After getting into a crash that involved a city bus in our state, you might worry about what you should do next. This blog will offer a few suggestions as to what to do after a bus collision. You should always do what makes sense in your situation, so do not limit yourself to these few things.
A Little Rock car accident attorney could offer additional suggestions and handle your injury claim to pursue your losses if you were injured in a bus accident that was not your fault. Here are a few pointers for what you should do after a collision with a city bus in Little Rock, Arkansas.
1. Get Medical Attention for Yourself and Others
If there are any severe injuries to yourself or others in the bus collision, you will want to get immediate medical care. Buses are extraordinarily heavy vehicles that can cause serious and sometimes fatal injuries. Sometimes, people with significant injuries pass away without timely medical intervention. Some people might not be conscious, so they cannot seek the treatment they need for themselves.
2. Have Law Enforcement Come to the Scene
Whenever a city bus is involved in a collision, the police should get called to the scene to investigate and write a report. These cases require additional steps because of the local government agency involved. If you do not have law enforcement come to the scene, make an official report, and assess fault, you might get blamed for the accident.
3. Document the Situation
If you are able to do so at the scene of the accident, you will want to take photographs that demonstrate how the crash happened. If you do not know how the collision occurred, taking photos of each vehicle from multiple angles could help an accident reconstruction expert determine the cause of the crash.
Also, it would help if you took photos of each vehicle from every side to show all the damage to the vehicles from the crash. If the owner of the vehicle later claims to have property damage that was not visible at the scene, you can prove that fact with your photos.
If you have visible injuries, you will want to take pictures of those wounds. You might need to have someone else handle the camera for this task and the other photo tasks.
Be sure to get the names and contact information of each of the drivers and any potential witnesses in the surrounding area. You could get these items from the police report, but some of the people might leave before the police arrive.
4. Talk to a Lawyer Soon
Getting into a collision with a city bus can be complicated because of the liability issues with the local government agency that owns or operates the city bus. You have a deadline for taking legal action against a government entity for your injuries. Your lawyer can handle the claim against the city bus, as well as any other parties from the collision. You might have a claim for compensation from the government and private parties if you got injured in a bus accident that was not your fault.
A Little Rock personal injury attorney could help you seek the compensation you deserve. For help with your case, get in touch with our office today.