hills, MO residents who do not have the litigation and trial experience of an accomplished bus accident attorney. We have over 20 years of experience fighting back against bullies and fighting the hard fight. When you hire our Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney team, we handle every facet of your case. You can anticipate a seasoned and talented bus accident attorney at Burger Law to:

• Investigate the crash site as soon as possible. When you call us, we can have a bus accident lawyer on the scene at any time during the day or night in order to secure important evidence for your case.
• Interview eyewitnesses who were either also involved in the crash or were close by. As buses carry a lot of passengers, there are almost always other passengers who want the same answers and compensation you do. Eyewitness testimony is a vital part of proving your case.
• Obtain additional evidence such as tire marks, surveillance videos, police reports, and important details such as how long the driver had driven that day or when the last inspection and maintenance was conducted on the bus. Many different factors play a part in bus accidents, and your Burger Law Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney will discover why the crash happened and who needs to be held liable.
• Utilize our network of Park Hills, MO crash and medical experts to determine negligence for your bus accident injuries and compute exactly how much your injuries are worth. You deserve every dime of what you are entitled to and we will implement our experience and expertise to make certain you receive it.
• Stand up to resistant Park Hills, MO insurance companies who care more about their bottom line than your well-being. We have seen every trick in the book that insurance companies use to try and avoid their duty to compensate you. When you hire us, you can be sure those tricks will not work in your case.
• Take your case to trial if the insurance company refuses to offer a fair settlement, we will use our constantly trained litigation skills to win you a full financial recovery for your injuries.

Furthermore, our bus accident attorney team will be in your corner whole time. We oversee all communication, documentation and litigation so that you can focus all of your energy on healing and making your family whole again. We collect no attorneys fees until we win your case. If you or a loved one has been harmed in a disastrous bus accident, contact an expert and dedicated bus accident attorney at Burger Law today.

Who is Liable for My Bus Accident Injuries?

Since it takes so many people to operate a bus safely, from manufacturers, to bus companies to drivers, you will first need to learn the cause of the accident before determining who was negligent. Fortunately, an accomplished and skilled Park Hills, 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 what entity needs to be held responsible for your injuries.

What Causes Bus Accidents? | Park Hills, MO Bus Accident Attorney

• The age of the driver and their experience. A 2012 Journal of Safety Research study found that beginner drivers under the age of 25, as well as more experienced drivers over the age of 55 were more likely to be driving when a bus accident happened.
• Driver error. While the same study found that only 4 percent of bus accidents were owing to a grave 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 accidents had been cited with driving errors, for instance, speeding, being sleepy or distracted driving.
• Driver fatigue. Many bus drivers, particularly the ones that are employed by commercial bus lines such as Greyhound that require drivers to drive hundreds of miles in the middle of the night, become fatigued and can even fall asleep at the wheel. While most busing companies have rules about how many hours a driver can drive during a day or how frequently they have to take a break, those regulations 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 obeyed.
• Road conditions. Given buses’ size and the difficulty of maneuvering them, slick roads or Park Hills, MO construction areas can be especially risky for bus commuters. Occasionally a third party such as a construction company is negligent. Burger Law's bus accident attorney will help you determine if that applies case.
• Negligence by the bus company. Bus companies are regulated, but much less than 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 inspections of over 765,000 motor carriers, or only 1.15 inspectors per 1,000 motor carriers. This means reviews typically cannot stay ahead of the number of inspections required. Some Park Hills, MO bus companies do not adequately repair their vehicles, causing them to be less safe. Furthermore, bus companies need to ensure that their drivers are correctly trained and are not overworked.
• Dangerous roads. Faults in the road and road conditions can cause a driver to lose control and crash. Some common examples are:
  • Potholes
  • Uneven pavement or cracks in the pavement
  • Faulty or missing traffic lights
  • Obstacles on the road, such as branches or vehicle wreckage
  • Poor lighting
  • Excessive grades

  The more time the hazardous condition has been on the Park Hills, MO street, the better chance you have of holding the at-fault parties responsible. The negligent party may be a local Park Hills, MO government, or a third party whom the government hired to repair the problem but either did not do so in a timely fashion or did not properly repair it.

Once your experienced Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney establishes the reasons for your wreck, they will be able to confirm who is liable for your injuries and how to take the next steps toward securing you a maximum financial recovery. Below are some examples of parties who are generally found at-fault in bus accident claims.

