Were you or a loved one severely injured from a bus? Check out these 3 bus accident injury tips, then contact our Buffalo attorneys today.
1) Choosing the Right Attorney
Initially, when you’re talking to an attorney regarding a bus accident claim, you should ask that attorney if they truly understand all of the idiosyncrasies associated with that type of claim. The no-fault law, with respect to bus accident cases, is very different. The other thing that’s extremely important is regarding the ability of a bus company to take statements in your case and many attorneys don’t understand the importance of these statements.
The NFTA would reach out to you immediately. Under our laws, they are entitled to a written statement prior to you commencing a claim. Those statements are typically done in a written format, where someone from the NFTA visits you and writes down responses to questions that they ask you. Those questions are tailored to assist the bus company, and the answers that you are providing to the individual are then written in an attempt to make it most helpful to the bus company. Your attorney needs to understand this. Your attorney needs to know that before anything gets signed, it has to be reviewed by the attorney extremely carefully because that document becomes one of the most important documents going forward.
To sum up, you need someone who’s done this before, who’s been involved in bus accident cases, and who understands how to handle the insurance company. To make sure that, from a no-fault standpoint, you have all of your injuries looked at and we know exactly what’s wrong with you before the case is resolved.
2) Insurance Settlements
I’m asked on a regular basis by potential clients whether they should take an offer from an insurance company or bus company early on. What I tell all of my clients is that early on, we never know exactly what’s wrong with you. There are many times that my clients have had injuries that in the first several months have been bad, but not horrific, but then have degenerated into worse injuries. I’ve had many clients who have, before contacting me, signed releases with insurance companies and/or bus companies who have paid them what I would describe as a pittance, considering their injuries, and then later on were prevented from pursuing the claim further because that release was executed.
Before executing a release, it is absolutely imperative that you know that your injuries have either plateaued or that they are all better. We need to know what the final prognosis is. I ask the doctors to look ahead 10 years from now because the value of your case is not only dependent on the pain and suffering you had up until the date of the settlement, but more importantly, is what you’re going to look like years from now. Are you going to be the same, better, or are you going to have degenerated? If the issue is that you could get worse, you may get worse, or it’s likely that you’re going to get worse, then the compensation has to come from the insurance company or the bus company to compensate you for that as well. I would say please do not sign anything until you’ve talked to us.
3) Case Value
When we determine the value of a claim on a bus accident, we look at a number of different factors. The initial factor with the bus claim is whether we can show that the bus company is at fault for the injuries that you sustained. One thing that is very important in that analysis, and different from any other accident claims in New York State, is that the bus company has different requirements that are applicable to them.
In New York State, when we’re at trial, we have a Pattern Jury Instruction, and that Pattern Jury Instruction gives the jury instruction with respect to each type of case. In a negligence case, we need to show that the individual who is responsible for your injuries was at fault by 51%. In a bus accident case, the legislature in New York State has established rules which give heightened responsibilities to individuals on the bus. In other words, a bus driver can act negligently and still not be held responsible legally because the jury instructions give them leeway.
The first thing that we look at is whether or not we’re going to be able to prove that the bus company and the bus driver was negligent with these enhanced jury instructions. We take that into consideration, we make an analysis of what the likelihood of it being victorious at trial are, and then we look at your injuries. The injuries are determined based on what your current injuries are – what you’re feeling, how you’re doing at the time that we’re looking at settling – and then we ask our doctors to provide us with an idea of your future prognosis. Once we take all those things into play, we also look to see if you have any lost wages or components of future medical benefits that are going to be required. All those things come into a determination as to what we believe the value of the case is. If they don’t come to that number, we go to trial.
Attorney Robert Maranto is a partner with Andrews, Bernstein & Maranto, PLLC and has achieved the rating of superb on Avvo.
Check out these 3 bus accident tips. The Bus Accident Lawyers at Andrews, Bernstein & Maranto, PLLC fight for the rights of persons who are injured or disabled. We approach each case on an individual basis and personally assist each client with their unique needs. We are involved in every step of the legal process, and ensure that each case receives the time and effort necessary for success.
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