What To Do If An Accident Occurs While I Am Riding As A Passenger In An Uber?
- Always Safety first: Your driver will be aware of the importance of moving the vehicle to a safe place away from the traffic. If needed, remind them. Make sure that they pull off out of the flow of traffic or to the side of the road. Check yourself and others for injuries, provided you feel well enough to do so.
- Inform the authorities: Like in the case of any other motor vehicle accidents, call 911 immediately. If anyone is seriously injured in the accident, call an ambulance. Sometimes you may not have any visible injuries but still, seek medical attention without any delay. There is a chance that you are in shock and are unaware of your injuries yet. You should also insist on filing a police report, as it is important if you are pursuing legal action.
- Collect evidence: It is your duty to ensure that you have important information about the Uber driver: name, insurance information, license number as well as details of any other parties of witnesses of the accident. Make a note of the exact location of the Uber accident and if it is safe, capture pictures of any visible injuries to people or damages to the vehicles involved in the accident.
- Talk to a lawyer: To know about the available legal options, talk to an Uber accident lawyer at Culver City Legal.
What To Do If I Am Hit By An Uber?
If you are hit by an Uber car while driving your vehicle or while you were walking along the road, you will have the same rights as that of an Uber passenger who is injured in an accident. You need to set your safety as the first priority and follow the 4 suggestions that are discussed in the previous section.
If a pedestrian is struck by an Uber or any motor vehicle, they will mostly suffer serious injuries. Even if you think that the hit was not serious, get medical attention immediately. The next step is to contact a rideshare attorney who is experienced in the field.
What If You Are Involved In An Accident While Driving Uber Car?
If you are driving for Uber and is involved in an accident that was not your fault, you will have to contact an Uber accident lawyer who is an expert in laws relating to rideshare accidents. Uber has a bad reputation for the way they treat their drivers. After the California Assembly Bill 5 was passed, the times when Uber could avoid the financial responsibility of accidents by claiming that their drivers are independent contractors and not employees have become a thing of the past.
There is still a lot of confusion surrounding the law and it is best to contact an accident lawyer at Culver City Legal. We will fight for your rights and make sure that you get the deserving compensation.
Should I Consult A Doctor If I Don’t Have Pain After My Uber Accident?
It is not a rare thing for accident victims to not feel any pain or other symptoms for the next few hours or even days after the accident. Avoiding seeking medical attention has serious risks. It is not good for your case as well. The most powerful evidence that the plaintiff can submit is documental evidence of the medical treatment.
If I Am Involved In Uber Accident, What Are The Insurance Policy Limits?
The insurance policy limits of an Uber driver will differ according to whether they are offline or in periods 1, 2, or 3.
Offline:
If the Uber driver was completely offline and was not logged into the Uber app at the time of the accident, then their personal auto insurance has to be used to cover any accident.
Period 1:
They will be considered in period 1 if they have logged into the Uber app but haven’t accepted any ride at the time of the accident.
When the Uber driver falls into period 1, the insurance policy coverage limits will be as follows:
- $50,000 of bodily liability per person injured in the Uber accident
- $100,000 of bodily injury coverage in an accident
- $30,000 of property damage coverage in an accident
Uber also offers a sum of $200,000 as additional liability insurance for the period-1 drivers.
Period 2:
After the Uber driver accepts the trip, they will be considered in Period 2.
Period 3:
When the Uber driver picks up a passenger, they will be in period 3.
In both periods 2 and 3, Uber offers the drivers:
- $1 million commercial auto insurance
- $1 million underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage
These amounts seem to be generous but Uber had denied liability several times and has attempted to shortchange accident victims. Hence it is important to contact an accident attorney at Culver City Legal right away.
Is It Possible To Sue Uber For An Accident?
In the past too, Uber accident victims have tried to sue Uber directly, especially when their drivers were recklessly operating. Uber’s reply in those cases was that its drivers were not employees but independent contractors. They said that the drivers were operating as independent businesses and so they were fully responsible for any accident involving the vehicle. They completely refused to share any responsibility.
But things took a dramatic turn with the passage of the California Assembly Bill 5 in September 2019. The bill brought the accident victims, drivers, and Uber into a new legal area. The law is quite recent and you would definitely need expert legal help while in situations where you have to deal with it. The best option for you is to consult with an Uber accident lawyer at the Culver City Legal. We constantly keep monitoring the evolving legal landscape and the ways in which it affects the victims of the accidents.
What Compensation Do I Get For An Uber Car Accident?
As per the California law, accident victims have the right to be granted compensatory damages for the injuries they suffered. In rare cases, they will also be entitled to punitive damages if the defendant was extremely reckless or tried to inflict harm intentionally. To get the maximum compensation, hire an experienced Uber accident lawyer at the Culver City Legal.
A victim may be awarded two types of damage compensation in the personal injury lawsuits.
- Economic: Economic damages compensate for the expenses incurred by the victim to treat the injuries. Quantifying the amount mostly and the compensation includes:
- Medical bills
- Lost income
- Property damage
- Loss of earning capacity
- Non-economic: Quantifying the non-economic damages is a bit complicated process. Subjective losses or injuries might include:
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Pain and suffering
- Losses related to physical impairment or disability
- emotional trauma
- Losses related to permanent disfigurement
Different from other states, California hasn’t set an upper limit on the amount of compensation that could be awarded to a victim in the case of a personal injury. A jury studies the evidence and estimated losses of the victims to award them reasonable compensation.
California is a stat where the comparative fault applies. If a jury finds out that you are also partially at fault for the accident, they will subtract the percentage of blame from the awarded compensation. However, sharing the blame for the accident does not mean that you have to avoid filing the personal injury claim.
What Is The Time Limit For Filing The Uber Accident Claim?
“Statute of Limitations” is the term used to refer to the limit for filing a personal injury claim. In California, it is two years from the date of the rideshare accident.
If a state, federal or municipal vehicle was involved in the Uber accident, the statute of limitations is 6 months, regardless of whether you were the driver, passenger, or pedestrian. For government vehicles, the statute of limitations is only 6 months. If you are in a similar situation, call the Uber accident attorneys Culver City Legal earliest as possible. The time period is quite short and once it passes, you do not get any legal recourse, even if the accident and injuries were very serious.
What Is The Criterion For Determining Liability In An Uber Accident?
Like with all accidents in the state of California, the driver of the Uber will be held responsible for injuries that the passengers suffered if he/she was responsible for the Uber accident. However, if the driver of the other vehicle is at fault for the accident, then they will be held liable for your injuries.
The factor that differentiates Uber from a taxi is that unlike in a taxi, the driver uses their own vehicle for transporting the passengers. Hence Uber requires the drivers to have personal insurance policies but they do not cover accidents that take place while the driver is driving for Uber. Here the driver will be using their car in a commercial capacity. When the Uber driver is held liable for the accident, Uber’s insurance should cover the same.
Why Is It Important To Hire An Uber Accident Lawyer After An Accident?
and moreover, the laws undergo continuous changes. To be frank, Uber will only attempt to protect their business interests. Our attorneys are capable of taking care of all communication with Uber and any other parties that are involved in the accident.
The Uber accident attorneys at Culver City Legal provides you access to information and details that you will not probably have without their help. Take, for example, the driver monitoring information that Uber has with them. Uber is able to see how their drivers behave on the road by keeping track of the speed at which they are driving, and the sharp turns they take. After an accident has occurred, Uber is mostly not going to readily hand over this information to the victims. But if requested by an Uber accident lawyer, they will usually be forced to hand over the information.
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