Injuries sustained in public buses – can you sue? Accidents on OC Transpo Buses
 
Seeking compensation as a result of accidents caused by buses and in particular on buses involve complex legal principles. It is very important to consult experienced personal injury and accident lawyer as soon as possible after an accident.
 
Not all bus accidents or injuries sustained in a bus constitute injuries sustained in a public transit vehicle or vehicle designed as “public transit”. The law in respect of injuries sustained in public transit vehicles raises a number of complex legal issues that only an experienced injury lawyer can understand fully. Your injury lawyer will determine if the accident occurred in a public transit vehicle, whether the incident constitutes an "accident", determine issue relating to ownership and operation of the vehicle, determine issues of fault for the accident and determine if there was a collision; your lawyer can also determine what accident benefits if any are available and determine your right to sue persons responsible for the accident.
 
In Ontario, only certain vehicles are considered public transit vehicles. In Ontario, in order to be eligible for accident benefits as a result of injuries sustained on a public transit vehicle, the public transit vehicle (the bus) had to collide with another vehicle or with an object. Accident benefits will not be available where the bus has not collided with another vehicle or object and so if the bus stops or speeds up abruptly causing someone to be injured, accident benefits are not likely accessible.   
 
If you have sustained injuries on a public transit vehicle where a collision has not occurred, you may still claim damages / compensation against anyone who was negligent causing you to be injured, but could not pursue accident benefit coverage from your car insurer or another car insurer (if you had no car insurance at the time for instance). For instance, you could sue the driver of the bus, or if the road (highway) was in a state of disrepair, you could sue the municipality although very special rules of liability apply to municipalities when it comes to highways.
 
In cases where a collision did occur, you may be able to claim accident benefits and also sue the bus driver, the other automobile driver or anyone else responsible for the accident.
 
If you have been injured while using public transit, you should consult an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.
 
Consultations are free and our lawyers work on the basis of no fee until you win
 
 
Marc-Nicholas Quinn
Ottawa Injury Lawyers
Ottawa, Ontario
Tel: (613) 315-4878
www.ottawainjurylawfirm.com
www.ottawalawyers.com
 
 
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide only and is not intended to be legal advice. You should consult an injury lawyer who can review the facts of your particular case.