Las Vegas Bus Accident Lawyer for Tour, Transit and School Bus Crashes

What should I do after a bus crash in Las Vegas?

Get medical care before you do anything else, and do not let the excitement of a bus full of people convince you that you are fine. Passengers are often thrown sideways or forward with no seat belt to hold them, and neck, back and head injuries do not always show up at the scene. Tell the paramedics every place that hurts, and if you hit your head, say so.

If you can do more, these are the things worth doing.

• Get the bus company name, the bus number, the driver's name and the route or tour name, and take a photo of the bus and its license plate.
• Write down your seat location and the names and phone numbers of the people near you, since passengers scatter fast.
• Photograph the scene, the damage inside and outside the bus, and your injuries.
• Keep your ticket, your booking confirmation and anything the company hands you.

Do not give the carrier or its insurer a recorded statement, and do not sign a form that looks like an incident report until you know what it says. Buses carry cameras and data recorders, and companies can overwrite them. A preservation letter from us goes out quickly, because the bus company is not going to volunteer that its video exists.

Why is a bus case different from a car case?

A bus case has more people, more regulation and more moving parts, and the bus company has had time to prepare. The carrier is usually a business that sells rides, which means it has insurance adjusters, a safety department and often a lawyer who is on the phone before the passengers are out of the hospital.

A bus that carries passengers for pay is generally held to a higher standard of care than an ordinary driver, since the passengers have put their safety in the carrier's hands. Nevada law has long expected carriers to use a high degree of care for the people they carry, though that heightened duty is tied to the risks of the ride itself. Many buses and their drivers are also covered by federal and state safety rules that do not apply to a private car, which can be turned into evidence when a carrier cut corners.

Then there is the question of who really answers for the crash. It might be the driver. It might be the company that employed the driver, or the company that sold the tour, or the charter company that rented the bus. It might be a maintenance contractor, a manufacturer of a part, a driver of another vehicle, or the agency that built or kept up the road. Dean's approach in serious cases is to look past the first policy to everyone who contributed. We wrote about that in beyond the other driver's insurance, and it applies to buses as much as to anything we handle.

If you have been in a larger vehicle crash, our truck accident page covers related ground, and our commercial vehicle page covers vehicles that are not buses or semis.

What happens when a tour or charter bus crashes?

Las Vegas is a city of motorcoaches. Tour buses run people to the Strip, Hoover Dam, the Grand Canyon, Red Rock Canyon and Death Valley. Charter buses bring groups from casinos, conventions and weddings. Party buses carry people from club to club.

These cases are tricky because a tourist can be hurt on a bus owned by one company, operated by another and sold by a third. The brochure promised one thing and the insurance policy covers another. A lot of tourists are also far from home, with no car, no local doctor and a flight to catch, and the first conversation they have about the crash is often with someone from the tour company who sounds helpful.

Tour bus crashes also frequently cross state lines. A bus that leaves Las Vegas for the Grand Canyon or heads home to California may crash in another state, which affects where the case is filed and which law applies. We look at that at the start.

Also look at the details of the trip. Was the driver pushing to make a schedule? Had the driver worked too many hours? Was the bus overloaded, or was a tire worn? Was the coach older and missing seat belts? Those questions are answered by records the company keeps.

What if the bus belonged to the RTC or another government agency?

You still have rights, but the rules are different. The RTC, the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, runs the transit system most locals and many visitors ride, including the Deuce on the Strip. It is a public agency, but it hires private companies to operate much of the service, so who employed the driver and who owned the bus can affect who can be sued. That is exactly the kind of fact that gets lost when no one is looking.

Claims against the RTC, a city, a county or a school district run into special protections that do not apply to a private company. We generally see a written claim to file with the agency, limits on the damages that can be recovered, and defenses built around government decision making. Government defendants do not pay punitive damages as private defendants can. These rules are not a reason to give up, but they are a reason to start fast and to file correctly.

The paperwork matters here, and we handle it.

What are the Nevada claim rules for a government bus?

If the RTC, a school district or another public agency may be involved, tell us right away, because special claim procedures apply and we will handle them. In general, these are the points that matter.

• Nevada asks you to file a written claim with the government agency, and the rules for how to do it are strict.
• The deadline to file the lawsuit still applies, and filing a claim with the agency does not extend it.
• Nevada places limits on how much can be recovered from a government entity in many cases, which makes it more important to find every other responsible party.
• You must generally name the right government entity, which is not always the one on the side of the bus.

If you think a public bus is involved, call us before you do anything with the agency's claim office. They are not your friend, even though they are polite.

What about a school bus crash?

A school bus crash is every parent's worst phone call. Children can be hurt in ways they cannot describe. A child who says "my neck hurts a little" on the way to the nurse may have a real injury, and a child with a head bump may need a doctor even if there is no mark.

