When an accident happens involving a bus, you may never even see it coming and have no time to physically prepare for the collision. You could easily be thrown from your seat and hurt yourself by crashing into something. What might have been an average or even boring commute to work is suddenly a day involving painful physical injuries and sitting in a hospital room. If you’re seriously harmed, you might even need emergency surgery. It only takes one moment and a simple mistake, but that mistake can lead to serious repercussions for bus passengers and others on the road.

If you are suffering after being involved in a Ventura bus accident, you probably have a million questions and worries keeping you up at night. The stress can even slow down your healing time if you can’t relax and rest. Of course, it can be difficult to relax when you’re concerned about medical expenses, lost time at work, and how your loved ones will manage without you at your best. This is when hiring an experienced and caring bus accident attorney in Ventura will benefit you. They will be able to take away the burden of dealing with insurance adjusters — who want nothing more than to protect the liable parties — so you can focus on getting healthy.

Our law firm offers a free consultation for anyone injured in a bus accident and their loved ones. You don’t have to wait; you can call us today. We would be glad to meet with you and will even come to the hospital if need be. Your recovery should be your priority. Let us make your case our responsibility.

What Steps Should You Take After Ventura Bus Accidents?

Perhaps you weren’t a passenger on the bus. Maybe you were driving on the road and collided with the bus, or perhaps you were on a bike or simply taking a walk. You absolutely can still file a legal claim. After getting everyone to safety and calling the ambulance if needed, the most important thing that you can do — whether you were on the bus or not — is to collect evidence. This is the most critical step that you can do immediately. If you are taken away by an ambulance, the police will gather this information for you. If you are not critically injured and have the ability to gather information, though, get as much as you can.

Take as many pictures as possible from as many angles as you can safely. You can video the road and show the skid marks and the state of the vehicles. The more detail, the better. The pictures that you take will be evidence that you can use in your claim in order to show who was at fault and the full extent of the damage. You also want to be able to get statements from witnesses — including bus passengers. If someone saw what happened and can help your case in any way, get their name and contact information. This can make all the difference when trying to prove that the driver or bus company was negligent.

Does the Bus Driver Have a Responsibility to Protect?

California has what is known as a common carrier law. This code exists for public transportation to follow in order to provide safe transportation for everyone. It’s essentially like a code of ethics. The driver must operate the bus in a safe manner, and the company that maintains the bus must ensure that the vehicle is safe. If either of these two parties fails to meet these responsibilities, they will be liable for any resulting injuries.

For example, if the driver of the bus is distracted by a phone or swerves into another lane of traffic without signaling, they would be liable for the resulting damage. Also, in instances where a school bus collides with an object or other vehicle due to a brake failure, personal injury attorneys in Ventura could likely hold bus companies responsible as well. In fact, the driver may not be at fault at all in such a situation. Such a complex legal matter requires an experienced law firm to delve into all the intricacies of the case. Contact Murphy & Murphy Law Offices for a free consultation today.

How to Get the Compensation You’re Entitled To

When you’re injured in a bus accident in Ventura, you may worry about what compensation you’re entitled to. The insurance companies probably don’t want to give you much. This is the case even when a minor car accident occurs, so when a bus collision causes detrimental damage, they no doubt want to avoid high settlements. Fortunately, a bus accident lawyer in Ventura can help you figure out what you may be entitled to. You might be hurting financially and feel like you have to take your first settlement offer to make ends meet, but going to trial might prove to be the best choice.

That’s because you may be entitled to more than just having your medical bills covered. You could also get compensation for:

• Future medical expenses
• Co-pays for doctor’s visits, procedures, and prescriptions
• Property damages to your car (if you were not a passenger on the bus)
• Lost wages
• Pain and suffering

If you have been seriously injured, these costs can really stack up. Being so hurt that you cannot work and have to take vacation time to heal — or even unpaid time off — can make all of the bills that are piling up even more of a burden. That is why you want an experienced Ventura bus accident lawyer that will get you all that you are entitled to. You don’t have to suffer financially because of someone else’s mistake on the road.

Common Types of Injuries in Bus Accidents

If you are lucky enough to walk away from a bus accident, you might only have suffered some minor bruising. That is usually the best-case scenario. That’s because injuries can get as bad as broken bones, internal organ damage, and in the worst instances, even death. In cases involving fatalities, a family member or loved one can seek legal advice and file a wrongful death lawsuit.

Even when everyone survives an accident, though, these injuries can take months to recover from. And although serious injuries are obviously troublesome, even minor damage to the body can interfere with your life. You shouldn’t have to face these difficulties on your own. Holding a bus driver or their employer responsible is essential if you want to be compensated for your losses.

Don’t hesitate to contact a bus accident law firm today.

A Bus Accident Lawyer in Ventura, CA Can Help Protect Your Rights

Only a Ventura bus accident lawyer can help ensure you receive fair compensation from the insurance companies — who will no doubt want to give you pennies on the dollar. Insurers will do everything in their power to make you accept an unfair settlement rather than make a personal injury claim. Their goal is to offer as little financial compensation as possible. When you have legal representation on your side, though, this becomes a much more difficult task for insurers. That’s why you should immediately look into bus accident lawyers in Ventura.

At Murphy & Murphy Law Offices, you’ll get representation with decades of experience. Whether you were a bus passenger, cyclist, pedestrian, or other individual injured due to a driver or bus company’s negligence, we’re here to help. You need a dedicated bus accident lawyer in Ventura on your side, and you need one that will offer a free consultation so you can better understand your rights before moving forward. That’s exactly what we offer. Contact us today at (805) 330-3393 to schedule your free case review.

Don’t allow a government or private bus company to trample on your rights. Let our law office handle the heavy lifting for you.