Bus accidents can cause serious injuries whether they involve charter buses, public transit buses, or even school buses. If you were a passenger on a bus when an accident occurred or you were hit by a bus, you could face expensive medical bills and time off work to deal with your injuries. All of this can also result in substantial pain and suffering.
Working with a lawyer can help you get the compensation you need for the injuries you suffered. If you try to get damages without a lawyer by filing through insurance and accepting what they offer, you will often be left with only a portion of your damages covered – or the insurance companies could deny your claim altogether.
Contact our bus accident attorneys at The Law Offices of David I. Fuchs, Injury & Accident Lawyer today by calling (954) 751-4258 for a free case assessment.
Who Can Sue for a Bus Accident in Port St. Lucie, FL
Bus accident insurance claims and lawsuits can be filed by anyone injured in a bus accident. Under Florida law, most people will be covered by no-fault insurance in a bus accident case, which might restrict your options and keep you from getting full compensation unless the injuries you faced qualify as “serious.” Nonetheless, there should be options for some kind of compensation – through insurance or through a lawsuit – for all of these potential injury victims:
The Bus Driver
Often, bus drivers are victims, too. If you were driving a bus when your vehicle was hit by another vehicle, you can often sue that driver for their mistakes. Often, bus accidents like these involve another driver who was drunk or operating an even larger vehicle like an 18-wheeler.
Another Driver
If you were hit by a bus while driving your car, then our bus accident lawyers can look into suing the bus driver and the company they work for on your behalf. This can help you recover compensation for vehicle repairs and other costs, but the focus should be on your injuries and recovery and the compensation you need to help with those things.
Bus Passengers
Passengers on a bus are often entitled to compensation through the bus company’s insurance. If the bus driver was at fault, then you could also be entitled to a lawsuit against them and their employer under some circumstances. If another driver hit the bus and caused the crash, then you could be entitled to a lawsuit against that driver, but the bus driver’s and bus company’s no-fault insurance policies should still cover you first.
Other Passengers
Passengers who were riding in a car when a bus hit them should be covered by their driver’s no-fault insurance first. However, the bus company also should have high-dollar insurance meant to cover injuries to passengers and other victims of a crash the bus driver causes.
Pedestrians and Cyclists
Pedestrians and cyclists hit by a bus should be entitled to a lawsuit to sue for injuries in many cases. Sometimes lawsuits and pain and suffering damages are limited by no-fault insurance rules, but pedestrians’ and cyclists’ injuries are often serious enough to qualify for all routes to compensation in a bus accident case.
Damages for Bus Accident Victims in Port St. Lucie, FL
Victims of bus accident injuries could be entitled to receive high-dollar compensation for their injuries. The damages that you can claim in your case will depend heavily on the specific facts of your case, such as what injuries you faced, what treatment was needed, and what effects those injuries had on your day-to-day life and well-being. Regardless, damages can often be claimed in the following areas:
Medical Bills
If the injuries were not your fault, then you should not have to pay for the medical care you needed because of them. The bus driver and the bus company (or the other driver if they were at fault) should cover these damages through their insurance, plus any out-of-pocket payments necessary to cover the full value of your medical care. However, getting that full value paid often means taking them to court instead of relying on insurance.
You should be entitled to payment for all medical bills related to the care you received for your bus accident injuries. This means covering hospital stays, any surgeries, and any other care in the hospital, but it also means covering follow-ups as well as physical, occupational, or mental health therapy appointments.
Lost Wages
If an injury leaves you out of work, then the wages you missed and earnings you will not receive going forward are the at-fault driver’s fault as well. Just like medical bills brought on by the crash, lost wages brought on by the crash should be paid by the defendant, too.
If you were out of work for a set period of time, then returned at your full salary, calculating lost wages is somewhat straightforward. However, if your injuries mean taking a lower salary, lower-paying job, or other reduced tasks for reduced pay, then you could be entitled to damages for the lost wages, as compared to your pre-injury wages. If you are permanently disabled, you could be entitled to claim compensation for the damages you will miss going forward, which are much harder to project. These calculations often require help from experts.
Pain and Suffering
Any damages not related to bills and expenses often fall into this general category. Pain and suffering and other non-economic damages like mental anguish are paid together as one amount and are not typically broken out into an itemized list. This means that calculations are similarly done based on the overall severity of your injury.
Often, a per-day rate can be assigned to your pain and suffering, then multiplied by the number of days you suffered. Alternatively, the rest of your damages can be totaled up, and then a multiple of those damages is paid based on how serious your injuries are. For example, two times your economic damages could be paid for a moderate injury but four times your economic damages could be paid for a seriously debilitating injury.
Contact Our Bus Accident Lawyers in Port St. Lucie Today
Call The Law Offices of David I. Fuchs, Injury & Accident Lawyer at (954) 751-4258 for a free case evaluation with our bus accident attorneys.