First things first! If there was a collision, you should have a successful claim. Ultimately there is normally always someone at fault for a collision, whether it’s the bus driver or another road user, so you normally can make a claim with relative ease as there should be someone at fault.
The big question that may well be edging off your lips is – “what if there was no collision? Can I still make a claim?” This is where it can all boil down to why you have been injured.
Slamming the Brakes / Emergency Stops
Sometimes a bus driver may apply the brakes with a lot of force to avoid a collision or danger. If they were avoiding an unforeseen danger that they couldn’t have contributed towards and had no choice but to slam the brakes on to avoid further hazard or loss, you might find it difficult to hold the bus company at fault. Say for example, the driver slammed the brakes on because a pedestrian walked out in front of the bus, or a car pulled out from a side road. There may be a cause of action against the car driver in this instance, but unless a collision took place, you may find it difficult to get hold of the driver’s information. Although CCTV on the bus could help.
If the driver slammed on the brakes on as he wasn’t concentrating (like in my claim that I’m literally on the point of settling) and only spotted the red traffic light at last minute on a 40pmh road, thus hurling all passengers forward rather violently, then you might have a claim.
CCTV is often the make or break of a case like this to be honest. If you’re quick on the ball, make a report of the incident as quickly as you can to the bus company and specifically ask that they retain and review the CCTV footage, as most buses have them nowadays. Most places don’t keep footage for more than two to three weeks, so you have to be quick or they might erase it. Normally we send off faxed and recorded delivery letters so we have absolute proof they have received our request to retain the footage. If it then transpires they have prematurely destroyed it, we can refer the matter to court.
You should also see your GP or nip to a walk in centre as quickly as you can to get your medical records noted with the details of what happened.
Next step – give us a call and we will see if we can help you out with a claim. Give us a buzz on our free claims helpline on 0800 634 75 75 today!