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Every day in Louisiana, buses carry people to many different locations in and around Alexandria. And tour buses race up and down I-49 to Shreveport, New Orleans, and other destinations. School buses, ATRANS buses, and charter buses make life easier for so many. They provide affordable transportation for many people and an environmentally smart solution. With only 0.14 deaths per billion miles, buses represent one of the safest forms of travel for short or long distances.
But each year, bus accidents happen – usually due to someone’s negligence – and cause serious injuries, property damage, and even fatalities, especially when these gigantic vehicles hit smaller passenger cars, SUVs, and trucks.
Highly experienced Alexandria bus accident attorney Chris J. Roy, Jr. helps bus accident victims recover full compensation when injured by accident-related negligence by the bus driver or trip scheduler or when a defective part causes the wreck.
Buses and trucks comprised just 11.9 percent of fatal crashes on United States roadways in 2015, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). With over 32,000 fatal crashes shared among all vehicles, less than 300 (257) died in a bus wreck. Of the 6.3 million nonfatal vehicle crashes that same year, only 4.02 percent involved at least one bus or large truck. The almost 890,000 buses registered in the U.S. in 2015 traveled a cumulative 16.2 billion miles. A further FMCSA breakdown of fatal bus crashes finds that:
Bus accidents are unique in a lot of ways. Some are owned by government entities, such as school districts or transportation authorities. When one of these buses is involved in a wreck, things can get complicated; it is not always possible to sue these entities, even when there has been negligence. Issues of driver training, bus manufacturing defects, maintenance issues, and other possible negligence must be investigated after a bus wreck in Alexandria, LA. Law enforcement investigates them only to detect criminal behavior, not for the purposes of civil liability. That falls to your car accident lawyer. Our investigations have uncovered inexperienced or elderly bus drivers who cause serious accidents, smartphone-induced distractions, impairment of the driver due to alcohol or drug consumption, and excessive drowsiness due to overwork and little rest.
Whether you were injured as a passenger, pedestrian, bicyclist, or the driver of another vehicle involved in a bus accident, you need an attorney who can thoroughly investigate the wreck, then present the strongest case possible to the bus company’s insurance company.
Bus companies – along with their insurers and attorneys – always aggressively defend claims brought against them by injured victims. They do everything possible to deny your rightful damage request – especially if you have no legal representation or are underrepresented by an inexperienced lawyer. Accidents with large vehicles are always worth more because they cause more serious injuries and greater property damage. And the higher the stakes, the more resistance injured plaintiffs encounter.
It’s important to get good legal advice before dealing with bus company insurers and lawyers. But here’s a better idea: Hire a seasoned bus wreck law firm and let them handle it. You just focus on getting well.
That’s a good question. Statistics don’t tell the whole story. One reason is that many bus crashes are either unreported or are not timely reported. Bus companies benefit from keeping their crash stats under wraps: fewer wrecks mean lower insurance premiums and those low numbers give the traveling public a false sense of security. If you or family members have been hurt in a bus wreck, whether you were a passenger, in another car, on a bicycle or motorcycle, or were a pedestrian, your injuries may justify filing a lawsuit against the bus company – and maybe others – to recover damages for medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering and other rightful compensation.
Chris J. Roy, Jr. APLC has decades of vehicle accident legal experience in Alexandria. He and his associates have the resources needed to prove your case and recover full and fair damages. A former state legislator who has been a practicing auto accident attorney for almost 30 years, Chris continues to protect and fight for the rights of victims of negligence in Alexandria, Pineville, and all of Central Louisiana. Contact him today at 318-487-9537 to arrange a free consultation. You pay only if Chris collects your rightful damages.
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