Severe injuries and complex legal disputes can arise from bus accidents. Should you be in such an accident, it is imperative to compile evidence to support your compensation claim. Gathering evidence will help you prove your degree of injury and who bears liability for the accident.
You should learn more about commercial vehicle accidents to understand what evidence will be helpful in your case. This article discusses the main forms of evidence to collect after a bus accident to support your claim and protect your legal rights.
The police report is among the most important pieces of evidence. When police officers arrive at the scene of the accident, they record crucial information such as the following:
They also gather statements from witnesses, drivers, and passengers, which might prove important in determining the accident's cause. Often including the officer's assessment of the liable party, police reports can be a useful resource for negotiating with insurance.
The report will also record any traffic violations, vehicle damage, and road conditions, providing a whole picture of the accident scene.
In a bus accident case, images are essential visual evidence. Make sure you get clear pictures of the scene, including the vehicles engaged, their placements, and any obvious damage. Photographs taken from several angles will help to fully depict the accident. These pictures can show the degree of the collision and back up your claims about the degree of property damage and injuries.
Photographs of the road conditions, traffic signals, and any skid marks on the road should not be overlooked since they will enable one to recreate the incident. It’s also crucial to record any trash, shattered glass, or other objects that might have caused the accident.
Witnesses can present an unbiased narrative of the accident's events. Get contact details—name, phone number, and address—from everyone who observed the crash. Witnesses may even remember specifics you missed at the time of the accident and can offer details confirming your account of events.
Witness testimonies can be very important in legal procedures to prove liability. Since memories fade with time, the statements will be more accurate the sooner you gather them.
Driver logs and vehicle maintenance records help to expose whether the bus driver or company was negligent. Federal rules control the maximum number of hours a driver can operate without breaks.
Examining the driver's logbook will help one determine whether they were overworked or neglected to follow these rules, which might have contributed to the accident. Since they reveal whether the bus was sufficiently serviced, maintenance records are also vital.
Should the bus have mechanical problems, such as tire or brake failure, these records can show the company's carelessness in maintaining the vehicle.
Many times, the accident is captured on surveillance cameras from surrounding companies, traffic lights, or dashcams. A different perspective of what happened and important information like traffic violations or careless driving behavior can come from surveillance footage.
As soon as you think there could be surveillance footage, get local businesses or law enforcement notified. In court and during settlement negotiations, video evidence can be quite convincing.
Proving the degree of your injuries and the effects they have on your life requires medical records. Make sure all diagnoses, treatments, and drugs are meticulously recorded once you have seen a doctor.
These records can show the immediate and long-term consequences of your injuries, facilitating the cost calculation of other damages and medical costs. Save copies of all medical bills, prescriptions, and treatment plans, as you will need them for filing your compensation claim.
