San Bernardino Rideshare Accident Attorneys

Many tourists and locals in the San Bernardino, California region take advantage of ridesharing vehicles like Uber and Lyft. Riders use these vehicles to travel to and from work, as well as to bars, nightclubs, and other attractions in the downtown San Bernardino area. However, just like any other passenger vehicle, ridesharing vehicles may become involved in serious accidents. When that happens, riders may suffer debilitating injuries that can lead to ongoing complications—some of which may be permanent.

Most ridesharing accidents result from negligent or careless driving. In some cases, it is the driver of the Uber or Lyft vehicle who behaves negligently, while at other times, the negligent driver is a third-party driver.

If you or a person you love suffered injuries in a recent rideshare accident, your top priority should be obtaining the medical treatment that you need to get better. Next, you should reach out to a San Bernardino rideshare accident attorney as soon as possible.

The experienced legal team at Bentley & More LLP fully understands the suffering, pain, and inconvenience that often come with ridesharing accidents and injuries. Our legal team can investigate your accident circumstances and explore insurance coverage options. In some instances, you may file a claim under your Uber or Lyft driver’s insurance policy—or under a negligent third-party driver’s policy. Reach out to a San Bernardino rideshare accident attorneys.

At other times, you may pursue a claim under an Uber corporate or Lyft corporate policy. In any event, we will thoroughly explore all of your coverage options and ensure that you recover the monetary compensation you deserve for your ridesharing-accident injuries.

Our experienced lawyers have recovered millions of dollars of compensation for severely injured car crash victims, including victims of San Bernardino rideshare accidents. Let us help you pursue the monetary damages you deserve in your case.

For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with an experienced San Bernardino rideshare accident lawyer, please call us at 949-870-3800 or contact us online for more information.

Special note for other law firms: Our experienced legal team primarily represents victims of severe and catastrophic accidents and injuries. If you have a high-stakes case and need assistance, we regularly accept referrals from other firms. Please call us and let us know how we can serve you.

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Recoverable Monetary Damages in Rideshare Accident Cases

Victims of rideshare accidents in San Bernardino may pursue various types and amounts of monetary compensation. The total economic recovery they receive in their case will depend upon several factors, including the severity of their injuries, the cost of their medical treatment, the number of vehicles involved in the crash, and the force of the collision.

First, rideshare accident victims can make a claim for their related medical expenses, both past and anticipated. In cases where a crash victim suffers a permanent injury, the accident victim may need to undergo a future surgical procedure or continue a physical therapy or pain management regimen well into the future. When that happens, the accident victim can recover those anticipated medical costs in their personal injury claim or lawsuit.

In addition to recovering their medical expenses, rideshare accident victims can make a claim for lost earnings, assuming they had to miss time from work after their accident. In some cases, accident victims have to miss work time to attend their medical appointments and physical therapy sessions, while at other times, the sheer pain of their injuries prevents them from performing their job duties. This is especially common when individuals must lift or pull heavy objects while they are on the job.

To prove lost income damages in a rideshare accident case, an accident victim may need to submit copies of their recent income tax returns and/or documentation from their employer that shows the total amount of earnings they lost—and the number of days or hours they missed from work.

Some accident victims suffer such severe injuries in a rideshare accident that they cannot return to the same employment. This is especially true if they work in the building industry or construction industry where significant manual labor is required. If an accident victim has to take a lower-paying job due to the injuries they suffered in their accident, they can bring a claim for loss of earning capacity with the appropriate insurance company.

In addition to recovering these economic damages as part of their rideshare accident claim or lawsuit, accident victims can pursue compensation for their intangible losses, otherwise known as non-economic damages.

Those losses may include monetary compensation for accident-related:

• Mental anguish
• Pain and suffering
• Inconvenience
• Loss of life enjoyment
• Loss of spousal companionship
• Inability to use a particular body part
• Permanent disfigurement or disability
• Permanent scarring
• Permanent cognitive impairment

The experienced San Bernardino rideshare accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP will do everything possible to maximize your total monetary recovery. We can aggressively highlight the strengths of your case during settlement negotiations with the appropriate insurance company, and if your case goes to trial, introduce compelling evidence on your behalf to prove the legal elements of your lawsuit.

