Bus Accident Attorney in Oakville, MO

Bus Accident Attorney in Oakville, MO. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a catastrophic 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 get equal attention as plane or train crashes, even though the can often be equally as dangerous and deadly. In 2020, there were 964 bus accidents in Missouri that resulted in personal injury or death. We trust Oakville, 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 ruinous, sometimes lifelong outcomes for you or your loved ones. Your Oakville, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will make certain that you recover the full compensation that you are entitled to for your injuries.

At Burger Law, our bus accident attorney team has over 20 years of experience fighting for the rights of the injured in Oakville and throughout Missouri and pushing back against bullies like resistant insurance companies and people who egotistically do not want to be held responsible for their careless behavior. Our Oakville, MO clients have put their cases and their futures in our accomplished hands, and to date we have won them over $175 million in verdicts and settlements. Our bus accident attorney team uses their determination, dedication, resolution, knowledge and experience to help deliver justice in personal injury cases and help Oakville, MO residents heal. You should not have to lose work, pay for expensive medical bills and also work through the emotional shock of your injury just because someone else disregarded the rules. If you or a loved one has been injured in a Oakville, MO bus accident, call the bus accident attorney of Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online for a free case review. We begin working on your claim at once, and we do not charge any fees until we win your case.

If you were injured in a bus accident in Oakville, MO because of another person's careless actions, learn how much your claim may be worth by filling out our personal injury calculator.

Do I Need a Oakville, 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 board the bus assuming that the appropriate safety arrangements were followed. Oakville, MO bus companies and drivers have stringent laws they have a duty to obey, but sometimes they neglect those responsibilities 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 truly heal from, may have lifelong effects or in the most terrible cases can even cause wrongful death. The Oakville, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law will fight on your behalf so you do not need to go it alone. When you hire us we start investigating on your case right away, and work tirelessly until you receive the best possible compensation you are entitled to. We have seen every type of bus accident claim and know every trick insurance companies use to try and defraud injured Oakville, MO individuals and families into settling for a lower recovery than they deserve. Those Oakville, MO insurance companies fear us because they know our bus accident attorney team takes on – and wins – the hard cases. Call us today and let the empathetic, accomplished and relentless bus accident lawyers at Burger Law help you protect your family’s future and help make you whole again.

Legal procedures are complicated and can be unforgiving to Oakville, MO residents who do not have the litigation and trial capabilities 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 Oakville, MO bus accident attorney team, we oversee every detail of your case. You can bank on a veteran and knowledgeable 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 acquire vital evidence for your case.
• Interview eyewitnesses who were either also involved in the crash or were close by. As buses carry a variety of passengers, there are usually other passengers who want the same answers and financial recovery you need. Eyewitness testimony is a vital part of winning your case.
• Obtain further evidence such as tire marks, security footage, police reports, in additional to key details such as how far the driver had driven that day or when the last inspection and repairs were performed on the bus. Many different factors contribute to bus accidents, and your Burger Law Oakville, MO bus accident attorney will determine the "whys" of the accident and who needs to be held responsible.
• Work alongside our network of Oakville, MO auto wreck and medical experts to determine liability for your bus accident injuries and compute 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 make certain you get it.
• Fight back against resistant Oakville, MO insurance companies who are more interested in their profits than your well-being. 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 expert litigation skills to secure you a full financial recovery for your damages.

Additionally, our bus accident attorney team will be by your side the entire time. We take control of all communication, documentation and litigation so that you can focus all of your energy on healing and making your family whole again. We charge no attorneys fees until you are fairly compensated. If you or a loved one has been harmed in a ruinous bus accident, contact an expert and dedicated bus accident attorney at Burger Law today.

Who is Liable for My Bus Accident Injuries?

Because bus drivers, companies and manufacturers all have a part to play in running a bus safely you will first need to find out the cause of the accident before determining who is liable. Thankfully, an accomplished and skilled Oakville, 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 discover what entity needs to be held liable for your injuries.

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

• Driver age and experience. A 2012 Journal of Safety Research study found that novice drivers under 25 years old, in addition to more experienced drivers over 55 years old were more likely to be driving when a bus accident took place.
• Driver behavior. While the same study reported that only 4 percent of bus accidents were due to a serious offense such as drunk driving, another study by the University of Michigan reported that 31 percent of bus drivers in metropolitan area bus collisions had committed driving errors, for example, speeding, being sleepy or distracted driving.
• Driver fatigue. A lot of bus drivers, especially those that are employed by commercial bus companies 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 specifications about how many hours a driver can drive during a day or how often 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 enforced or obeyed.
• Road conditions. Given buses’ mass and the intricacy of driving them, slick roads or Oakville, MO construction areas can be especially risky for bus commuters. Occasionally a third party such as a construction company will be liable. 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 inspections of over 765,000 commercial motor vehicles, or just 1.15 inspectors per 1,000 motor carriers. This means inspectors frequently cannot stay ahead of the number of inspections required. Some Oakville, MO bus companies do not properly maintain their vehicles, causing them to be dangerous. Additionally, bus companies are obligated to make certain that their drivers are sufficiently trained and are not overworked.
• Dangerous roads. Faults in the road and road conditions can cause a driver to lose control and crash. A Few typical examples are:
  • Potholes
  • Cracked or uneven pavement
  • Faulty or missing traffic lights
  • Obstacles on the road, for instance branches or vehicle wreckage
  • Poor lighting
  • Excessive grades

