Olney, MD Uber and Lyft Accident Lawyer

Car accidents happen every day and frequently cause very severe injuries. What can be especially frustrating for plaintiffs is if a car accident happens and they have no control over what is going on around them. When accidents happen involving vehicles driven by people working for Uber, Lyft, and other companies, this is often the case.

If you were hurt in a car crash involving an Uber, Lyft, or other rideshare vehicle, you can still get financial compensation for the effects of the accident. There are some special considerations for these kinds of cases, but our attorneys are more than up to the task.

To have a free, no-obligation case review from Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s Uber/Lyft accident lawyers, call us at (410) 694-7291.

How to Get Financial Compensation after an Uber or Lyft Accident in Olney, MD

For the vast majority of car accidents, you get compensation by filing a claim against the driver responsible, seeking damages. Things have the potential to work slightly differently in a case involving a rideshare company like Uber or Lyft. This is because you have to sue the driver or their insurance company. Uber and Lyft are off the table because they do not directly employ drivers. It can be tricky to navigate the multitude of insurance policies involved in these cases, but our Uber and Lyft accident attorneys know how to handle it.

Obtaining Insurance Coverage

The first port of call after an Uber/Lyft accident to get compensation should likely be getting an insurance company to provide coverage. There are a lot of different policies that may be able to cover your needs after a rideshare accident.

Depending on the circumstances of your accident, one of two policies provided by Uber/Lyft could apply. First, there is a policy that provides $1 million in coverage that triggers when an accident happens where a passenger is present in a rideshare vehicle. The other policy provides $50,000 in coverage and comes into play when an accident happens where there is no passenger present in the vehicle, and the rideshare driver is not on their way to pick someone up, but they are still active in their rideshare company’s app.

There is also personal insurance for each rideshare driver. Not only are drivers who work for rideshare companies required to have the same auto insurance everyone else has, but they also need either commercial driver’s insurance or rideshare insurance. This insurance is specially tailored to meet the needs of drivers who use their vehicles for commercial purposes. More importantly, regular insurance will not cover accidents that happen while the vehicle is being used for work, so it is crucial that Uber/Lyft drivers have this insurance.

There is also the possibility that another driver caused an accident when you were riding in an Uber or Lyft. If that is the case, you should pursue getting their insurance to cover your injuries instead of the insurance of the Uber/Lyft driver.

Filing a Lawsuit

If insurance companies claim that their driver is not liable and are not willing to provide coverage, you will need to file a lawsuit to get the financial compensation you need. If you prove that the negligent driver is responsible for your injuries in court – be that the rideshare driver or another one – that can compel their insurance provider to give you coverage for the effects of the car crash.

How are Damages Determined in Uber or Lyft Accident Lawsuits in Olney, MD?

The ultimate goal of an Uber/Lyft accident lawsuit is to get financial compensation in the form of damages. Damages are based on the specific circumstances of your case and can generally be broken up into the categories of economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.

Economic Damages

Economic damages refer to damages that derive from things with quickly displayed economic value. Items like medical expenses, property damages, and lost potential income fall into this category. You can generally determine the value of these damages by looking at receipts, bills, salary information, and other financial documents.

Non-Economic Damages

By contrast, non-economic damages are less immediately tangible. This category includes things like physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, emotional distress, and other things that do not obviously impact the plaintiff financially. For example, you get economic damages for the cost of treating a broken shoulder, but you can get non-economic damages based on the pain from that injury and the continued issues it may cause you.

Non-economic damages do not have a value immediately assigned to them, like economic damages. Accordingly, things like testimony from you and others about the effects of the accident on your life, as well as evidence of how serious your injuries were, can be used to support their worth in court.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages are different from economic and non-economic damages in that they are not based on your condition but on what the defendant did. You need to ask for punitive damages when you initially file your case, and they are only available to plaintiffs when the defendant has acted especially badly. Under the case Phillip Morris v. Angeletti, you must prove that the defendant acted with actual malice, which is a much higher bar to clear than mere negligence. These damages are tricky to get in any case but can be especially tough to prove in an Uber/Lyft accident lawsuit, so you should go over your case with our Uber/Lyft accident attorneys to see if they are warranted in your situation.

Chat with Our Onley, MD Uber and Lyft Accident Lawyers Now

Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s Uber and Lyft Accident attorneys offer free case reviews when you call us at (410) 694-7291.