St. Louis Lawyers Handling State And Federal Railroad Accident Injury Claims
A variety of circumstances may result in railroad injuries. For example, vehicle passengers may suffer serious injuries when a car or truck collides with a train; passengers on the train itself may be injured; and railroad employees often suffer injuries on the job.
If you have been injured in a railroad accident, contact Hullverson Law Firm in St. Louis. Our attorneys handle railroad injury cases in Missouri and Illinois.
Railroad Crossing Accidents
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, 60 percent of all railroad crossing accidents take place at crossings that have no warning lights or gates. These types of crossings comprise more than 80 percent of all railroad crossings in the U.S. Out of approximately 3,000 railroad crossing accidents per year, 1,000 fatalities occur. The responsibility to erect warning lights and gates at railroad crossings is not a federal or state function. The liability rests with railroad companies that own the track.
Railroad Accidents In General
Railroad accidents most commonly take place as a result of trains colliding with passenger vehicles, derailments, train crashes due to mechanical failure or collisions with other trains. Negligence occurs when a railroad company fails to properly maintain the tracks, upgrade outmoded train engines and boxcars, or when a train engineer operates the train in an inattentive or reckless manner.
FELA
FELA stands for the Federal Employer’s Liability Act, which is a federal law requiring railroad owners to maintain a reasonably safe work environment and to compensate employees who suffer personal injury on the job. A worker not covered by workers’ compensation has the right to sue the railroad for compensation under FELA on the basis of employer negligence. If taken to court, FELA claims may be tried by juries.
Our injury attorneys at the Hullverson Law Firm have years of experience in representing clients in railroad injury claims, whether negotiating settlements or taking cases to trial.
Arrange A Free Consultation
To schedule a free consultation to discuss your railroad injury with one of our attorneys, please email us or call our office locally at 314-802-4928 or toll free at 866-217-4974. For your convenience, we will come to you for our first meeting or we will schedule a conference with you at our downtown St. Louis office.
Workers’ Compensation