Uber and Lyft Accident Cases
What Are the Insurance Limits for Uber and Lyft?
If you had a question about which company to use, Uber offers greater protections and should be the obvious choice. If you were a passenger in an Uber, they carry No-Fault (PIP) benefits, Bodily Injury (BI) coverage of 1 million and Uninsured Motorist (UM) of 1 million. Uber is also insured through Progressive, which is a large company with many resources to handle claims quickly. Lyft carries the same PIP and BI coverage, but only carries 250k of UM coverage. Lyft is insured through Greenwich Insurance Company based in Connecticut. Greenwich is much smaller than Progressive and with far fewer resources. This means that if you are injured in a Lyft, you have less coverage available and a smaller insurance company to pay those damages. The analysis should be simple that the companies are simply not equal. If you have a choice about which company to use, you should be using Uber over Lyft to protect yourself.What to Do After an Uber or Lyft Accident?
Take a screenshot of the Uber or Lyft application in use. I have seen in at least two recent cases the history of the app being deleted or denied. In one situation, a client of mine was a passenger in a Lyft. After the car accident, she spoke to the Lyft representative and gave a statement. At the end of the call, she found that all evidence of the ride, the payment, and all the details of the transaction were no longer visible on her phone. The data was impossible to retrieve and could only have been eliminated by Lyft. Now, in the subsequent injury case, our office has no proof to confirm the ride occurred if Lyft denies it in any way. In a second recent case, my client was a driver for Uber and Lyft. He had just dropped off a ride for Uber and was driving around with both the Uber and Lyft app on. As he stopped at a light, he was struck from the rear and injured. He did not take a screenshot of either of the apps. When we made the claim against Uber and Lyft for his injuries, they denied the claim. Therefore, always protect yourself and so not trust these companies to step up and do the right thing after an accident. File a Report With Uber or Lyft After the Accident. As mentioned in the above, always take a screenshot to document the ride. Then, once this is completed, contact Uber or Lyft. They will interview you about the ride. Save the history of the call on your phone. This will assist the handling of the claim down the road.Hire an Uber or Lyft Lawyer
One of the benefits of hiring a lawyer to handle your injury claim if you were injured as a result of the acts of an Uber or Lyft driver is to look into the background of the driver. According to Uber and Lyft guidelines, you must pass a background check. This background check looks to see if you have ever been on the sex offender registry. It looks back seven years for any felonies. It also looks back for DUIs or reckless driving convictions for seven years. It looks for other traffic infractions such as driving on a suspended license for the last three years. While this background check sounds effective, it is not. A person can literally commit a violent crime, go to prison for seven years, get out and drive for Uber or Lyft. In addition to being a personal injury lawyer, I am also a criminal defense lawyer. I have represented clients in the past who have been charged with very serious crimes who are currently Uber or Lyft drivers. When I researched the background check requirements for these companies, I recognized just how unreliable the system is. In a personal injury case, if it can be shown that Uber or Lyft employed drivers with bad driving records or bad criminal records, it certainly could be held liable for this negligence. If you have been injured by an Uber or Lyft or while a passenger in an Uber or Lyft, I encourage you to contact a personal injury lawyer immediately. There are countless strategic decisions that a lawyer may be able to assist you within the process of pursuing your injury claim. At St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas, our consultations are always free of charge.Contact a Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident, then you should take the proper measures to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. Contact St Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas today and speak with an attorney. For over 60 years our firm has been successfully helping people who have been injured due to someone else’s carelessness. We have been nationally ranked for decades by US News and World Reports as a Tier 1 law firm, which is the highest-ranking that can be received. Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas have dedicated their careers to continuing the firms legacy of superior legal representation. Remember that we never charge a fee, unless we win. Call us today at 727-381-2300 so that we may answer your questions, help you navigate the complexities of insurance claims, and recover the compensation that you deserve. We work hard to make sure each and every client gets the attention that they deserve. We appreciate feedback from our clients and reviews are a validation of our work. Every 5-star review that we receive lets us know that our services were appreciated by our clients.St Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas
5858 Central Ave suite a, St Petersburg, FL (727) 381-2300
Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas were voted best personal injury attorneys in Saint Petersburg, Florida for 2019.
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