Who runs the buses in Oakland
The first question in any bus case is who owned and operated the bus, because that decides which rules and deadlines apply. Unlike most personal injury cases, a bus case can fall under two very different sets of deadlines.
AC Transit
The Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, known as AC Transit, runs the local buses in Oakland and much of the East Bay. It is a public agency. Its claims page says that to pursue a claim against the District, you must file a Claim for Damages form with the District Secretary’s office.
School buses
California’s Government Claims Act treats any city, county or district as a public entity (Government Code § 811.2), and that includes a school district. A crash involving a district bus follows the same claim rules as AC Transit. Some districts hire private bus companies, so we find out who owned the bus and who employed the driver.
Charter, tour and intercity buses
A charter, tour or intercity bus company that offers to carry the public is a common carrier under California law (Civil Code § 2168) and owes its passengers the heightened duty described below. A lawsuit against a private bus company generally must be filed within two years of the injury (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1).
Private shuttles
Whether a hotel, airport or employer shuttle counts as a common carrier depends on the facts, such as whether it serves the general public, advertises and charges standard fees. If it is not a common carrier, it still owes ordinary care (CACI No. 901).
Hit by a bus as a driver, cyclist or pedestrian
The heightened common carrier duty protects passengers. If a bus hit you while you were driving, riding or walking, you are owed ordinary care, and the public agency claim deadline still applies. Our pages on pedestrian accidents, motorcycle accidents and car accidents cover those cases in more detail.
Claims against AC Transit and other public agencies
Before you can sue a public transit agency or school district, California law requires a written claim, and the deadlines are short.
Present the claim within six months
A claim for injury or death must be presented to the public entity no later than six months after the claim arises (Government Code § 911.2). If that date passes, you can apply for permission to present a late claim, but the application must explain the delay and be made within a reasonable time, no later than one year (§ 911.4).
Follow AC Transit’s process
For an AC Transit bus, the District’s claims page tells claimants to complete its Claim for Damages form, sign the original, and mail or hand deliver the original and one copy, with supporting documents, to the AC Transit District Secretary at 1600 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94612. The District says it will not accept claims sent by fax or email.
Wait for the agency to act
The agency’s board has 45 days to act on a claim, or the claim is treated as rejected (§ 912.4). A lawsuit cannot be filed until the claim has been acted on or is treated as rejected (§ 945.4).
Sue within six months of a written rejection
If the agency mails or delivers a written notice rejecting the claim, the lawsuit must be filed no later than six months after that notice. If no proper notice is given, the deadline is two years from when the claim arose (§ 945.6).
A public agency is generally liable for injuries caused by its employees acting within the scope of their jobs (§ 815.2), so a claim against AC Transit is usually about the driver’s conduct or the condition of the bus. The extra time the law gives children for most injury lawsuits does not apply to claims against a public entity (Code of Civil Procedure § 352(b)), so the same six month deadline applies to a child hurt on a city, district or school bus.
The duty a bus operator owes its passengers
California holds anyone who carries passengers for a fare to a higher standard than an ordinary driver. A carrier of persons for reward must use the utmost care and diligence for their safe carriage, must provide everything necessary for that purpose, and must use a reasonable degree of skill (Civil Code § 2100).
Under California’s civil jury instructions, a common carrier must use the highest care and the vigilance of a very cautious person, and do all that human care, vigilance and foresight reasonably can do under the circumstances to avoid harm to passengers (CACI No. 902). The carrier does not guarantee your safety. It must use the highest care in servicing, inspecting and maintaining its vehicles (CACI No. 903), and in giving passengers a safe place to get on and off. You remain a passenger until you have safely left the bus (CACI No. 907).
Injuries without a crash
Many passenger injuries happen when the bus never hits anything: a hard stop that throws a standing rider, a bus that pulls away while someone is still stepping off, or a fall on a worn step or ramp. Under the common carrier rules, these can be claims too.
If you were partly at fault
Passengers only need to use reasonable care for their own safety, a lower standard than the one the carrier must meet (CACI No. 906). California also uses comparative fault. If the defense proves you were negligent and that your negligence was a substantial factor in your harm, your damages are reduced by your percentage of responsibility (CACI No. 405). Your claim is not thrown out.
What to do after a bus accident in Oakland
Get medical care
Ask for an ambulance if you need one, or see a doctor the same day.
Write down the bus details
Note the operator, route number, the bus number painted on the vehicle, the direction of travel, the nearest stop and the time.
Get names before people leave
Passengers scatter quickly. Ask for the driver’s name and the phone numbers of riders who saw what happened.
Keep proof you were riding
Save your ticket or fare card, and screenshot any trip history in your transit app.
Let us handle the claim
Do not give a recorded statement to the bus company or agency, or sign a release, before you talk with a lawyer.
Evidence in a bus case
Bus cases often turn on records that only the operator holds, and some are kept for a short time, so we ask in writing early for them to be preserved. Useful evidence includes onboard and exterior camera video, the driver’s logs and work schedule, maintenance and inspection records for the brakes, doors and ramps, the driver’s training history, dispatch records and incident reports. Video from businesses along the route can help too.
Bus accident injuries and what you can recover
A bus weighs far more than a car, and standing passengers have little to hold them in place in a sudden stop. The injuries people bring to an Oakland bus accident lawyer often include head and brain injuries, neck and back injuries, broken bones from falls, and crush injuries for pedestrians and cyclists struck by a bus.
Damages
California law sorts damages into two groups (Civil Code § 1431.2). Economic damages are losses with a dollar figure, such as medical bills, future care and lost wages. Non-economic damages cover pain, suffering, emotional distress and inconvenience. When a bus crash takes a life, the family may have a wrongful death claim, and the six month public agency deadline applies to that claim too.
How our fees work
The first consultation is free, and there is no fee unless we win. If you hire us, our fee comes out of what we recover for you, not out of your pocket. If there is no recovery, you owe us no fee.
Before you hire us, we go over the written fee agreement with you, including how case costs are handled. Calling costs nothing, so you can call before you know whether you have a case.
Why injured bus riders call our office
John E. Hill opened this firm in Oakland in 1973. Six attorneys work from one office on Hegenberger Road, near the Coliseum and the airport, and you talk with the lawyer handling your case. John is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and a Board Certified Civil Trial Advocate (National Board of Trial Advocacy). Your consultation and your case can be handled in English or Spanish, and your call is answered day or night.
The National Board of Trial Advocacy is not affiliated with any government authority.
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Bus accident questions
01I was hurt on an AC Transit bus. How long do I have?
The written claim must be presented to AC Transit within six months of the injury. If the District rejects it in writing, you then have six months from that notice to file a lawsuit. A late claim application is possible up to one year, but it is not automatic, so call early.
02The bus did not crash. I fell when the driver braked hard. Do I have a claim?
You may. A bus operator owes its passengers the highest care, and that covers how the bus is driven and stopped, not only collisions. The video from inside the bus is often the key evidence, so it should be requested quickly.
03A bus hit my car. Do the same rules apply to me?
Some do. If a public agency owns the bus, the six month claim deadline applies to you as well. The heightened passenger duty does not, but the bus driver still owes you the ordinary care every driver owes. Against a private bus company, the general two year deadline applies.
04My child was hurt on a school bus. What should we do?
Get medical care and call us. If a school district ran the bus, the six month claim deadline applies even to a child, because the usual extra time for minors does not cover claims against a public entity.
05What does it cost to hire you?
Nothing up front. The consultation is free, and if you hire us there is no fee unless we win. Our fee comes out of what we recover for you.
Another question? Call (510) 588-1000 or use our contact page.