Ridesharing
has become ever-more popular over the last few years. People like the
convenience of the service provided by Lyft and Uber and have shown a
preference for this mode of transportation over all others.
Ridesharing gives an opportunity to every licensed driver to become a
carrier of passengers. No tests and few qualifications are required
for the job. This has led to an endless supply of drivers and an
increase in rideshare accidents.
Uber
and Lyft Accidents Are on the Rise
Statistics
have shown a significant increase in vehicle accidents over the last
few years. Most of these have occurred in congested urban and
sub-urban areas—the very places in which Uber and Lyft have the
largest presence. The main factors contributing to this increase
include the low standards of both companies in hiring drivers and the
behavior of the drivers of themselves.
Most Uber and Lyft
drivers do the job part-time. They do it to make ends meet and are
desperate to get as many fares as possible. They have every incentive
to carry each party they collect to their intended destination
quickly, which sometimes leads them to speed excessively and to break
other traffic laws and regulations.
What
to do After a Rideshare Accident
A
car crash is a sudden, jolting, and violent event. It leaves you
feeling shaken and disoriented—especially if you were in the
backseat of an Uber of Lyft vehicle. Once you recovered your
bearings, you should do the following:
1. Check yourself and
everyone else
You should check your own status and those of
your fellow passengers. If you do not feel any pain, you should rub
your hands over your body to ensure that you are not bleeding. An
especially violent impact can leave the body numb for a while, so
that even if you are bleeding out you may not necessarily feel it.
2. Call emergency services
You should call 911
immediately. They will send police, medical, and rescue vehicles to
your location. You should make this call even if you believe someone
else already has.
3. Exchange information
Your driver
will most likely be speaking to the driver of the other vehicle. If
you are conscious, alert, and mobile, you should join in this
exchange. You should get the contact information and insurance
details from each driver.
4. Take photos
If you are up
to it, you should take photographs of the damage done to the car you
are in. You should also take photos of the cuts, scrapes, and bruises
you have sustained as a result of the accident. You should take a
photo of the accident scene as well.
5. Get a medical
examination
Even if you feel good, you should go to the
emergency room and have yourself examined by a physician. They may be
able to detect internal injuries that you cannot see or feel.
6.
Call a lawyer
The first thing that you should do when you feel
up to it is to contact a
ridesharing accident lawyer. The rideshare company that you used will
investigate the accident. If your driver was at fault, they will
offer you a settlement. Uber has a standing policy of offering up to
$1 million to passengers who have been injured in accidents involving
their drivers. You should accept no offer or make any commitments
without first consulting an Uber accident lawyer or Lyft accident
lawyer.
The
main aim of rideshare and insurance companies is to minimize the
amount of money they must pay out to accident victims. They will
count on you to accept their initial offer and to pursue the matter
no longer. If the injuries you sustained were light and the money
they offer covers your losses and expenses, it may be a good idea to
take it.
However, if you were seriously injured in the
accident $1 million may not be enough to get you through.
The
Financial Impact of a Serious Accident
If the ridesharing
accident was severe, if it left you unconscious and seriously
injured, you may need to undergo months of surgeries and other
invasive procedures to get well again. You may need to follow this up
with an extensive physical rehabilitation regimen and years of taking
prescription drug medication. While you are on your back you will not
be able to earn an income and the bills will continue to pile
up.
Going back to work may be difficult if not impossible.
Your injury may prevent you from putting in the hours you need to
make ends meet. Or, it may force you to give up your livelihood
altogether. In the worst cases, you may need permanent care and
medical assistance in your home. You may even need a family member to
stay home with you, which will dry up another source of much needed
income.
You and your family should not have to shoulder such
financial strains alone. The people whose negligence and recklessness
led to your injury should be held accountable and made to pay.
What
Your Ridesharing Accident Lawyer Will Do
West
coast trial lawyers
help people like you get the compensation and justice they deserve
from big companies like Uber and Lyft. The
Uber accident lawyer and Lyft accident lawyer you hire will have
handled cases similar to yours and gotten good outcomes for their
clients. West coast trial lawyers will gather the facts, introduce
eyewitness and expert testimony, and bring the relevant parts of law
to bear on your case.
Here
are some of the specific actions your lawyer will take to get you the
money you deserve from the rideshare company:
Gather
the Facts
Your
lawyer will go beyond the police report on the accident. They will
engage independent professional investigators to examine the causes
and conditions of the accident. Such investigators will analyze and
evaluate the evidence from crash site for themselves. They will also
re-interview witnesses. Some people do not like dealing with police.
There may be people who witnessed the accident who refused to give a
statement to police but do not mind telling a private investigator
what they saw.
There may also be a witness who captured the
entire accident on video. If there is such a person, your lawyer will
obtain the footage they shot, which may prove the culpability of your
driver in the accident.
The physical and mental fitness of
your driver will also be looked at. As has already been pointed out,
most rideshare driver do the job as moonlighters. Your driver may
have started their shift after an already long day at work and may
have been too tired to get behind the wheel. And of course, if your
driver consumed any alcohol or drugs before they collected you, your
lawyer will find out.
Expert
and Forensic Evidence
Lawyers
like West
Coast Trial Lawyers
will also engage the services of an accident reconstruction expert.
The dents, scratches, and debris that result from an accident tell a
story of how it took place. An accident reconstruction expert can
take that evidence and develop a computer simulation that shows how
the accident unfolded. Such simulations are admissible in court.
Your lawyer will also get statements from medical experts
concerning your condition. They will submit testimony that describes
the nature and extent of your injuries and explains the debilitating
effect they have had on you. If the case goes to trial, your lawyer
will choose only experienced professionals to testify in court—that
is, experts who know how to explain complex concepts in simple and
direct language.
The
Law
The
legal code governing rideshare companies and drivers is evolving.
Technically, rideshare drivers are not employees of Uber and Lyft;
they are independent contractors. However, there is a growing body of
law that stipulates the responsibility of these companies to provide
a minimum standard of screening and selection when bringing new
drivers into their respective networks. There is also an emerging
consensus that rideshare drivers should have adequate insurance,
which includes coverage of accidents that cause personal injury.
Plaintiffs throughout the country have won lawsuits against
Uber and Lyft. The size, wealth, and power of these companies should
not deter you from taking them on.
The law as written makes
it possible for your lawyer to get you the money you deserve. Your
lawyer will need to prove that the accident was the fault of the
rideshare driver, that it caused you serious injury, and that you are
owed a specific dollar amount because of it. Lawyers who specialize
in rideshare cases will know how to put such an argument together.
After carrying out an extensive investigation of their own, they will
also be able to present the respondent with the kind of evidence that
makes the case against them sound. Uber and Lyft do not like going to
trial if they don’t need to. They fear the repercussions of having
another jury decision against them and the precedent it may set. This
will put your lawyer in a better position to negotiate a settlement
that is commensurate with all you have suffered and endured.
