Newport Beach Rideshare Accident Lawyers
Ridesharing services, including Uber and Lyft, have become extremely popular forms of transportation in Newport Beach. Both locals and tourists rely upon ridesharing services to get to and from work and participate in various recreational activities and nightlife throughout the region. However, the possibility of severe car crashes and injuries comes with additional ridesharing vehicles on local roadways, including those in the downtown area.
Since ridesharing companies are relatively new, few statutes or court cases speak to the issues that sometimes arise in ridesharing accidents. In some situations, the Uber or Lyft driver causes an accident in which passengers suffer injuries. At other times, passengers suffer injuries when another vehicle strikes their Uber or Lyft vehicle.
Depending on the accident circumstances, different types of insurance coverage may come into play, including the Uber or Lyft corporate policy, the Uber driver’s personal car insurance policy, or a third-party driver’s policy.
Just like any other motor vehicle crash, if you become involved in a rideshare accident, you should undergo the medical treatment that you need right away. Failing to seek immediate treatment may cause your injuries to become worse. In addition, you might inadvertently jeopardize your right to recover monetary damages for your injuries.
Speak to a knowledgeable attorney as quickly as possible after your accident. The Newport Beach rideshare accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can discuss all of your legal options with you, examine potential insurance coverage in your case, and help you file a car accident claim with the appropriate insurance company. We can then help you negotiate a favorable settlement offer or litigate your case in court to an efficient resolution.
Our legal team has recovered millions of dollars in compensation for car accident victims, including those who suffered injuries in ridesharing accidents. Let us help you explore your legal options and pursue the monetary compensation you deserve for your accident-related losses.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Newport Beach rideshare accident attorney, please call us or contact us online.
Special note for other law firms: Our skilled legal team represents individuals who sustain debilitating and catastrophic injuries in car crashes and other serious accidents. We also accept referrals from other law firms on a regular basis. Please feel free to call us to discuss our referral program if you have found a strong case that requires more resources than you can afford.
Common Rideshare Accident Injuries
Like other passenger vehicle accidents, rideshare accidents may lead to severe and debilitating injuries for passengers. The extent of a passenger’s injuries depends upon the type of accident that occurs, the number of vehicles involved, the location of the accident, the speeds of the cars, the passenger’s position in the vehicle, and the amount of force involved in the collision.
Generally speaking, when a rideshare accident involves a significant amount of force, passengers in the vehicle are likely to suffer catastrophic injuries and damages.
Some of the most common injuries that rideshare accident victims suffer include:
- Traumatic head and brain injuries
- Internal organ injuries
- Internal bleeding
- Permanent soft tissue injuries
- Spinal cord damage
- Paralysis (both full and partial)
If you sustained any of these injuries in a recent rideshare accident, you should seek the medical help you need. If an ambulance comes to the scene, travel to a local hospital emergency room or urgent care facility in the ambulance.
Seeking early medical intervention ensures that your accident-related injuries do not worsen. While you treat your injuries, our knowledgeable team of attorneys can begin investigating your accident circumstances and gathering the necessary documents to pursue a claim with the appropriate insurance company.
How Long Do You Have to File a Lawsuit for a Rideshare Accident?
Victims of rideshare accidents resulting from a driver’s negligence have a minimal amount of time to pursue monetary recovery for their personal injuries. According to the statute of limitations in California, accident victims only have two years from their accident date to seek favorable monetary recovery for their injuries. Absent some minimal circumstances, if the accident victim does not file a lawsuit within two years, the courts will prevent them from seeking monetary recovery at any time in the future.
Given the strict time limitations in a rideshare accident case, you should immediately seek the legal help you need. Otherwise, you may forego your right to recover monetary damages for your injuries.
The experienced Newport Beach rideshare accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can help you file a timely personal injury lawsuit arising from your rideshare accident, thereby safeguarding your right to pursue the compensation you need. After filing a lawsuit in your case, we may continue our ongoing settlement negotiations with the insurance company adjuster and help you pursue the maximum damages you deserve.
What Are Uber’s Corporate Coverage Limits in a Car Accident?
Uber is one of the most popular ridesharing companies in Newport Beach. Ridesharing companies must provide insurance coverage of varying amounts, depending upon the accident circumstances. For example, Uber corporate has insurance policy coverage limits of $1 million per car accident—and $1 million in the aggregate. The aggregate policy coverage will come into effect if several Uber passengers in the same vehicle suffered injuries in a single-car accident.
Moreover, Uber’s corporate coverage takes effect whenever an Uber driver accepts a fare from their open Uber app. That Uber corporate coverage remains in effect until such time as the driver arrives at the passenger’s selected destination.
In addition to the coverage above, Uber also provides $1 million in uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. Uninsured motorist coverage becomes effective when another driver causes a motor vehicle crash with the Uber vehicle, but that other driver does not have any insurance coverage. Uninsured motorist coverage might also become effective if the at-fault driver fled the accident scene in a so-called phantom vehicle collision.
