De Vera v. Long Beach Public Transportation Company

225 Cal. Rptr. 789 (1986)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P was injured when a bus owned and operated by D was rear-ended by a vehicle owned and operated by a third party. P sued D alleging that D 'negligently lost or failed to obtain the identity of the motor vehicle and its driver that rear-ended with D's bus in which P was a passenger on September 7, 1982.' P claimed that D 'owed a legal duty to obtain and safely keep this information about the other vehicle and its driver in order that P could recover for his personal injuries and other losses sustained as a proximate result of the collision. P sued D in that D’s failure prevented him from suing the driver of the other vehicle. The court ruled that D, as a common carrier and because P was a passenger on its bus, had a special relationship with P. The bus driver, Aubra Alan Cowell, testified that his investigation revealed only that the bus was struck by a large Buick, which failed to stop, and that he, therefore, failed to obtain any information as to the identity of its driver. The jury returned its verdict awarding plaintiff damages in the amount of $17,500. D appealed.