Bus Accident Attorney in Boone County, MO

Bus Accident Attorney in Boone County, MO. If you or a loved one has been harmed in a devastating bus accident, take control of your recovery by calling Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or by contacting us online.

Bus accidents rarely get equal attention as plane or train wrecks, even though the can frequently be just as dangerous and deadly. In 2020, there were 964 bus accidents in Missouri that resulted in personal injury or death. We trust Boone County, MO bus drivers and bus companies to maintain our safety and obey the rules. When they eschew their duty and disregard the rules it can have terrible, sometimes permanent outcomes for you or your loved ones. Your Boone County, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will make certain that you get the best possible compensation that you are owed for your damages.

At Burger Law, our bus accident attorney team has over two decades of experience defending the injured in Boone County and throughout Missouri and fighting back against bullies like dishonest insurance companies and people who egocentrically do not want to be held responsible for their careless actions. Many Boone County, MO individuals have put their claims and their futures in our knowledgeable hands, and to date we have secured for them over $175 million in verdicts and settlements. Our bus accident attorney team uses their determination, dedication, relentlessness, knowledge and experience to help deliver justice in personal injury cases and help Boone County, MO residents on their road to recovery. You should not have to lose wages, pay for extortionate medical costs and also manage the emotional toll of your injury only because another person disregarded the rules. If you or a family member has been hurt in a Boone County, MO bus accident, call the bus accident attorney of Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online for a free case evaluation. We get started on your claim right away, and we do not charge any fees until we win you the financial recovery you are owed.

If you were injured in a bus accident in Boone County, MO because of another person's reckless actions, find out how much your injury may be worth by using our personal injury calculator.

Do I Need a Boone County, MO Bus Accident Attorney?

If you have received injuries in a bus accident, we know you are feeling especially powerless. After all, you were not the driver and you boarded the bus presuming that the proper safety protocols were adhered to. Boone County, MO bus companies and drivers have firm regulations they have a duty to respect, but sometimes they fail in those duties and they leave us to pick up the pieces. Because of the force that is generally caused by bus accidents, injuries can take years to fully recover from, may have permanent consequences or in the most tragic cases can even cause wrongful death. The Boone County, 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 at once, and will not let up until you win the full compensation you are owed. We have made a claim for every type of bus accident injury and know every trick insurance companies use to try and deceive injured Boone County, MO individuals and families into accepting less compensation than they entitled to. Those Boone County, MO insurance companies fear us because they know our bus accident attorney team takes on – and wins – the complicated cases. Call us today and let the passionate, veteran and aggressive bus accident lawyers at Burger Law help you safeguard your family’s future and help make you whole again.

Legal procedures are convoluted and can be difficult to comprehend for Boone County, MO residents who do not have the litigation and trial abilities of an accomplished bus accident attorney. We have over two decades of experience standing up to bullies and fighting the hard cases. When you hire our Boone County, MO bus accident attorney team, we manage every aspect of your claim. You can expect an accomplished and talented bus accident attorney at Burger Law to:

• Investigate the accident site as soon as possible. When you call us, we can have a bus accident lawyer at the site at any time of the day or night in order to secure essential evidence for your claim.
• Interview eyewitnesses who were either also involved in the crash or were close by. As buses carry a variety of passengers, there are often a lot of people who want the same answers and compensation you need. Eyewitness testimony is a essential part of winning your case.
• Acquire further evidence such as tire marks, security footage, police reports, and key details such as how many miles the driver had driven that day or when the last inspection and repairs were conducted on the bus. Several different factors play a part in bus accidents, and your Burger Law Boone County, MO bus accident attorney will determine the "whys" of the accident and who needs to be held accountable.
• Work with our network of Boone County, MO auto wreck and medical experts to determine liability for your bus accident injuries and assess exactly how much your damages are worth. You deserve every dime of what you are owed and we will implement our know-how and expertise to ensure you collect it.
• Stand up to resistant Boone County, MO insurance companies who care more about their bottom line than your health. 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 ploys will not work in your case.
• Take your case in front of a judge and jury if the insurance company refuses to offer a fair settlement, we will use our finely honed 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 take control of 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 fully compensated. If you or someone you care about 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 requires so many people to operate a bus safely, from manufacturers, to bus companies to drivers, you will first need to find out the cause of the accident before determining who is liable. Thankfully, an accomplished and skilled Boone County, MO bus accident attorney like those at Burger Law have seen every category of car accident, truck accident and bus accident case and will be able to find out what entity is responsible for your injuries.

What Causes Bus Accidents? | Boone County, MO Bus Accident Attorney

• Driver age and experience. A 2012 Journal of Safety Research study found that recently licensed drivers under the age of 25, as well as more experienced drivers over 55 years old were more likely to be driving when a bus accident took place.
• Driver error. While the same study reported that just 4 percent of bus accidents were due to a serious offense such as the driver being intoxicated, another study by the University of Michigan stated that 31 percent of bus drivers in metropolitan area bus crashes had committed driving errors, for example, speeding, being drowsy or distracted driving.
• Driver fatigue. A large portion of bus drivers, particularly the ones that work for commercial bus lines such as Greyhound that require drivers to drive hundreds of miles at all hours of the day or night, become drowsy and can even fall asleep behind the wheel. While most busing companies have rules about how many hours a driver can drive during without a break 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’ weight and the difficulty of driving them, icy roads or Boone County, MO construction areas can be particularly risky 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 true in your case.
• Negligence by the bus company. Bus companies are overseen by regulatory entities, 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 inspectors responsible for reviews for over 765,000 trucks and buses, or just 1.15 inspectors per 1,000 motor carriers. This means inspectors typically cannot keep up with the number of inspections needed. Some Boone County, MO bus companies do not adequately maintain their vehicles, causing them to be less safe. Furthermore, bus companies are required to make sure that their drivers are correctly trained and do not drive too many hours without a break.
• Hazardous roads. Unsafe road conditions or hazards in the road can result in a driver losing control and causing an accident. Some typical examples are:
  • Potholes
  • Cracked or uneven pavement
  • Faulty or missing traffic signals
  • Obstacles on the road, for instance branches or vehicle wreckage
  • Inadequate lighting
  • Excessive grades

