Rideshare Accident Injury Claims With Uber and Lyft Drivers

If you are injured in an Uber of Lyft accident, you should take the following steps to protect your physical health and future claim:

1. If your injuries allow, take photos of the accident scene so you can document your case. This includes pictures of the vehicles, any collision debris, the weather, and road conditions.
2. Gather the names and contact information for any witnesses of the crash.
3. Make sure a police report is filed to documentation your accident.
4. Seek medical attention and inform your doctor about your accident. Describe all your injuries, aches, and pains.
5. Retain copies of your medical records and bills.
6. Gather any information that will support your claim. This could include additional photos of the accident, statements from witnesses, photos of your injuries, and copies of your medical records.
7. Contact an experienced car accident lawyer that specializes in roadside collisions and injuries.
8. Avoid signing any documentation or giving any recorded statement until you have spoken with an attorney.

It is very important that you seek immediate medical help after a rideshare accident!

For any serious or life-threatening injuries, you should immediately go to the emergency room for treatment. Serious injuries would include things like whiplash, severe burns, broken bones, severe trauma, uncontrollable bleeding, and breathing difficulties. If you have to get transported by ambulance from the scene, that ambulance bill will be added to your list of damages. 

For lesser injuries or symptoms, you should go to urgent care or seek a consult by your family doctor. But keep in mind, adrenaline can mask injuries, so you should visit urgent care even if you don’t feel like you absolutely need to.

In Texas, anyone who represents a contributing factor to the accident could be held liable for damages. This includes the rideshare driver, the driver of the other vehicle, the rideshare company, a pedestrian or bicyclist if involved, or even the manufacture of a defective product (like a brake manufacturer) if this contributed to the accident.

While that is a list of potential defendants, most rideshare accidents can involve three parties. This means you might process claims with three different insurance companies:

1. Your auto insurance company
2. The drivers auto insurance company
3. The rideshare company’s insurance company

This can better be explained in your free initial consultation.

If you get in an accident while riding in an Uber or Lyft, the rideshare company is likely responsible for your damages if the rideshare driver was at fault. The good news is the rideshare company’s third-party liability coverage will apply if the driver was online during the accident.

Similar to a regular car accident, you can process a personal injury claim for, but may not be limited to:

• Medical expenses
• Loss of earnings
• Emotional distress or grief
• Short-term physical pain or discomfort
• Long-term chronic pain or discomfort
• Disability such as a scar or disfigurement
• Loss of a body part due to amputation
• Loss of an important bodily function
• Psychological trauma such as PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
• Anxiety and depression
• Diminished quality of life

Yes. Both companies should offer insurance in the event that there is an accident while waiting for a ride, while entering a vehicle, or while riding inside a vehicle.

If the Lyft or Uber driver is at fault for the accident, there is usually about $1,000,000 in insurance coverage to cover the personal injuries associated with the driver’s negligence. There is also about $1,000,00 of coverage for uninsured motorists and underinsured motorists. 

Keep in mind that your coverage from Lyft and Uber starts as soon as you open the app and request a ride.

Texas law, under House Bill 1733, requires Uber and Lyft to maintain specific amounts of insurance coverage for rideshare drivers. These rideshare companies must offer $50,000 for driver’s liability, $100,000 for accident coverage, and $25,000 for property damage coverage when a driver is online but actively engaged in a ride. This extends up to $1,000,000 in coverage when there is a passenger in the moving vehicle.

An Uber insurance claim involves multiple parties to negotiate with, but Uber is already prepared for personal injury claims and the company has insurance policies in place to cover such incidents.

Uber offers insurance that starts before you even get into the vehicle. From the time you're online with Uber until you accept a trip, Uber (should) maintains automobile liability coverage on your behalf in amounts of at least:

• $50,000 for the driver's liability for bodily injury per person case of a covered accident
• $100,000 per covered accident
• $25,000 for property damage for which you are responsible for in a covered accident

If you are in a wreck within a rideshare auto, their policy would be liable first and then your own personal auto insurance policy would kick-in if your damages allow for an Underinsured Bodily Injury Claim.  Depending on the auto policy, this policy may also include personal injury protection and/or uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage if it is required by law in the state in which you drive.

During an Uber passenger trip, you should be insured for the following in the event of a wreck:

• Third-party liability coverage: Insures your bodily injuries or damages caused by a 3^rd party (someone who comes along and damages the rideshare car);
• Third-party liability coverage: Insures your bodily injuries or damages if those damages are caused  by  the actual rideshare driver, if the rideshare driver is at fault for the wreck;
• Uninsured or underinsured motorist bodily injury coverage: This can be the policy of the actual owner of the car you are a passenger in or your own auto policy that will follow you in the event you are in a crash. This insures you and your riders if an accident occurs on a passenger trip and another driver is at fault and doesn't have sufficient insurance, as well as hit and runs. Coverage limits vary by state and by owner and driver.

Just like Uber, a Lyft insurance claim involves multiple parties to negotiate with, but Lyft is already prepared for personal injury claims and the company has insurance policies in place to cover such incidents.

Similar to Uber, Lyft coverage starts the moment you open the app and request a ride.

If you have opened the Lyft app and you are waiting for your ride, Lyft provides third-party liability insurance for covered accidents if your personal insurance does not apply. This (should) include:

• $50,000 person for bodily injury
• $100,000 accident for bodily injury
• $25,000 accident for property damage

If you are in the middle of a pickup or a passenger in a ride and there is an accident, Lyft (should) provide the following insurance coverage:

• $1,000,000 for 3rd-party auto liability
• Uninsured and/or underinsured motorist bodily injury and/or first-party coverage
• Contingent comprehensive and collision up to the actual cash value of the car ($2,500 deductible)

This varies by state, but in Texas, this is set at two years from the date of the rideshare accident. The statute of limitations for car accident claims is the same timeframe Texas uses for most personal injury claims.

Some rideshare accident claims last only a few months and others could last years. The timeframe really varies from case to case, as well as, the court’s calendar and how many other cases are ahead of you. It is important to remember that about 80% of car accident claims settle outside of court and this would help decrease the time for resolution.  It is important to note that each and every claim is different and a lawyer cannot guarantee a time frame for any resolution of a case/claim.

Most personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis, which means you pay nothing out of pocket.

You’ll only have attorney fees if your claim is successful and any payments to your lawyer will come from the damages collected. 

Our law firm works on a standard contingency fee contract and no client has to pay a fee unless there is a recovery. 

As soon as possible!

The faster you reach out to an experienced rideshare accident attorney, the better your chances of receiving the maximum compensation for your claim.

I offer a no cost, no obligation consultation so there is no reason to delay. Let me help protect your rights, answer your questions, and make sure you receive the compensation you deserve.