We get a lot of enquires from people who have been injured in an accident on a bus. Whether you have a claim or not can commonly come down to one simple question: was there a collision?
If there was a collision with another vehicle, you should have an excellent claim. The reason is because the fault should lie between either or both of the parties involved. Vehicles don’t just crash in to each other for no reason… not normally anyway. As such, someone, or both drivers, are at fault.
What if the collision was with a building, or a lamppost or other object? Well if the bus driver is at fault, you have a good chance of making a claim against the bus company. Essentially, as long as someone is at fault, and there is viable insurance to potentially claim from, we should be able to pursue a claim for you.
What if there wasn’t a collision? What if the driver slammed their brakes on unnecessarily, or manoeuvred a corner to fast, or pulled out before letting you sit down? These are three very common circumstances. I will quickly attempt to address each one on a very general basis:
Bus Driver Slams On Brakes
If the driver slammed their brakes on for no reason, you may have a claim. However, if they slammed their brakes on to avoid hitting a pedestrian who steps out in front of the bus, you would find it hard to claim as the pedestrian likely has no insurance or money to claim from. If they slammed their brakes on to avoid a collision with another vehicle, it could depend on who was the cause of the incident. If another vehicle has been the negligent one, you may have a claim against them; if you can get hold of their details!
Bus Driver Drives Round a Corner Too Fast
If this happens, you may have a claim against the bus driver. You would have to prove though that the driver did negotiate the turn in a manner which was unsafe, and this can be hard to prove. You should report any incident to the driver straight away, and take their details and report the matter to the company as well. It might be worth getting the details of other passengers who could act as witnesses for you. This scenario can be hard to prove.
Bus Driver Pulls off Before You Sit Down
There is not necessarily a duty on a driver to wait for a person to sit down. You are allowed to stand on a bus, and normally buses come equipped with rails and holds so you can be a standing passenger. Circumstances may dictate the possibility of a claim though – I would have thought a driver might wait for an elderly or less able’d person to seat themselves, as they may not be too steady on their feet. But, as I say, there is not a specific duty as such.
