Bus Accident Lawyer: Campbellton tour bus crash caused by faulty equipment?

The Houston Chronicle is reporting that faulty equipment is suspected as the cause of the tour bus crash on March 16, 2010 on Interstate 37 in Atascosa County.  The bus, operated by a subsidiary of Greyhound, was traveling from San Antonio to Matamoros, Mexico.

DPS is still investigating, however, DPS is reporting that an initial investigation indicates faulty equipment may have contributed to the crash.  Specifically, the drive shaft may have fallen off.

The bus driver and some passengers reported hearing some loud popping noises just before the bus driver lost control.

If faulty equipment contributed to the crash, that will make the job of determining responsibility for the crash somewhat more difficult.  The bus company is required to follow safety regulations as to inspecting and maintaining its buses.  These rules are contained in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, which bus companies must follow if they travel between states.  Some of the specific rules that apply to bus companies are contained in Part 374:  Passenger Carrier Regulations. 

Investigators are going to want to see if the bus company followed these safety rules.  Did the bus company properly inspect this bus?  Did it properly maintain it?  What do the records show on these issues?  (records must be kept demonstrating compliance with these bus safety regulations).

Another potential responsible party will be the company that manufactured the bus or any of its component parts that may have failed.  This would be called a "product liability" situation.  There could be a defect in the way the manufacturer designed, marketed or manufactured the bus or its component parts.  This product liability scenario is much more complicated than the bus company safety rule compliance situation, and it would likely require a qualified and board certified product liability lawyer to accomplish the best investigation.  Click here to access an article on how to hire the best lawyer for a product liability case.

A qualified bus product liability attorney would also evaluated whether a tire blow out or tire detread contributed to cause this Americanos bus crash.  Click here for an article on the dangers of defective tires.

To see the answers to additional common questions asked after a serious bus accident, like why buses don't have seat belts and how to find the best lawyer for a bus accident case, please visit our Board Certified Texas Bus Accident Lawyer page.

One of the questions on our Bus Accident Attorney page is particularly applicable to this tour bus crash because Americanos is a subsidiary of Greyhound:  click here if you are interested in reading about Greyhound's tactics after a serious crash involving one of its buses. 

If you have any questions about Texas bus accidents, please contact our Board Certified Texas Tour Bus Accident Lawyers.