New Jersey Bus Accident Lawyers

Bus Injury Attorneys in Highland Park, NJ, Pursue Financial Compensation for Victims of Bus Accidents of All Kinds in Middlesex County, Mercer County, Somerset County, and Throughout NJ

When a bus accident occurs, the injuries that result can be serious. Some bus accidents injure passengers on a large scale, while others may involve catastrophic injuries to a single individual. Coping with the effects of a bus accident injury is difficult enough as it is. You don’t have to go through this alone. Our New Jersey bus accident lawyers are ready to fight for you. With more than 40 years of experience, we are well-suited to go after every dollar of compensation you deserve for your injuries.

At the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr, we have protected the rights of personal injury victims throughout central New Jersey since 1975. We don’t operate a volume-based practice, but instead carefully select the cases we handle so that we can devote all our energy and attention to finding ways to win your case. We know that a personal injury can seriously affect the way you live your life from day to day, and we also understand the importance of regular and effective communication with your lawyer. We strive to be available and accessible whenever you have questions or concerns and to return all your calls in a timely manner.

In more than three decades in practice, we have built a solid reputation for hard work and thorough preparation. As a result, many of our new cases come to us as referrals from other lawyers, or from former or current clients.

If you or a loved one have been injured in a bus accident, it's imperative that you work with an experienced attorney to collect rightful compensation for your injuries and losses. If you’re ready to get started, contact us today for a free consultation.

Bus Accidents in New Jersey

The number of bus crashes in New Jersey that resulted in injury in 2023 was just shy of 200, marking a decline from 2022’s 341 injury crashes and 2021’s 284 injury crashes, according to data from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The federal agency reported just one fatal bus crash in New Jersey for 2023, a decline from the eight fatal bus crashes that occurred in the state’s borders during each of the three previous years.

State law requires biannual (twice per year) inspections of commercial buses, as well as school bus inspections every six months. Still, accidents and injuries involving buses do occur in New Jersey, and when they do, they may cause injuries on a much larger scale than many other kinds of accidents.

Accidents may involve all kinds of buses, including:

• Public transportation buses
• School buses
• Shuttle buses
• Coach buses
• City buses
• Mini-buses
• Mini-coaches
• Double-decker buses
• Trolleybuses
• Low-floor buses
• High-floor buses or step-entrance buses
• Private charter buses
• Tour buses transporting performers
• Party buses

Numerous bus services operate within the borders of New Jersey, including:

• NJ Transit
• Amtrak Thruway bus services
• Greyhound Lines, Inc.
• Academy Bus Lines
• Peter Pan
• Coach USA
• Lakeland Bus Lines
• Megabus
• Trailways
• The Fullington Auto Bus Company
• Martz Bus
• Metropolitan Transportation Authority-MTA
• Trans-Bridge Lines
• OurBus

Commercial bus companies have a duty of care to their passengers as well as others sharing the road with them. They can often be held responsible for injuries arising out of negligence, including errors made behind the wheel by the drivers they employ and injuries that arise due to poor maintenance of any part of the bus.

Suing for bus accidents in other situations may be tricky. If the bus is government-owned, like NJ Transit, or government-contracted, like a school bus, the process of filing a claim may be more complicated.

It may also be more difficult to untangle complex matters of liability when the bus was chartered or rented by an organization rather than part of a traditional bus line’s regular route.

You don’t have to determine which specific parties are responsible for a bus accident or how their negligence caused or contributed to the crash. Let our New Jersey bus accident lawyers handle that task for you. Once you have put your claim in the hands of an experienced bus accident injury lawyer, all you need to focus on is getting better.

Types of Bus Accidents Our Attorneys Handle

At the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr, our bus accident injury attorneys don’t limit our legal services only to victims of motor vehicle collisions.

We know that a variety of different accidents can occur on buses. In fact, the most recent data from the Federal Transit Administration shows that over one-quarter of all bus injuries are on-vehicle personal injury events, and another 16% of bus injuries arise out of personal injury events while getting on or off the bus. Only about half of bus accident injuries actually involve collisions, the Federal Transit Administration reported.

Just because your injury didn’t arise out of a crash doesn’t mean that it hasn’t impacted your life or that you don’t have legal recourse.

Our knowledgeable attorneys can assist you in pursuing compensation for bus-related injuries that arise out of any form of negligence, including the following.

Slip and Falls on Bus Accidents

Slippery or sticky floors and obstructions like bag straps, umbrellas, and jackets can pose slipping and tripping hazards onboard buses and other forms of public transportation. If you slipped, tripped, or fell while riding a bus, you may have grounds for a lawsuit.