In instances where an Uber driver has their app turned on, but they have not accepted a ride fare, and a car crash occurs, the coverage limits are $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident, and $25,000 for property damage. If the Uber driver caused the subject crash, then their own motor vehicle insurance policy—which they must maintain as an Uber driver—may become effective and provide for the necessary monetary compensation.
What Are Lyft’s Corporate Coverage Limits in a Car Crash Scenario?
Just like Uber, Lyft provides corporate insurance coverage in certain situations. In cases where a Lyft driver does not have their app running, and a crash occurs, then the Lyft driver’s personal car insurance coverage will come into play. Moreover, during this time, there will not ordinarily be a passenger present in the Lyft vehicle.
However, if a Lyft driver has their app running, is waiting for a fare, and an accident happens, the Lyft corporate coverage will become effective. In those circumstances, the policy limits of coverage include $50,000 for bodily injury coverage per individual, $100,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident (for example, when more than one individual sustains injuries in a single crash), and $25,000 worth of coverage to compensate for property damage.
If the Lyft driver has picked their fare up and is transporting them to their final destination, $1 million worth of Lyft corporate coverage becomes applicable. That insurance coverage stays in place until the Lyft driver arrives at the fare’s designated destination. In addition to this liability coverage, Lyft corporate provides for both uninsured and underinsured motorist insurance coverage while transporting a fare to their destination.
How Do You Begin a Newport Beach Rideshare Accident Insurance Claim?
If you suffered injuries in a recent rideshare accident, the skilled Newport Beach rideshare accident attorneys at Bentley & More LLP can help you file a personal injury claim with the appropriate insurance company. Prior to filing a claim, we will need to gather certain documents which we can later use as evidence if your car crash case goes to court.
Those documents may include:
- Copies of your medical treatment records and bills
- Lost income documents
- Photographs of your injuries
- Pictures of the involved vehicles’ property damage
We can then submit these documents to the appropriate insurance company adjuster and begin settlement negotiations, assuming the insurer accepts fault for the accident.
Settlement negotiations in rideshare accident cases sometimes take a while. Insurance companies have the incentive to offer as little monetary compensation as possible to settle a car accident claim—even when the claim involves significant personal injuries.
Insurance companies, as big businesses, only make money when their insureds pay them.
However, they may lose substantial money when they have to settle a large personal injury claim or accept a significant loss in court. To avoid these potentially negative consequences, insurance companies will sometimes offer accident victims little compensation at the beginning, hoping that they will settle the case quickly.
Our legal team can aggressively negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf and pursue the maximum amount of monetary damages available to you. We can also use the threat of litigation in the court system as a means to convince the insurance company representative to increase their settlement offer.
If that increased offer does not come, we can file a lawsuit, litigate your case through the court system, and continue our settlement negotiations. If necessary, we can resolve your case at a civil jury trial or binding arbitration hearing and introduce favorable evidence on your behalf.
If you suffered injuries in a recent rideshare accident, the monetary compensation and damages that you recover will depend on various circumstances.
Factors that affect economic recovery that rideshare accident victims receive include:
- The kind of accident
- The force of the collision
- The number of accident victims who suffered injuries in the accident
- The nature and extent of an accident victim’s injuries
- The insurance company with whom the accident victim is dealing
Generally speaking, the more severe and violent a car crash, the higher the monetary compensation an accident victim can recover. Similarly, the higher an accident victim’s past and anticipated medical costs, the more damages they can potentially recover in their case.
First, rideshare accident victims can recover their out-of-pocket losses in their claims or lawsuits. Those damages may include compensation for related past and anticipated medical expenses, lost earnings, and loss of the ability to work. In addition, accident victims can recover non-economic damages for their intangible losses relating to the rideshare accident.
Those damages may include compensation for all of their:
- Mental distress
- Loss of use of a body part
- Loss of life enjoyment
- Loss of spousal companionship
- Permanent disability or disfigurement
- Long-term care costs (such as at a nursing home or assisted living facility)
- Permanent cognitive impairments
The skilled Newport Beach rideshare accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can meet with you to discuss your accident circumstances and injuries and develop a winning legal plan for your case. While your case is pending, we can also advise you on whether you should accept a particular settlement offer from the insurance company or consider filing a lawsuit and placing your case in litigation. In either instance, we will aggressively fight for your legal interests and help you recover the most monetary compensation you deserve.
Call a Knowledgeable Newport Beach Rideshare Accident Attorney about Your Legal Matter Today
Greg Bentley & Keith More, Rideshare Accident Lawyers
Ridesharing passengers do not ask for accidents and injuries to happen. However, when Uber and Lyft drivers, as well as other drivers, commit negligent and reckless acts while behind the wheel, passengers may suffer severe and catastrophic injuries, which leave them permanently incapacitated. Reach out to a Newport Beach personal injury lawyer.
If you or someone you love recently suffered injuries in a rideshare accident, the skilled legal team at Bentley & More LLP is here to help you. We can handle every aspect of your personal injury claim or lawsuit and represent you in all legal proceedings along the way.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Newport Beach rideshare accident lawyer, please call us at (949) 870-3800 or contact us online.
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Bentley & More LLP – Newport Beach Office
4931 Birch Street
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Phone: (949) 870-3800