According to the Federal Railroad Administration Office of Safety Analysis, 1,020 train accidents occurred in the U.S. in 2016 between January and February, including derailments and crossing accidents where a train hit a vehicle at a railroad crossing. Even a “minor” incident involving a train may result in injury or death due to the massive weight and size of the locomotive. A train accident lawyer can help people injured in train accidents, or the families of those killed, recover compensation when the railroad is at fault for causing the accident.
For more information, contact Attorney Group today. We offer free, confidential, no obligation consultations. We can help answer your questions, and if you choose to pursue a claim we can connect you with an affiliated train accident attorney who can assist you throughout the legal process.
Train Accident Overview
A train accident may affect one individual, such as when a person slips off a platform and is hit by a train, or it may affect an entire community, as is the case of a toxic chemical spill. Additionally, if a passenger train derails, there could be hundreds of injuries. A train accident lawyer can help people who have been involved in train accidents, including railroad workers, passengers or drivers of other vehicles, bystanders and pedestrians and passengers on the train itself.
Railroad crossing accidents are relatively common and involve a train striking cars or trucks or running over pedestrians. Common causes of these accidents include:
- Trains that fail to sound their horns or lights when approaching crossings
- Defective gates or signals
- Trains parked too close to a crossing
- Objects protruding from the train
- Crossings obstructed by plants or other objects
Derailments typically cause the most widespread damage and often the result of a failure to follow established safety standards. A train may also derail due to faulty equipment, obstacles on the tracks, faulty tracks or too much cargo equipment.
A train accident lawyer can evaluate the facts of a railroad accident and determine potentially liable parties, including the conductor, an employee, the owner of the train, the mechanic responsible for inspecting the locomotive or an individual at the railroad crossing or on the tracks.
How a Train Accident Lawyer Can Help
When negligence results in injury, an injured party suffers loss in various ways. The law allows an injured party to pursue damages to recover those losses. Common types of damages recoverable in a personal injury case include:
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Lost wages
- Loss of ability to earn
- Scarring and disfigurement
The families of those who have died may be eligible to recover money for funeral expenses and the pain that comes with losing a loved one.
If the actions causing injury are malicious or so reckless that intent to harm can be inferred, the responsible party can be liable for punitive damages to punish wrongful conduct and deter similar conduct in the future.
Victims of negligence and their families are encouraged to seek the counsel of a train accident lawyer to learn more about their rights and remedies.
The time you have to pursue a claim is limited. Contact us for more information.Get Help Now.
For more information, contact Attorney Group. After you contact us, an attorney will follow up to answer questions that you might have. There is no cost or obligation to speak with us, and any information you provide will be kept confidential.
Please note that the law limits the time you have to pursue a claim or file a lawsuit for an injury. If you think you have a case, you should not delay taking action.
