As the victim of a bus accident, you have the right to file a claim for compensation. These funds will allow you to cover all medical expenses you may have incurred as a result of your injuries, as well as mechanic’s fees for repairs to your car and many other costs that accumulate in the aftermath of a crash. With a good lawyer, you can be sure that you will secure this compensation. Although, it is challenging to predict exactly how much you will get. There are several key factors that determine and project the possible compensation amount you will earn from your lawsuit.
Damages You Can Recover from a Bus Accident Lawsuit
When pursuing legal action against a bus driver or their employing agency (whether it’s private, governmental, or another entity), you are eligible to receive compensation for the following damages:
- Medical expenses
- Note: These costs can abound when seeking treatment for bodily injuries and even psychiatric assistance for emotional or psychological trauma after your crash. The negligent bus driver is responsible for covering these expenses, not you.
- Lost wages or lowered earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium
- Reduced quality of life
Your lawyer will guide you in determining which of these damages (there may very well be more than one) you should be filing for and build your case from there.
Note that some of these damages are more easily calculated than others. For example, the bills you receive from your hospital will explicitly document all charges you face and tracking the work hours lost to doctor’s appointments is quite simple.
Due to the subjectivity of damages like pain and suffering and loss of consortium, though, these can be slightly more challenging to determine a value for. Fortunately, your bus accident lawyer can help you measure these impacts and decide how much you should demand in compensatory funding.
What You Can Expect in Bus Accident Compensation
It’s not entirely possible to predict the exact amount of compensation you will earn from your bus accident lawsuit. However, there have been enough of these cases over the years to yield an average that you can use to set your baseline expectations:
- Bus accidents with extensive injuries often result in more than $100,000 in compensation for victims.
- Bus crashes that cause severe, permanent injuries are worth over $250,000.
- Wrongful death cases that arise from bus collisions can exceed $2.5 million.
Keep in mind that, just because these are standard amounts for certain types of bus accident cases, this does not mean your case will result in these payouts. The court will decide on the amount to award you based on your case’s unique aspects, specifically measured in part by the types of damages listed above.
To maximize your chances of winning the compensation you deserve, be patient, and hire a bus accident lawyer. Attempts to resolve your case too quickly are likely to result in lowball settlements from the defendant’s lawyer and insurer. You don’t want to sell yourself short and make the financial burden more difficult to handle. Instead, get in touch with an experienced lawyer, so they can defend you from inadequate settlements and demand precisely the amount of money you need to recover. Reach out to a legal team today to get started.