Norfolk Injury Lawyer John Cooper Talks About Railroad Crossing Accidents in Video

For many years I have helped people who have been hurt as a result of negligence by railroads. One area I have represented clients in is grade crossing accident cases. These frightening accidents occur when a train hits a car or a truck in the place where the road intersects on the train tracks

These are very dangerous places. Here in the Tidewater area it happens all over the place – in cities such as Norfolk and Portsmouth and out in the countryside in Suffolk and further west.

The railroad company has a very callous attitude to these accidents. They consider it their right of way and consider anybody who gets hurt or killed to be a trespasser. In Virginia there’s a law that if the driver is even one percent at fault in causing their own accident, they are going to get nothing. Often the person who is able to make a claim is a passenger in the car or truck that got hit.

A lot of the crossings have site obstructions or is overgrown and you cannot see as a motorist looking down the truck as you get to the crossing. You have no way of knowing if a train is barreling down on you.

I have had good success in the past at forcing the railroad company take responsibility for the dangerous conditions they leave many of the crossings in. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a grade crossing accident in Virginia or elsewhere, call Cooper Hurley at 757.455.0077 or see Cooperhurley.com