  The longer the dangerous condition has been on the Oakville, MO street, the better chance you have of holding the negligent parties responsible. The negligent party may be a local Oakville, MO government, or a third party whom the government paid to eliminate the problem but either did not do so quickly enough or did not sufficiently repair it.

Once your talented Oakville, MO bus accident attorney confirm the cause of your wreck, they will be able to establish who is at-fault for your injuries and how to go forward with getting you full compensation. Below are some examples of parties who are frequently found negligent in bus accident claims.

Commercial Bus Companies

Transportation buses such as Greyhounds are deemed common carriers legally speaking, which means they have a duty of care to their riders to maintain their safety. One facet of that duty of care is to make certain that their drivers are not driving too many hours in a day. Despite insisting that safety is their top priority, a CNN report in 2016 found that Greyhound is not following its own rules in regards to driver fatigue. Drivers are technically obliged to stop every 150 miles and get out to inspect the bus to inhibit drowsiness. However, the rule is not enforced and is usually not followed 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 caused by driver fatigue. Moreover, many Greyhound customers have said that their driver was eating during the time of a crash, which is an example of distracted driving.

Making sure that Oakville, MO buses are properly inspected and repaired and that safety equipment such as seatbelts are present and up-to-date are also the responsibility of the bus company. A bus accident might be a consequence of a bus company either neglecting to carry out routine maintenance or neglecting to repair a broken part or component. Buses with more miles under their wheels are particularly vulnerable 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 properly licensed and trained, and should only be able to drive after passing strict background checks. Your Oakville, 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 wreck transpired.

A Bus Manufacturer

Like car and other motor vehicle manufacturers, bus manufacturers have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their products and swiftly issue recalls in the event of a malfunctioning product. 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 may attempt to place the blame on somebody else, your Oakville, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law has over 20 years of experience making sure liable parties are held accountable for their actions.

The Oakville or Missouri Government or a Public Entity

Public transportation accidents can often be disastrous because of the number of people involved and because they usually take place in metropolitan areas. While you can seek a financial recovery from the Oakville, MO government, there are special procedures for doing so. Missouri has stricter protections for governmental entities and government employees than for the average citizen in personal injury claims. If you want to make a claim 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 vital to call a Oakville, MO bus accident attorney immediately 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 operating a motor vehicle “within the course of their employment.” This means that you can sue or make a claim against a liable or careless public bus driver in Missouri.

The Bus Driver

Even a properly licensed and trained bus driver can cause a crash through driving mistakes. 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 Oakville, MO road conditions and driving laws while they were driving or made the foolish 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 safety 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 aggressive bus accident attorney at Burger Law will hold them responsible.

The Other Driver

Like any type of motor vehicle collision, two or more drivers are often involved, and in some cases they each may bear 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 hurt you. If you were injured in a bus wreck where there was another driver or drivers involved, your knowledgeable and veteran Oakville, MO bus accident attorney will help you ascertain if they are responsible and if you should make a claim against their insurance company.

School Districts

School bus accidents are the the kind of bus crash we most typically see in Oakville 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 Oakville, 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 conduct 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 Oakville, MO Recover For Me?

The compensation you are awarded in a bus accident case will generally depend on the severity of your injuries and how they have affected and will impact they have on your life. You may have sustained a sprained ankle that just needed a quick trip to an emergency room in Oakville, MO and a couple weeks off work. Or, you may have received 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 Oakville, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law, we will make certain that you receive 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 utilize 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 serious your injuries and however much they have affected your life, Burger Law's Oakville, MO bus accident attorney team will fight relentlessly to ensure that you collect maximum 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

Call Our Oakville, MO Bus Accident Attorney Today

We have seen every kind of bus accident case and know the incalculable anguish and ruinous effect it can have on your and your loved ones. Your Oakville, MO bus accident attorney at Burger Law is passionate, accomplished, straightforward and relentless and will use every bit of the knowledge and abilities we have obtained over the past two decades to get you the maximum recovery you rightfully deserve. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a bus accident, there is no time to wait. Call Burger Law immediately at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a free case evaluation.