The time for expensive taxi rides is over. Traveling in a city with a strong ridesharing presence is simpler and more cost-effective. If you live in a city where Uber and Lyft operate, you have undoubtedly noticed the ease with which you can travel. This consumer advantage has not come without disadvantages, like ridesharing accidents. We’ll show you important facts and information about ridesharing, its downside, and what to do in case of road traffic accidents.
Although many more private cars are available, the quality and training of the drivers are not what they once were. Indeed, not every rideshare driver is safe and reliable. Given that nearly anyone with a car can offer their services through Lyft or Uber, passengers will likely get into vehicles driven by people with problematic driving records.
Road Traffic Ridesharing Accidents Information
Recent research has proven that accidents involving Uber and Lyft drivers are rising. Two main factors help explain this trend. First, because of the ease of becoming a rideshare driver, people who need extra money do it part-time.
Rideshare drivers usually take shifts once they have finished with the jobs that provide their main source of income. This means that they are not fresh when they get behind the wheel, which may make them less alert to dangers on the road.
The second reason involves the nature of the industry itself. People like using rideshare vehicles because of their cost-effectiveness. But lower prices for consumers translate into lower fares for drivers. It encourages drivers who depend on this money to do as many pick-ups and drop-offs as possible during their shift—to make up for the relatively low income.
What To Do After A Ridesharing Accident
If you are in such an accident, it will first leave you confused and frightened. Once you begin to get your bearings, you should do the following:
- 1- Verify Your Physical Condition: Serious injury is not always signified by pain. The only way to know whether you have been seriously injured is to check yourself manually and call emergency services.
- 2- Get Driver Information: You will need the driver’s full name, driver number, and insurance information. You need not discuss the details of ridesharing accidents. Even if you witnessed them making a move that caused the accident, do not mention it. You will need to keep things calm.
- 3- Talk To Witnesses Of Ridesharing Accidents: Speak to bystanders who saw the accident. Write down what they say. You should collect the names and contact details of the people you speak to before you leave.
- 4- Get Treatment: You are not a medical professional. You are, therefore, not qualified to determine your physical condition. Go to the emergency room and have an expert examine you. If you were banged up in the accident, get photos of your injuries before being cared for.
- 5- Gather Documents: Ensure you get hard copies of all physician reports on your health and treatment. It would be best to record your initial thoughts and recollections of the accident.
- 6- Call A Lawyer About Ridesharing Accidents: Your first phone call should be to a personal injury attorney. You should contact a ridesharing accident lawyer before you do anything else, including submitting your claim to your health insurance provider. Your lawyer will provide you with the guidance you need to maximize the money you get.
Why You Need An Attorney
Although Lyft has a policy of offering passengers injured in their vehicles up to $1 million, they do not immediately give out this money. The company expects the driver’s insurer to settle passenger accident claims. If the driver’s insurance is inadequate, then Lyft will step in. However, they will still not offer the $1 million immediately. They will make an initial offering that is much less than this.
Whether you take Lyft’s initial offer will depend greatly on the severity of your injuries, the medical expenses you have incurred, and the lost wages and employment opportunities you have suffered. It would be best if you left the matter in the hands of your Los Angeles Lyft accident lawyer.
They will know how to evaluate best the offer made to you by Lyft. Allowing your Lyft accident attorney to communicate and negotiate with the company. This is the best way to avoid saying or doing anything that will undermine your case against them.
The worst of your injuries, the more money you should demand from Lyft. Your lawyer will demand more if the initial offer does not meet your financial needs. If Lyft refuses, you will need to sue.
The Consequences Of Serious Ridesharing Accidents
One of the important facts about serious ridesharing accidents is that they can destroy your life as you know it. Not only will you be forced to undergo painful surgeries, but you will also need to go through an even longer period of recovery and rehabilitation. You cannot make the money necessary to support yourself and your family during this time.
If you sustain a permanent disability, you may need to give up your career. You may also need to hire full-time care and modify your home. This can put tremendous strain on you and your loved ones. Lyft should bear some of the responsibility and cost of your injuries.
What Your Lawyer Will Do About Ridesharing Accidents
West Coast Trial Lawyers help ordinary Americans stand up for their rights against big companies like Lyft. The latter has, over the last decade, maintained that it cannot be held liable for the costs associated with ridesharing driver accidents because it does not employ them; it only contracts them.
This line of argument has not found much sympathy with judges and juries, and they have awarded big settlements to people who have sustained serious injuries owing to the negligence and recklessness of unqualified Lyft drivers. Your lawyer will help you do the same.
Your attorney will send private investigators to re-examine and re-evaluate the evidence. This will include re-interviewing people who witnessed the accident, which can lead to new insights and even new facts concerning the accident. This often happens when a witness is found to have recorded the accident on their cell phone.
Concluding Important Facts Ridesharing Accidents
If you have been in a Lyft accident, you need a strong and dedicated legal advocate. Contacting West Coast Trial Lawyers will help you sort through your legal options. We hope the article with important facts and information about ridesharing and a disadvantage, which is road traffic accidents, has helped you!
