When you get behind the wheel, road safety is your first priority – especially if you’re transporting passengers. Naturally, when you step onto a bus, you expect the bus driver to have similar priorities regarding care and safety for you and the other passengers.
Most Renton bus drivers are professionals who take their passenger’s safety seriously. However, a driver’s distraction or negligence can easily cause an accident. Bus drivers don’t control many factors that could also cause harm, like the negligence of other drivers on the road, hidden defects in bus parts, or failures to perform necessary bus maintenance. When an accident causes injury, the hardworking Renton attorneys at Pendergast Law can help you determine what happened and hold negligent parties accountable for the harm they have caused.
Proving Fault After A Bus Accident
Each incident has a slightly different combination of causes. In some collisions, the injuries caused can be attributed to the negligence of one party, while in others, a failure on the part of multiple individuals or businesses may have jointly contributed to the harm. A few of the factors to consider in any bus accident when providing liability include the below:
- Driver behavior. As the person with immediate control of the bus, the driver has a duty to drive with reasonable care to avoid collisions. Distraction, fatigue, speeding and other bus driver behaviors can all cause a crash.
- Bus company actions. Bus companies are also directly responsible for the safety of the buses in their fleet, as well as for hiring qualified drivers who follow state and federal regulations regarding work hours, health checkups, and other matters. Bus companies that skimp on maintenance or fail to check drivers’ backgrounds may be setting up innocent passengers for serious harm.
- Maintenance acts – or failures to act. Like any vehicle, a bus needs proper maintenance in order to run safely and to respond as needed if the driver has to stop or swerve suddenly to avoid a crash. Maintenance that is not done correctly or that is not done at all can easily result in a bus that can’t avoid an accident.
- Manufacture and design of bus parts. A hidden defect in any part or piece of equipment on a bus may cause accidents or injuries if the part breaks or fails during use.
When Should I File A Bus Accident Claim?
In Washington, you have three years to file a personal injury claim after any personal injury accident, including bus accidents. The date on which this three-year “clock” begins to run depends on several factors, which may or may not exist in your specific case. Therefore, it’s very important to speak to a lawyer with experience in bus accident claims about your case and how the three-year “statute of limitations” will play out for you. An attorney can also help you pursue compensation in other ways, such as by filing an insurance claim or attending mediation.
Renton Bus Accident Lawyers With Experience That Gets Results
After a bus accident, your only priority should be recovering from your injuries. That’s why the experienced Renton car accident attorneys at Pendergast Law are passionate about helping injured people get the compensation they need. We’ll fight for you, so you can fight to get well. For a free, confidential consultation, contact us at 888-539-9211 today.