The Atlanta area ranks number 11 on a list of the largest metro areas for Uber market share and number 5 for Lyft market share. These rideshare services help people in Kennesaw and other suburbs get around the metro area easily when they can’t or don’t want to drive themselves.
However, like any other vehicle on the road, a rideshare vehicle can be in an accident, leaving you with injuries, medical bills, lost income, and other damages. How can you get assistance after a rideshare accident?
A Kennesaw Rideshare Attorney May Be Able to Help
Many people aren’t sure how to seek compensation for their injuries in a rideshare accident. For example, sometimes we get calls from injured parties who want to sue a rideshare company like Uber or Lyft.
While we understand the need for compensation, in many cases, suing the rideshare company is neither necessary nor productive. However, there are often other solutions to recover your damages, and your attorney can help you determine the appropriate way to proceed.
Who Is at Fault in a Rideshare Accident?
In many ways, a rideshare accident is like any other kind of accident. We will determine who is liable for the collision and begin by making a claim on their insurance policy.
In most accidents, one of the drivers is determined to be liable, although both drivers can be partly responsible for the accident. Under Georgia law, a party that is less than 50 percent at fault can collect damages from a party that is more than 50 percent responsible.
In typical car accident cases, this often results in both drivers claiming the other is all or at least mostly to blame for the accident.
In a rideshare accident, there are several different parties who may be injured:
- The driver of a rideshare.
- The passenger of a rideshare.
- The passenger or driver of a car that was hit by a rideshare.
- A pedestrian or bicyclist who was hit by a rideshare.
If you are a passenger, we will investigate the accident, determine which driver is at fault, and pursue compensation from their insurance. The driver and/or their insurance company may still argue that the other driver was at fault, but it’s unlikely they will try to blame you.
Generally, passengers are not at fault except in very rare situations.
If you are a driver in the accident, the other party’s insurance company may try to blame you, so we will work to demonstrate that you were not at fault.
If you are a pedestrian or bicyclist hit by a rideshare driver, the unfortunate reality is that the driver and/or the relevant insurance company can still blame you for the accident. For instance, they might say you were crossing against the light or darted out in front of the car.
Again, your attorney will collect evidence to show what really happened and pursue compensation from insurance, depending on which insurance policy applies. We’ll talk more about insurance coverage in different situations later in this article.
What if You Were at Fault in the Accident?
Here is an essential piece of advice that we give people who have been in any car accident, whether or not it involves a rideshare: Don’t speculate about fault. After an accident, you should answer the responding officer’s questions honestly but don’t give additional information or voice your opinion on fault.
It can be hard to know who caused a crash when you don’t have all the information or are still trying to process what was probably a frightening experience. A surprising number of people tell the police an accident was their fault when it actually wasn’t!
You should also remember that fault can be shared under Georgia law, and even if you know you made a mistake, that doesn’t mean you were solely responsible or even mostly responsible for the collision. In some cases, we find that the client made a small mistake that had no bearing on the accident at all. In other situations, the mistake may have contributed to the collision, but the other driver was still mostly at fault.
If you suspect you were at fault in the collision, please contact a rideshare lawyer after reporting the accident and seeking medical care for your injuries. The sooner we start investigating the collision, the better.
How Do You Get Compensation if the Rideshare Driver Was at Fault?
This depends on whether the rideshare driver was actually driving for a company like Uber or Lyft at the time of the accident. Sometimes, people see a sticker indicating the car is used for rideshares, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the driver is performing their rideshare duties at any given time.
If they are driving on personal business and are not signed into the rideshare company’s app, then your accident had nothing to do with the rideshare company. We will seek compensation through the driver’s personal auto insurance instead.
Georgia requires at least $25,000 in bodily injury coverage per person and another $25,000 in property damage coverage.
If the rideshare driver is signed into an app like Uber and is ready to accept fares, they are considered to be in Period 1 of Uber’s insurance coverage structure. If they are driving around waiting for a fare when the accident happens, they have $50,000 in bodily injury liability and $25,000 in property damage coverage provided by Uber.
Lyft has similar insurance coverage and coverage periods.