Commercial Bus Lines

Transportation buses such as Greyhounds are considered common carriers under the law, which means they have a duty of care to their customers to maintain their safety. One aspect of that duty of care is to make sure that their drivers are not driving too many miles without a break. In despite of insisting that safety is their foremost priority, a CNN report in 2016 found that Greyhound is not obeying its own rules when it comes to driver fatigue. Drivers are theoretically required to stop every 150 miles and get out to inspect the bus to prevent sleepiness. However, the rule is not enforced and is rarely obeyed as too many breaks could lead to financial losses for the company. A 2012 government study found that 37 percent of all passenger bus crashes were owing to driver fatigue. Furthermore, many Greyhound passengers have stated that their driver was eating when the crash transpired, which is an example of distracted driving.

Making sure that Park Hills, MO buses are properly inspected and maintained and that safety equipment such as seatbelts are present and up-to-date are also the responsibility of the bus company. A bus accident may be a consequence of a bus company either neglecting to provide routine inspections or neglecting to repair a broken part or component. Older buses are particularly predisposed to breaking down and bus companies must keep their fleets updated.

Finally, bus companies need to be mindful 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 Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will carry out a complete investigation into the bus company's hiring practices and the person who was driving when the wreck happened.

A Bus Manufacturer

Like car and other motor vehicle manufacturers, bus manufacturers have a duty to ensure the safety of their vehicles and quickly issue recalls if a product is discovered to be unsafe. If they approve an inherently unsafe 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 attempt to place the blame on somebody else, your Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law has over 20 years of experience making sure at-fault parties are held responsible for their actions.

The Park Hills or Missouri Government or a Public Entity

Public transportation accidents can often be disastrous because of the number of people involved and because they typically take place in metropolitan areas. While you can file a suit against the Park Hills, MO government, there are particular procedures for doing so. Missouri has sovereign immunities for governmental entities and government employees than for the average citizen in injury liability claims. If you want to file a suit against a municipality or government employee, you must file it within 90 days of the accident with the Office of Administration’s Risk Management Division. That is why it is urgent to reach out to a Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney straight away after your injury. 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 a negligent or thoughtless public bus driver in Missouri.

The Bus Driver

Even a properly licensed and trained bus driver can cause a wreck due to driver error. If they became distracted by eating or texting, did not stop driving when they were feeling fatigued, did not pay attention to the Park Hills, MO road conditions and driving laws while they were driving or made the terrible decision to drive drunk, they need to be held responsible just like their employers sometimes have to be. When you ascend a bus you trust that driver with your health and your life. If a bus driver does not take that obligation seriously 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 collision, two or more drivers are frequently involved, and in some instances they each may share a portion of the blame. Another driver’s negligence, such as speeding, driving while intoxicated or pulling in front of the bus too quickly can injure you. If you were harmed in a bus wreck where there was another driver or drivers involved, your talented and experienced Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney will help you determine if they are at fault and if you should make a claim against their insurance company.

School Districts

School bus accidents are the the type of bus accident we most typically see in Park Hills and Missouri. Nationally, school bus accidents account for 40 percent of all fatal bus wrecks. While often the driver, bus company or bus manufacturer is liable, a school district in Park Hills, MO may also be held accountable, for instance if they did not cancel school on a day when road conditions were especially poor or they did not carry out proper 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 Park Hills, MO Recover For Me?

The compensation you are awarded in a bus accident case will typically be based on the severity of your injuries and how they have impacted and will impact they have on your life. You may have received a mild concussion that merely needed a quick trip to an emergency room in Park Hills, MO and a short time off work. Or, you may have experienced a catastrophic 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 Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law, we will ensure that you secure a fair 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, rehabilitation, assistive devices and medications
  • Lost wages
  • Lost earning potential

  We work with our network of medical and economic experts to compute 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 grave your injuries and however much they have affected your life, Burger Law's Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney team will fight tirelessly to ensure that you collect full 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 Park Hills, MO Bus Accident Attorney Today

We have seen every sort of bus accident case and know the immense anguish and disastrous effect it can have on your and your family. Your Park Hills, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law is empathetic, accomplished, trustworthy and tenacious and will use every bit of the knowledge and abilities we have acquired over the past two decades to win you the the best possible recovery you are rightfully owed. If you or a loved one has been harmed in a bus accident, do not delay. Call Burger Law immediately at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a complimentary case review.