Experienced Seattle Personal Injury and Bus Accident Attorneys

Bus Accident Victim Representation by Top Seattle Lawyers

Seattle Bus Accident Lawyers Helping Define Liability

Buses are a regular part of our everyday traffic in Washington State, and they tend to come in all shapes and sizes. In addition to their variety, buses are also driven by different entities and are used for different purposes. Regardless of the differences, however, certain commonalities exist. The most prevalent is that bus accidents occur in WA regardless of the type of bus involved, and when they do you need the help of a Seattle bus accident lawyer.

Below you’ll find information regarding the different types of buses that exist, the different types of liability that can arise when these buses are involved in accidents and finally how you should proceed if you or someone you love has been harmed in a bus accident in the state of Washington and you need legal help.

Different Types of Buses Traveling Through Washington State

Although most would not think of it off-hand, there are several different types of buses that could be seen traveling around Seattle and Washington at any given time. Below is a breakdown of those different types and which party or entity is generally responsible for keeping passengers safe.

• Public buses – Public buses are those that tend to operate within a city. These buses run on regular schedules and are either operated by the city government or some off-shoot of the city government whose specific purpose is to manage the schedules, the maintenance and the staffing of drivers and others.

• Private buses – Private buses are those that tend to be hired for a particular purpose, such as those hired to travel to and from sporting events, concerts and the like. These buses are owned and operated by private companies.

• Tour buses – Tour buses are those that tend to travel to faraway places with a large group of passengers to sightsee and take part in other travel-related activities. Much like private buses, these vehicles are generally owned and operated by private companies.

• School buses – School buses are familiar to all of us, and their purpose is obvious. However, what’s less obvious is their ownership status. In certain cases, these vehicles are owned and operated by the school district, while others are privately owned and work with the school district on a contract basis.

• 15-passenger vans – These vehicles are typically rented by a party that wants to travel in a smaller group, and examples of their use include sports teams traveling to games or tournaments and student groups traveling to camp or some other activity. While a rental company generally owns these vans, the drivers of them typically must accept responsibility for them as long as they’re in use.

Different Forms of Liability for Bus Accidents in WA

Given the different types of ownership structures that exist with the different forms of buses, there are different types of liability involved when an accident occurs in terms of the identity of the defendant and the process involved with filing a proper legal claim. Below is a look at how this works for each of the different modes of transportation discussed above:

• Public buses – Since public, city buses are usually owned by the local government or some branch thereof, if someone is injured in a public bus accident in which the bus driver is negligent the proper defendant is that local government in some form or fashion. When filing a legal claim against a public entity, there are additional steps involved such as filing notice of intent to sue, but aside from the preliminary technicalities the lawsuit would proceed in a fashion similar to almost any other.

• Private buses – A private bus is privately owned, and legal claims filed by those who have been harmed in an private or charter bus accident would be filed against the company that owns the bus.

• Tour buses – A tour bus can be owned either by the touring company or by a bus company that’s contracted with the tour company to carry the passengers. Although it would usually mean that an accident would lead to liability for the touring company, the bus company could be named as a defendant as well depending on the facts that led to the tour bus accident.

• School buses – Once again, the proper defendants in a school bus accident lawsuit would depend on the facts of the case and the structure of ownership. If the school district owns the buses, it would be the defendant, but if a private company contracts with the school district, it could also be the defendant in a school bus accident case.

• 15-passenger vans – A van of this sort would be much like a rental car accident if such an incident occurred. This would likely mean that the driver of the van would be liable for damages if he or she was negligent to the point that it caused a passenger van accident with injuries.

If you or someone you love has been harmed in a bus accident of any type, you need to allow an experienced professional to handle the technicalities, as your legal rights remain the same regardless of the ownership structure. Contact the Seattle bus accident lawyers at Phillips Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.