  The more time the dangerous condition has been on the Boone County, MO street, the better chance you have of holding the negligent parties responsible. The liable party may be a local Boone County, MO government, or a third party whom the government hired to repair the condition but either did not do so quickly enough or did not properly repair it.

Once your knowledgeable Boone County, MO bus accident attorney establishes the reasons for your accident, they will be able to determine who is responsible for your injuries and how to go forward with winning you maximum compensation. Below are some examples of parties who are generally found at-fault in bus accident claims.

Commercial Bus Lines

Transport buses such as Greyhounds are regarded as common carriers legally speaking, which means they have a duty of care to their passengers to look out for their safety. Part of that duty of care is to make sure that their drivers are not being overworked. Despite saying that safety is their utmost priority, a CNN report in 2016 found that Greyhound is not obeying its own rules when it comes 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 not often obeyed as too many breaks could cause financial losses for the company. A 2012 government study stated that 37 percent of all passenger bus crashes were owing to driver fatigue. Furthermore, many Greyhound customers have stated that their driver was eating during the time of an accident, which constitutes distracted driving.

Ensuring that Boone County, MO buses are correctly inspected and repaired and that safety equipment such as seatbelts are present and up-to-date are also part of the bus company's obligation. A bus accident may be because of a bus company either failing to provide routine maintenance or failing to repair a broken part or component. Older buses are especially susceptible to breaking down and bus companies need to keep their fleets updated.

Finally, bus companies need to be mindful in their hiring practices. All drivers need to be correctly licensed and trained, and should only be allowed to drive after passing stringent background checks. Your Boone County, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will carry out a full investigation into the bus company's hiring practices and the person who was driving when the crash occurred.

A Bus Manufacturer

Like car and other motor vehicle manufacturers, bus manufacturers have a responsibility to confirm the safety of their vehicles and immediately issue 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 properly, they are guilty of product liability. While they may try to shift the blame to somebody else, your Boone County, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law has over two decades of experience making sure negligent parties are held accountable for their actions.

The Boone County or Missouri Government or a Public Entity

Public transportation accidents can often be ruinous because of the number of people who could be injured and because they usually take place in metropolitan areas. While you can make a claim against the Boone County, MO government, there are specific procedures for doing so. Missouri has sovereign immunities for governmental entities and government employees than for the average citizen in tort claims. 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 essential to contact a Boone County, MO bus accident attorney immediately 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 a liable or thoughtless public bus driver in Missouri.

The Bus Driver

Even a properly licensed and trained bus driver can cause a crash due to driver error. If they became distracted by looking at the roadside or talking, did not stop the bus when they were feeling overly tired, did not pay attention to the Boone County, MO road conditions and driving laws while they were driving or made the dangerous decision to drive drunk, they need to be held responsible just like bus companies sometimes have to be. When you get on a bus you trust that driver with your health and your life. If a bus driver does not take that duty to heart and causes you injury, you can be certain that the dedicated and tenacious bus accident attorney at Burger Law will hold them accountable.

The Other Driver

Like any type of motor vehicle collision, there are often two or more drivers, and in some cases they each may be responsible for 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 harm you. If you were hurt in a bus accident where there was another driver or drivers involved, your talented and veteran Boone County, MO bus accident attorney will help you determine if they are responsible and if you can make a claim against their insurance company.

School Districts

School bus accidents are the most common type of bus crash in Boone County 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 liable, a school district in Boone County, MO may also be held responsible, for instance if they did not cancel school on a day when road conditions were especially bad or they did not carry out 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 Boone County, MO Recover For Me?

The compensation you receive in a bus accident case will usually depend on the gravity of your injuries and how they have affected and will affect they have on your life. You may have sustained a sprained ankle that merely needed a quick trip to an emergency room in Boone County, MO and a short time off work. Or, you may have sustained a catastrophic spinal cord injury that leaves you disabled and in need of assistive devices for the remainder of your life. When you hire a dedicated and accomplished Boone County, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law, we will make certain that you are awarded 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 use our team of medical and economic experts to quantify the exact dollar amount you are owed, 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 Boone County, MO bus accident attorney team will fight relentlessly to ensure that you receive full compensation for all of your damages.

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

• Survival Action Lawyer in Missouri
• Truck Crash Lawyers in Missouri
• Semi-Truck Accident Lawyer in Missouri

Call Our Boone County, MO Bus Accident Attorney Today

We have seen every sort of bus accident case and know the incalculable anguish and disastrous effect it can have on your and the people you care about. Your Boone County, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law is passionate, accomplished, honest and relentless and will use every bit of the knowledge and skills we have gained over the past two decades to get 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 case evaluation.