Slip and fall accidents on buses most commonly occur when the victim is doing one of the following:

• Boarding the bus and finding a seat
• Walking to or from the bathroom onboard a coach bus
• Disembarking from the bus when it reaches your destination

Falls from heights, such as a fall down the stairs while getting on or off the bus, are particularly likely to cause significant injury. However, bus passengers also get hurt when they fall up the stairs while climbing and when they suffer a fall on the same level as they walk down the aisle between bus seats. Bus passengers also sustain injuries from striking the hard backs of seats during falls.

A passenger may accidentally fall into another passenger or knock down property, such as a bicycle, onto themselves or other passengers.

Like other properties to which members of the public are invited, the premises of the bus must be maintained in a reasonably safe condition for that use. Hazards that contribute to slips and falls on buses include:

• Dirt
• Sand
• Grass, leaves, and other environmental debris
• Snow, ice, and rainwater tracked onto the bus by passengers
• Trash and litter
• Trailing cords and cables
• Damaged walking surfaces
• Bags and other obstructions

Passengers injured in slip and fall accidents onboard buses may be able to hold the bus company responsible, just as they would the company that owns a retail store, restaurant, or other building in which a safety hazard caused a slip and fall.

Our bus injury attorneys in Highland Park, NJ, are familiar with the intricacies of pursuing slip and fall matters against bus companies. We know that the injuries a victim can sustain falling on a bus are significant, and we fight to get our clients the compensation they deserve.

Wheelchair Bus Lift Accidents and Other Forms of Handicap Accidents

Under the Department of Transportation’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations, all over-the-road buses must be accessible to wheelchair users. This isn’t a favor the bus company is doing for you. It’s the law.

Yet accidents involving wheelchair bus lifts may injure wheelchair riders and others who try to intervene. Among the ways wheelchair bus lift accidents may occur include:

• The lift begins to fold up into its stowed position while the rider and wheelchair are still using it
• The rider falls out of the lifted wheelchair
• The rider is forcefully thrown from the wheelchair by the lift
• The wheelchair lift drops the rider
• The improperly secured wheelchair rolls while on the lift platform

The height associated with Injuries sustained while using the wheelchair lift to get on or off the bus makes these accidents especially dangerous. A fall from this height can be potentially catastrophic, leading to traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), broken bones, and other serious injuries. Treating those injuries may be particularly difficult among victims who may already have complex medical needs that require them to need assistance boarding the bus in the first place.

Wheelchair bus lift accidents may occur due to factors like the following:

• Defective lifts or lift parts
• Lifts that are not in compliance with safety regulations, including lift capacity and slip resistance
• Improper installation of the lift
• Failures to properly maintain, inspect, test, and repair the lift and its components as necessary for safe performance
• Negligent training of the lift operator
• Negligence on the part of the lift operator, including rushing and failing to follow appropriate safety procedures

Accidents also occur when a wheelchair that has been lifted onto the bus is not properly secured. A crash, a pothole, or even an abrupt stop may cause the wheelchair to roll or even flip over, injuring its rider. An unsecured wheelchair could also harm others in the vicinity, rolling over other passengers’ feet and smashing into their legs and ankles.

On school buses that transport special needs students and adults, there may be dedicated bus aides whose role is to oversee the safety of the passengers. If these bus aides fail to respond appropriately to emergency situations and allow a preventable serious injury or death to occur, the victim or their family may have grounds for a lawsuit.

Bus Crashes

Of course, motor vehicle collisions remain among the most common types of bus accidents. Motor vehicle crashes are also the most common cause of fatal bus injuries, the Federal Transit Administration reported. Altogether, fatal injuries arising out of collisions with non-transit motor vehicles (43%) and collisions with people (37%) accounted for 80% of bus accident fatalities between 2008 and 2018.

Our New Jersey bus accident lawyers represent all parties injured in bus accidents that occur through someone else’s negligence, including:

• Injured bus passengers
• Injured bus drivers, including but not limited to workers’ compensation claims
• Injured pedestrians and cyclists struck by buses
• Injured occupants of other vehicles involved in bus collisions

The types of collisions our bus accident law firm handles include:

• Rear-end bus accidents
• Side-impact bus accidents
• Head-on bus accidents
• Bus rollover accidents
• Accidents that involve ejection from the bus
• Multi-vehicle accidents, including chain reaction crashes
• Accidents with motorcycles
• Accidents with pedestrians
• Single-vehicle bus accidents

Bus accidents often result from some form of negligence, such as:

• Careless, reckless, distracted, or impaired driving on the part of the bus operator or another driver
• Negligent hiring and training processes for bus drivers
• Employment practices that violate Hours of Service laws for bus drivers
• Improper maintenance of the bus or its components
• Malfunctions and defects of the vehicle or its components that result in a lack of control on the part of the operator

Through a meticulous investigation of the facts, our New Jersey bus accident lawyers can understand the factors that contributed to the crash and begin building a case to hold the defendants accountable.

