School Bus Accident Injury Liabilty

The services that school buses give are beneficial especially to busy parents. Parents no longer have to worry in transporting their children from home to school and vice versa. In fact, it is considered the biggest type of mass transit in United States by providing nine million student trips each year.

The convenience that school buses bring has its equivalent danger. The occurrence of school bus accidents is one disadvantage. While it can be safe and environment-friendly in transporting children, school bus accidents can be very devastating.

Accidents of this type can cause irreparable damages such as broken bones, brain injuries, deaths and other serious personal injuries. Consequently, parents have equally important role to play in preventing school bus accidents. By teaching their children school bus safety measures, parents can help prevent serious injuries from happening.

Incidents of school bus accidents can also be considered as pedestrian accidents. This is due to the fact that accidents often occur when children are getting on and off the bus. In addition to proper education, parents should also:

• Supervise their children to ensure that they do not run into the traffic, behind the bus or into a driver’s blind spots
• Ensure that child’s possession are securely stored in the backpack
• Make sure that that the child’s bag has no long straps or drawstrings that can entangle in the bus door
• Teach children to wait for the bus safely and maintain eye contact with the bus driver

Statistics on School Bus Accidents

Annually, hundreds are killed and millions are injured due to school bus accidents. Large vehicles including school bus have been involved in about 5,000 fatal traffic accidents. In fact in 2003, about 500,000 large vehicles have been involved in traffic crashes.

Overall, a total of $20 billion in damages and about $10 billion in resource costs have been given involving school bus incidents.

Common Causes of School Bus Accidents

School bus accidents happen due to various reasons:

• Lack or improper training of drivers
• Overloading
• Poor maintenance
• Road conditions
• Weather conditions
• Driver’s disposition
• Speeding

School bus accidents are preventable just like any other form of accidents. Negligence of a third party, or even the bus driver, can lead to injury of the child passengers. In cases like this determining who is liable for the damages can get complicated. Talk to a personal injury lawyer if your child has been hurt in a school bus accident to ensure your rights are protected and justice is served.