Once the driver has accepted a fare, they enter Period 2, and when they pick up the fare, they are in Period 3. Periods 2 and 3 have much stronger liability coverage, with $1 million in third-party liability coverage.
This is sufficient to cover the injured party’s damages in many cases, but as with any liability coverage, the insurance company may argue that you were entirely or partially at fault. Additionally, they might make you a lowball offer that undervalues your damages.
Your attorney will correctly calculate your damages and collect evidence so they can show that the Uber driver was actually responsible.
Do You Need Rideshare Insurance if You Drive for Uber or Lyft?
Yes, for several important reasons:
- There are gaps in your coverage from the rideshare company. When you are in Period 3 with Uber (carrying or on the way to pick up a fare), you also have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UI) and Comprehensive/Collision coverage for damage to your vehicle. However, there is a $2,500 deductible for the Comprehensive/Collision coverage, which means you could get stuck with a hefty repair bill. You also don’t have this coverage during Periods 1 and 2 at all.
- If you don’t have separate rideshare or commercial insurance for your vehicle (in addition to personal insurance coverage), your insurance company doesn’t have to cover an accident that happened while you were ridesharing. Worse, they can and will drop you from your policy if they find out you’ve been driving for a rideshare company without either a commercial policy or additional rideshare coverage added to your current policy. If you plan to start driving for a rideshare company, you will need to call your insurance company and inquire about commercial or rideshare insurance because your personal policy is not meant for business or professional use.
What if the Rideshare Company or Driver Has Insufficient Insurance Coverage for Your Damages?
This often happens in Period 1 crashes because the coverage amount is lower, but occasionally, we see cases where damages exceed the rideshare company’s $1 million in liability coverage (especially if there was a wrongful death or severe injuries with a permanent disability).
Your Kennesaw personal injury lawyer will make every effort to find additional options for recovering the rest of your damages. You can sue the at-fault driver directly, but in many cases, they simply don’t have the money to pay a judgment, so this might not be a good option.
If you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage of your own, it may cover your remaining damages in some cases. Many people don’t know this, but UM/UI insurance can also be used if you are hit by an uninsured or underinsured motorist while walking or biking.
What if You Are Assaulted in a Rideshare?
Unfortunately, a car accident isn’t the only cause of injuries in rideshares. After facing criticism for their lack of transparency about safety, both Uber and Lyft have released internal safety reports showing some concerning numbers.
Uber said it received 3,824 reports of sexual assault involving Uber rides in 2019 and 2020, with 141 reported rapes in 2020 alone. While this is lower than previous numbers from 2017 and 2018 (5,981 reported sexual assaults), the reduction might be at least partly attributed to reduced ridership during the 2020 pandemic.
Lyft has so far only released numbers for 2017 through 2019, which included 4,158 reports of sexual assaults involving Lyft rides.
Other violent encounters, including assaults and murders, have also happened in rideshares. While both Uber and Lyft officially prohibit drivers and passengers from carrying firearms, this policy is challenging to enforce.
In one local case, a DeKalb man was shot in the head by a rideshare driver following a disagreement over the destination address.
If you or a loved one have experienced an assault or violence in a rideshare, we encourage you to report the incident to the police and seek medical care for your injuries. After you’ve taken these steps, please speak with a Kennesaw car crash lawyer to discuss your options for pursuing compensation.
If we find evidence that the rideshare company was negligent in a way that led to your assault, we may be able to recover damages. An example of negligence would be if the rideshare company employed a driver who had a violent criminal history or if they repeatedly ignored customer complaints and safety concerns regarding the driver.
The same is true if the company fails to act on complaints about a rider who later assaults a driver.
How Can You Get Help From a Kennesaw Rideshare Law Firm?
Please contact the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm for a free, confidential consultation about your injuries and damages. We’ll review your case, answer your questions, and lay out your options so you can make an informed decision.
The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm was founded by attorney Ali Awad, who quickly expanded it into one of the fastest-growing law firms in the country. With the help of his experienced team, Mr. Awad has recovered millions of dollars in compensation for injured people and their families.
When he’s not working on a case, he offers down-to-earth legal advice to more than a million followers on social media. Call The CEO Lawyer today at (470) 323-8779.