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How Our New Jersey Bus Accident Lawyers Can Help You

It pays to put your personal injury case in the hands of a professional. When handling a bus accident claim on your behalf, here’s what our attorneys will do for you:

• Answer all of your questions about the legal process (without billing you hourly for providing professional guidance)
• Investigate the accident to gather facts and evidence
• Identify all possible defendants and develop arguments for holding them accountable
• Draft and file legal documents, such as a complaint
• Represent you in all relevant legal proceedings, such as depositions and, if necessary, a trial
• Handle all interactions with defendants’ insurance companies and attempt to negotiate a settlement that fully compensates you
• Prepare to take the case to court if that’s what’s required to secure the compensation you deserve
• Be your knowledgeable, compassionate guide throughout the litigation process

Hiring our New Jersey bus accident lawyers means you don’t have to go through the challenging aftermath of a bus accident alone.

Bus Accident Verdicts & Settlements

The primary purpose of holding a bus company, bus driver, or other defendant accountable for a bus accident is to recover financial compensation for the victim.

How much your case is worth depends on a variety of factors. The compensation you could expect to receive for claims that involve comparably minor injuries, minimal missed work time, and no significant permanent effects is significantly lower than that for serious, life-altering injuries that result in profound, permanent disabilities.

The most reliable way to determine what your claim is worth and put together a strong case for getting maximum compensation is by consulting knowledgeable New Jersey bus accident lawyers.

Damages for Which You Can Seek Compensation in a Bus Accident Injury Claim

The compensation you’re able to recover in a bus accident injury lawsuit can be life-changing, especially when your injuries have affected every aspect of your life. Injured victims often need this money to afford the medical care that offers them the best possible prognosis for physical recovery. If their injuries keep them out of work, compensation for lost wages can help injured victims and their families stay afloat financially.

The types of damages for which you may be entitled to compensation through a bus accident injury lawsuit include:

• Costs of medical care now and in the future, including hospital bills, costs of diagnostic testing, prescription medication costs, and rehabilitation expenses
• Lost wages for the time you were out of work, including hospital stays, rehabilitation, treatments, and recovery from surgeries
• Expected decreases in future earning potential if your injuries have affected your ability to work long-term
• The pain and suffering the bus accident injuries have caused you

With the help of knowledgeable NJ bus accident lawyers, you can identify and document the full extent of your damages and then pursue compensation for everything you have lost because of the bus accident.

Examples of Our Successful Bus Accident Settlements and Verdicts

At the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr, our experienced bus injury attorneys in Highland Park, NJ, have successfully represented victims injured in bus accidents of all kinds. We have recovered millions of dollars in compensation for our clients, including those injured in accidents involving government-owned bus services, city buses, and school buses.

A few examples of our successes in handling bus accident injury claims include the following:

• A $500,000 payout for injuries arising out of a school bus accident
• A $200,000 payout for an NJ Transit bus injury
• A $600,000 payout for a school bus accident injury
• A confidential settlement for a school bus accident claim

How much compensation you can expect to recover in your bus accident injury lawsuit depends on factors like the following:

• The severity of your injury
• The extent of your economic and non-economic damages
• Who is at fault
• The insurance coverage available

Our goal is to get our clients the maximum amount of compensation they’re entitled to. To do so, we ensure all of their harms and losses are represented in their claim and document the full impact the injury has had on their lives.

Contact the New Jersey Bus Accident Lawyers at the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr Today for a Free Case Review

If you’re looking for a knowledgeable lawyer for a bus accident, look no further than the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr. Our exclusive focus on personal injury matters means you have the full benefit of our knowledge of the tort claims process in New Jersey. We represent clients across Middlesex County, Mercer County, Somerset County, and elsewhere in New Jersey whose injuries range from serious enough to affect their daily lives to completely catastrophic.

For help from knowledgeable bus injury attorneys in Highland Park, NJ, contact the Law Offices of Harold J. Gerr online or call 732-537-8570 today. The consultation is completely free, and there are no upfront costs to pursue a claim.

Frequently Asked Questions About Bus Accident Claims in New Jersey