When You Need a Bus Accident Lawyer in Vancouver – Call 604-318-3838

**If you’ve been injured in the recent Greyhound bus accident on January 14th, 2016 on Highway 97 – CLICK HERE**

Everyday people step on buses or entrust their children to ride on school buses and an accident is the last thing one expect to occur or suddenly having to contact a bus accident lawyer in Vancouver for help with their injury claims. But they unfortunately do happen for a variety of reasons including: the bus driver being in a hurry trying to meet a schedule (set by his/her employer), driver fatigue (owing to scheduling), carelessness or distracted driving, poor or hazardous road conditions or poor and negligent maintenance of the bus or owing to the poor mechanical condition of the bus. Sometimes bus accident injuries occur without the occurrence of an actual collision.

The typical example is a transit accident on a full bus where the bus driver unnecessarily jams on his brakes resulting in passengers shifting and often falling. Bus drivers do not like to take responsibility for these types of incidents as same may affect their employment record. In British Columbia thankfully the law suggests that those who are transporting passengers (for money) have a special duty of care to those passengers that is over and above that where one is simply riding as a passenger in a motor vehicle making it easier to sue bus drivers, the companies that own the buses and the agents that maintain them. Bus companies and their insurers however know this and thus try and largely attempt to minimize the damages from the get go. Thus when bus accidents occur the company that owns the bus (or their insurers) have a specific company protocol to follow. In serious accident they will often send their adjusters straight to the accident scene in order to intercept the passengers.

The bus company’s insurers wants to minimize the damage done NOT help you. They collect data, witness statements and information from the drivers, passengers and witnesses that will favour THEIR case NOT yours. Often times the bus companies will through their quick accident protocol attempt to detail the nature of the injuries of the passengers as “minor” or non-existent when same is not the case.

In bus accidents that occur without an actual collision (ie. the bus driver slamming on his brakes resulting in load and passenger shift) the bus companies will often remove the bus passenger from the bus quickly so that the bus can get on its way. He will call the transit supervisor who will attend and deal with the injured party. This protocol has the affect of separating the injured party from the passengers on the bus who might have witnessed the incident. In these such cases the loss of crucial witnesses can have a severely negative effect on case outcomes.

Also by their very nature bus accidents are complicated as bus companies are often owned by companies outside the province or insured by companies other than ICBC. The bus passengers are often from faraway places and are therefore unfamiliar with the laws that pertain to the location of the accident. In different jurisdictions (provinces) different rules will apply and different limitation periods regarding the reporting and commencement of legal claims for injuries. For instance, where buses are owned by government institutions in British Columbia a six month limitation period will apply as opposed to the regular two year limitation period.

When bus accidents occur often times the effects are catastrophic on the bus passenger, their family or dependents. The injuries that result in school bus accidents or public transit bus accidents are more often than not serious (and often life-ending). One of the reasons for that is the lack of safety belts in these buses, especially school buses. Commercial carriers often choose not to install safety equipment owing to the cost regarding same. The failure to take necessary safety precautions can result in extra damages in a court of law against such companies.

When bus accidents happen, whether they are school bus accidents, commercial bus accidents, long-haul bus accidents or public transit the victims of these accidents need an experienced bus accident lawyer who knows the intricacies of this complex area of law as different legal factors are usually at play.

For more information on bus accidents and traffic collisions, please visit this link.

What to do if you are injured in a bus accident even if there is no collision:

If you are injured in a bus accident, even if there is no collision, you should:

Immediately advise the bus operator of same and ask that he report the accident to his superiors and to the police;
Attempt to secure all information from the bus operator including his identity, the bus number, any other information or identification of the actual bus including route number, license plate number, etc.
Find out whether there is audio or video recording equipment in the bus and ask the operator and his supervisor that such recordings be saved for later production;
Ask the bus operator to record the incident as they often have recording devices in the bus;
Ask to obtain immediate medical help – do not simply accept the basic medical help or assurances of bus employees or their medical officers;
Attempt to secure names and contact telephone numbers for any persons on the bus that may have witnessed the incident,
Seek out proper medical attention through EHS and a hospital visit and follow that up with whatever medical appointment you deem necessary with a qualified medical professional;
Call our lawyer at 604-318-3838 for further information.

Our Vancouver personal injury lawyer has dealt with many bus tragedies including school bus accidents, school bus roll-overs, Greyhound bus accidents, Coast mountain bus accidents, injuries occurring to passengers who attempt to board a bus and even injuries which occur to passengers riding on a bus where a collision does not actually even occur.

Jamie Butler is an experienced lawyer who has acted as counsel in cases in bus accident injury cases where the injuries claimed range from minor whiplash to serious head injuries. Jamie Butler has taken on many bus accident injury cases which have been turned away by other lawyers owing to the complicated nature of the case. He has secured victory and enormous settlements for his clients in many of these such cases.

Throughout his legal career Jamie Butler has personally conducted close to 1000 trials as lead counsel. That means he knows the inside and outside of a courtroom. He has had plenty of success INSIDE the courthouse for his clients and that means that the insurance companies should all be aware that it would be best to deal with him by offering his injured clients (or families of the deceased) fair settlements OUTSIDE the courtroom. It is often said that the best defence is a great offence! Our personal injury lawyer, Jamie Butler is that great offence. He will work hard for those injured in bus accidents, car or truck injuries to obtain the best result outside of court but if push comes to shove he will be there to present your case in the best possible light inside a courtroom to a judge or jury.

What we do for you from beginning to end:
Remember Jamie Butler can help you every step of the way. In order to maximize your compensation entitlement and leave no stone unturned he will:

Meet you after the mva at a place convenient to you – YES he does hospital visits or home visits;
Have an interpreter available for you to speak with him in your native tongue;
Hire accident scene investigators to take photos and witness statements regarding the mva;
Where necessary, hire reconstruction engineers who obtain accident data from the police and accident scene to present in court (for example CLICK HERE: watch video from reconstruction engineers);
Contact the insurance companies and deal with their representatives for you;
Obtain and submit the appropriate documents to commence and prosecute your claim;
Help you organize your medical recovery by guiding you in your choice of treating medical professionals and obtaining funding from ICBC for medical treatment;
Obtain and schedule referrals for medical assessments with renown medical experts who can testify for you in court if necessary;
Arrange all other necessary experts (including medical and actuarial experts) to present evidence in court;
Commence your legal action and prosecute it fully using the most advanced and high tech means possible;
Help you prepare for all legal steps including examination for discoveries, mediations and/or trials;
Conduct all mediations, trials or settlement negotiations;
Bring your claim to a successful conclusion usually by settlement but by trial if absolutely necessary;
Help with any post-trial issues you may have including arranging experts who are versed in structure settlements in order to deal with post-trial settlement in the best financial manner possible for you.

Remember this: Do not settle for less than the best as there is no second best in the courtroom.

Call us at 604-318-3838 (24 hours and 7 days a week) and we can arrange a FREE LEGAL CONSULTATION regarding your bus accident injuries. We also offer a FREE LEGAL EVALUATION of your bus accident case by your sending us a brief written description of your bus accident by CLICKING HERE.