School buses in the Las Vegas area are generally run by a school district or by a private company under contract with it. Both possibilities matter. A district is a public body with its own claim rules and limits on recovery. A contractor is a private business with insurance. The bus may have been hit by another driver, and that driver is also a potential defendant.

A child's claim follows special rules. A parent or guardian files it, a court usually has to approve a settlement, and the time limit can be different from the standard two years. Do not talk to the district's insurer or sign anything before getting advice. The district has risk managers whose job is to limit what it pays.

Our passenger injuries page has more for people hurt as riders in any vehicle.

What about airport, hotel and casino shuttles?

The shuttle that took you from the airport to your hotel is a bus, and the same principles apply. These are smaller vehicles in heavy traffic with drivers who make short stops all day, and the crashes often happen in terminals, garages and hotel drives where there are many pedestrians.

Shuttle companies are sometimes owned by the resort and sometimes by a contractor. Insurance can depend on how many passengers the vehicle seats and whether it crosses state lines. If the shuttle hit you as a pedestrian, see our pedestrian accident page. If a limousine or taxi was involved, see taxi and limo accidents.

What if many people were hurt in the same bus crash?

Then the insurance can run short, and what you do first can matter. A bus carries many people, and a single crash can generate a dozen claims against the same policies. Federal rules require a for-hire passenger carrier that operates across state lines to carry minimum liability insurance, and the minimum is higher for buses seating 16 or more, counting the driver. Even large limits can be strained by multiple serious injuries.

When policy limits are shared, insurers sometimes push quick settlements to individual passengers. The first people to sign can accept less than the case is worth, while the later claimants face a thinner pot. We look for other sources of recovery early, including other defendants, other policies and your own coverage, so that the shared limit is not the end of the story.

Do not trade information on social media with other passengers about fault or injuries. Do get their contact information, because they are witnesses to the same events. Do not sign anything from the carrier that includes a release. If you have already hired a lawyer who also represents other passengers, ask how conflicts will be handled if the money is short.

Which carrier regulations matter after a bus crash?

Federal rules govern many buses, and when a carrier breaks them it can matter a great deal to the case. The details depend on the kind of bus, whether it crosses state lines and who operates it. Buses run directly by a government agency, such as RTC transit or a school district, are generally exempt from most of the federal driver, hours and maintenance rules, though the commercial license and drug and alcohol testing rules still apply. Private tour, charter and contractor buses are held to the full set. This is the short list of what we look for.

• Hours of service rules, found in 49 CFR Part 395, which limit how long a passenger-carrying driver can drive and require rest. Tired drivers cause bus crashes.
• Driver qualification rules in Part 391 and commercial license rules, including the passenger endorsement, which cover training, medical certification and driving history.
• Drug and alcohol testing rules in Part 382 that apply to commercial drivers.
• Inspection, repair and maintenance rules in Part 396, including driver inspection reports and maintenance files.
• Minimum insurance for for-hire passenger carriers that cross state lines, found in 49 CFR Part 387, which sets higher minimums for buses seating 16 or more.

Nevada regulators also oversee certain charter and limousine carriers inside the state, and school and public buses have their own standards. A bus company that ignores a rule leaves a paper trail, and we ask for the whole file, not just the accident report. Federal rules require lap and shoulder belts on new motorcoaches built on or after November 28, 2016, but older coaches are not covered, and transit buses and school buses were left out of that rule, so many have no belts. That affects injuries and the questions we ask the carrier.

What are my rights as a bus passenger, and what if I was the driver?

As a passenger, you generally did nothing to cause the crash and can usually seek compensation from whoever did. Passengers rarely share blame, though a carrier may argue that you stood when you should have sat or ignored a posted instruction. If a passenger on a bus was hurt because another car hit the bus, the other driver may be responsible, and a case may exist against both.

If you were the bus driver, your injuries may be covered by workers' compensation, and you may also have a claim against someone outside the company, such as another driver or a maker of a defective part. Our workplace injury page explains how those claims fit together.

If you were in another vehicle or walking and a bus hit you, the bus company and its driver are potential defendants, along with the agency or contractor that operates the bus. If a family member died in a bus crash, see our wrongful death page.

What is a bus accident case worth, and what does it cost to call?

It depends on the injuries, the care you will need, the work you can do, how clear the fault is and how much insurance is available. Anyone who gives you a number before seeing your records is guessing. In bus cases, the number of defendants and the amount of insurance can change the answer more than they do in a typical car crash.

Most Nevada injury lawsuits must be filed within two years, and claims against a government agency come with special claim rules. Calling us is free. We work on a contingency basis, which means no fee until we win, and we advance the case costs, including experts. Our page on what happens when you call explains the first conversation. You can reach us any time at (702) 500-7070.