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Ambulance Accident Lawyer in Louisiana

The back doors of an ambulance

Ambulances and other emergency vehicles perform a vitally important job every day for thousands of Louisianans. Because ambulances are often driving people experiencing life-or-death emergencies, drivers will exceed the posted speed limit, disregard traffic signals, and weave through other vehicles to get their patients to the hospital in time.

Of course, many of these maneuvers are necessary to provide care to the person on the ambulance, and in fact Louisiana has a number of laws requiring other drivers to yield the right-of-way or even pull over to accommodate emergency vehicles. However, emergency vehicles still have a responsibility in those situations to drive within their capability—when they don’t, they can cause a serious car accident.

The National Safety Council (NSC) reports that when ambulance drivers use lights and sirens to communicate their presence, they are 16 times more likely to crash. In 2020 alone, 180 people died during crashes with emergency vehicles, the majority of which were passengers in the other vehicle or pedestrians. Because of the greater size of ambulances, fire engines, and other emergency vehicles, they put other drivers at greater risk of injury and death during a crash.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident with an ambulance, you could be entitled to financial compensation, especially if the ambulance driver was negligent in their duty of care when on the road. Reach out to the experienced injury lawyers at Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys for a free consultation and let us help you get the compensation you deserve.

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How an Ambulance Accident Can Harm Other Drivers

Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) have a variety of jobs while transporting patients to the hospital. They need to be able to stabilize patients, perform emergency care, and operate the ambulance safely and quickly to get to the hospital as soon as possible.

Even with all these responsibilities, EMTs should be most concerned with the safety of their passengers and other drivers on the road. When an ambulance driver doesn’t make safety their top priority, an accident can happen. Some examples of scenarios leading to an ambulance wreck can include

Even though paramedics are trained professionals, they are still human, and subject to overwork, distraction, and many other foibles that can lead to an ambulance wreck. However, because of their jobs, they should be held to a higher standard of safety.

Liability After a Louisiana Ambulance Accident

A red and white ambulance driving quickly through an intersection in Louisiana

Generally, whoever caused the ambulance accident to happen will be held liable for the damages generated. More than one party can be found responsible as well, depending on the circumstances. Any of the following parties could be found responsible for the wreck and a portion of the damages:

  • The ambulance driver
  • The driver of another vehicle who failed to yield
  • The company responsible for maintaining the ambulance, if a mechanical failure contributed to the wreck
  • The person in charge of securing medical equipment in the back of the ambulance
  • Government agencies responsible for road and traffic signal upkeep
  • and others

Privately-owned Vs. Government-owned Ambulances: What You Need to Know

Most emergency vehicles and their drivers are immune from personal injury lawsuits if the accident occurred while they were responding to an accident. However, this protection only applies to government-operated ambulance services that were dispatched by 911. Even then, the driver’s immunity will depend on the particulars of your case, which is why you should consult with an ambulance injury lawyer.

However, some ambulance services are privately-owned, and subject to different rules. Private ambulances are never dispatched by 911, and are instead used to relieve state- and county-owned emergency vehicles when the patient is relatively stable or minimally injured.

Private ambulance drivers usually must get permission from a dispatch supervisor before using their lights or sirens, even in an emergency. Additionally, they should never violate traffic laws like speed limits, traffic signals, or lane divisions—so when these drivers drive like government-run ambulances, they can put everyone on the road at risk.

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In fact, ambulance crash investigations have shown that private ambulance companies often fail to properly train their drivers, fail to supervise them, and also fail to enforce their own safety protocols designed to keep other members of the public safe.

If you’ve been injured during an accident with an ambulance or other emergency vehicle, you might be able to recover compensation for your damages from the driver or owner of the ambulance. Call the experienced ambulance lawyers at Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys at 888.501.7888 for a free consultation about your legal situation.

Emergency vehicle accidents can be complicated to settle and litigate. You need an advocate on your side who can hold the people at fault for your injuries accountable for their negligence. You need Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys.

Ambulance Accident Injury Lawyer Near Me

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Filing a claim with Gordon Mckernan Injury Attorneys is easy! Simply follow the steps below.

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Ambulance Accident Attorney in Louisiana Lawyers

Settlements & Verdicts

$690,000

Rear End Car Accident

Client was rear ended in a car wreck. $690,000 settlement.

$117,000

Drunk Driver Hits Client Head On

Our client was in an accident due to a drunk driver hitting them head on. Case settled for $117,000.

$667,000

Back Injury from 18 Wheeler Accident

Back injury resulting from 18-wheeler rear-end accident. Case settled for $667,000.

$2,800,000

Wrongful death in custom bus accident

A custom bus accident causes a wrongful death.

$4,000,000

Pump casing fractured spraying client with chemical causing severe burns & later death

While working, the pump casing fractured spraying our client with a chemical, TiCl4, causing severe burns and later death.

$100,000

Three Car Collision in Georgia

Our client was involved in a three car collision in Georgia, resulting in back and neck injuries and a case settlement of $100,000 by Attorney Katie Pizzini.

$10,000

Client Suffered Headaches, Back & Neck Pain After 3 Vehicle Crash in Natchitoches, LA

Client was in a three vehicle automobile wreck in Natchitoches, Louisiana. As a result of the accident, client suffered from back and neck pains as well as headaches.

$6,950

Neck and back pain after car accident in Baton Rouge

Our client was involved in a car accident in Baton Rouge and suffered from neck and back pain.

$12,800,000

Two Worker’s Asbestos Exposure

Two former chemical plant workers dying of lung cancer won a $12.8 million state award, blaming their illness on asbestos used in industrial insulation.

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