Rideshare Law Office wins support for San Francisco victims hurt in accidents involving Uber drivers. Victims may have been struck by an Uber driver or were passengers in an Uber when it was hit by another vehicle. Please contact us to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation for all San Francisco injury victims. It’s a no-risk way to find out what your injury should be worth and how to hold Uber responsible.
Do I Need a Lawyer After an Uber Accident?
If you suffer only some very minor injuries or only property damage in an accident involving an Uber car, you may not need a lawyer’s help. Insurance companies for a large corporation usually won’t fight you as hard when you simply need to get your car fixed or pay for a quick trip to the emergency room. But when your injuries are serious, and Hospital bills will be higher, it’s a good idea to go over your options with a San Francisco Rideshare Accident Lawyer.
When Uber realizes medical expenses will be high, they’ll ask their corporate lawyers to identify ways to push the blame over to you. Those same lawyers might devalue your injury by finding doctors who will say you weren’t hurt that badly. This leaves you without the money you need to make a full recovery, and usually leaves you to foot most or all of the medical bills.
A skilled car accident lawyer fully investigates your accident and collects the evidence necessary to make sure the blame sticks to the rideshare company. Uber makes plenty of money by sending thousands of extra drivers out on our streets. Uber should be fully responsible for any accidents it causes. Your lawyer puts the evidence in front of Uber and then demands the most possible for your recovery. The settlement check is usually worth much more than you could have secured by taking on a rideshare company yourself.
Uber Driver Distraction Accidents
Uber drivers usually face many more distractions than the normal motorist in San Francisco. They can be cruising down Castro Street when an alert sounds that someone wants to be picked up. The driver interacts with a cell phone to accept the request, to navigate to the customer’s location, and to get paid.
During this time, it’s anyone’s guess how many times they must take their eyes off the road while rushing to pick up a passenger or while they have a rider in the backseat. These attention-grabbers and the pressure to get people where they need to go lead to a higher collision risk.
These are just a few of the reasons people can get into Uber-involved crashes:
Distracted by Cellphones – Uber drivers rely on their cell phones to complete each ride they accept. They may be looking at the Uber app when a light changes to red up ahead. The Uber employee misses it and rams someone from behind. This can injure the folks in the backseat and anyone in the other vehicle.
Uber Distractions – Most of us can have a restless night or be emotionally distracted and still drive our cars safely to work or school. But rideshare employees are also clocked in and working while having to deal with Bay Area traffic. Rideshare drivers might also be working too long without breaks, making them too exhausted to drive safely. Uber is responsible for the physical and mental state of its drivers, especially when they cause devastating accidents.
The Rush to Pick-Ups and Drop-Offs – Uber employees might feel the pressure to deliver someone on time. They may be tempted to speed, drive aggressively in the lanes, and ignore their mirrors and blind spots while racing down the road. These reckless actions only increase the likelihood of a collision. The recklessness can also make the consequences of the impacts even worse.
Those who have been hit by Uber drivers or hurt in a crash while riding in a rideshare vehicle should speak to a skilled Uber accident attorney before they give up on getting help after an accident. Rideshare drivers who are injured in accidents they didn’t cause may also need help if they aren’t being properly supported by their employers.
Does Uber Have Insurance Coverage for Accident Victims?
Yes, Uber does provide its drivers with insurance protection if they cause accidents. However, it’s only available in certain situations, and you may first have to file a claim with the driver’s personal auto insurer.
Uber insists that its drivers all carry their own personal car insurance. However, the Uber driver’s insurance is often the bare minimum. It’s also true that some insurers won’t cover accidents if they find out a policyholder was working for Uber at the time of a crash.
Uber’s insurance would be supplemental, and only apply if he driver’s insurance didn’t cover enough of the damages a victim experienced.
If the driver was logged into the app but didn’t have a customer, Uber could provide up to $100,000 in additional financial backing in an accident. If the driver was on the way to pick up a customer or the customer was in the backseat when the collision occurred, Uber would rely on a policy with a $1,000,000 limit. This is a lot more for victims to draw from, but Uber can also afford teams of lawyers who will work to limit what the injured receive, often less than patient needs to cover all medical bills.
If someone in another car causes a collision with your Uber vehicle while you are riding, that driver’s insurance would likely be liable for your damages.
A skilled Rideshare Law Office can help you determine who should be paying compensation to you. In some cases, it’s more than one party, and your attorney would work to get the most for your injury possible.
Earning Support for San Francisco Uber Accident Victims
Your lawyer can also investigate Uber’s practices and policies if the company seems to prefer fighting blame instead of helping you recover.
Rideshare Law would look into the Uber driver’s driving record. It’s possible Uber missed the driver’s troubling history of carelessness on the road. Uber’s training, or lack thereof of for employees could also be highlighted.
These factors and your evidence from the scene can force Uber to provide more in compensation than they’d like to.
These are just a few of the damages that Uber should be fully responsible for:
- Medical expenses. Money for any surgeries or rehab expected in the future.
- Wages from missed work hours. Any lost wages expected in the future.
- Costs associated with a permanent disability, such as medical equipment, physical therapy, or even training for a new career.
- Emotional anguish. Loss of enjoyment of life due to an injury. A claim should earn you money towards counseling.
- Enduring extreme physical pain. Pain that might stay with you over a lifetime.
- Damage or destruction to your property and your vehicle.
- Travel costs to see medical specialists and physical therapists.
Contact a San Francisco Uber Accident Attorney
If you or a loved one sustained a serious injury and the accident involved an Uber driver, contact us for a free and confidential consultation. Uber accidents can be complex cases and involve many different insurance companies. An attorney can help make sense of it all. Whether you were hit by an Uber driver, injured as a passenger, or injured as an Uber driver, we can protect your rights and secure compensation for you.
There’s no obligation to hire us, but if you need us to help you earn what’s fair, you won’t need any money. You don’t owe anything unless Rideshare Law Office wins your case for you. Then our fee is paid out of the settlement check Uber must write for you.
