Common Carrier Accidents

Common carriers are entities – either private or public – that transport goods or people from one place to another for a fee. Trains, planes, taxi services, cruise ships, and buses are all common carriers.

By law, common carrier companies and their employees owe a heightened duty of care to the people who trusted their own safety to them. If failure to follow the law or failure to exercise care and diligence can be shown to have resulted in injury to its passengers, the company (or municipality) that owned the carrier can be held liable for damages.

There are different causes for common carrier accidents, including:

• Failure to follow state and federal regulations
• failure to warn passengers about potentially dangerous situations or actions
• improper maintenance of vehicles and equipment
• improperly trained drivers or operators
• negligence by drivers or operators
• drivers under the influence of alcohol or drugs

Passengers on common carriers might suffer damage in several different ways:

• physical injury
• emotional distress
• loss of wages and future earning ability
• loss of property

Transit accidents involving large passenger vehicles are often extremely serious, causing catastrophic injuries to a number of passengers. It is far from easy, however, to prove that a carrier was at fault and deserves to be held liable. As personal injury attorneys, we have years of experience gathering expert witness testimony, eyewitness testimony, photographs, and inspection records in order to provide a successful resolution to your case.