Potential Injuries in San Bernardino Rideshare Accidents

When a ridesharing passenger becomes involved in a motor vehicle crash, their body may move around the Uber or Lyft vehicle violently, sometimes striking something in the car, like the headrest, window, or seatback in front of them.

As a result, the passenger may suffer:

• Internal organ damage
• Internal bleeding
• Permanent soft tissue contusions
• Broken bones
• Rib fractures
• Traumatic head and brain injuries
• Spinal cord damage
• Full and partial paralysis

If you suffered any of these injuries in a recent rideshare accident, you should get the medical help you need right away. By going to the hospital in an ambulance and seeking treatment at an emergency facility, you increase your chances of making a full recovery and ensuring that your injuries do not become worse.

While at the hospital, a medical provider can:

• Physically examine you
• Order imaging studies, including brain scans, X-rays, and MRIs, to determine the full extent of your injuries and medical condition
• Recommend follow-up medical care if your condition worsens.

For example, depending upon the full extent of your injuries, an emergency room doctor might have you follow up with a:

• Primary care physician (PCP) or family doctor, if you have one
• Orthopedic doctor, if you suffered one or more broken bones in your rideshare accident
• Neurologist, if you suffered a traumatic head or brain injury in your rideshare accident, such as a severe concussion

While you focus on seeking all of the medical care you need and recovering from your injuries, our experienced legal team can start gathering the documents necessary to prove the legal elements of your rideshare accident claim.

Pursuing Monetary Compensation Under an Uber Corporate Insurance Policy

In certain circumstances, Uber’s corporate policy comes into effect when passengers suffer injuries in an accident. Uber’s corporate policy has coverage limits amounting to $1 million per car crash and $1 million in the aggregate if more than one passenger suffers injuries in the same accident. This corporate policy starts taking effect the moment an Uber driver decides to accept a ride fare via their phone app. The corporate policy then stays in effect until the driver reaches the passenger’s desired destination.

Uber also maintains coverage limits of $1 million applicable to uninsured and underinsured motorist accidents. An uninsured motorist accident happens when the responsible driver flees the accident scene or otherwise does not have any insurance coverage available to compensate the injured accident victim for their losses. An underinsured motorist accident, on the other hand, arises when the responsible driver has some insurance coverage, but it is insufficient to fully compensate the accident victim for their total losses.

If the Uber vehicle operator has their phone app on, but they have not yet accepted a ride fare, then different coverage limits apply to the accident. Those limits are $50,000 per individual, $100,000 per accident (in the aggregate), and $25,000 in coverage for vehicular property damage.

If the Uber driver caused the crash, then their own insurance policy may provide accident victims with the necessary insurance coverage in any claim or lawsuit that they file.

Pursuing Monetary Damages under a Lyft Corporate Policy

Just as in rideshare accidents that involve Uber vehicles, Lyft corporate provides insurance coverage and makes it available to accident victims in certain situations. First, if a Lyft driver becomes involved in a car crash when they do not have their phone app running, the Lyft driver’s personal policy insurance coverage will become effective. However, since the Lyft driver is not busing their app at this time, a passenger should not be in their vehicle.

However, in cases where the Lyft driver is using their app and is waiting on a ride fare when a crash happens, the policy will step into play and provide $50,000 worth of bodily injury coverage for individuals, $100,000 per accident (in the aggregate), and $25,000 in coverage for property damage sustained in the accident.

If a Lyft driver has already collected their passenger and is en route to the passenger’s destination, Lyft corporate coverage in the amount of $1 million applies. Those coverage limits apply until the Lyft driver arrives at the passenger’s destination. Moreover, during this time, Lyft corporate also provides for both uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.

Speak With Our San Bernardino Rideshare Accident Lawyer Today

Greg Bentley &  Keith More, Rideshare Accident Lawyers

If you or a person you care about recently sustained injuries in an Uber or Lyft accident that resulted from a driver’s negligence, you should seek experienced legal counsel as quickly as possible in your case. Reach out to a San Bernardino personal injury lawyer.

Waiting too long to seek the representation you need will hurt you. Accident victims only have two years from their accident to file a lawsuit for monetary damages. In almost all cases, filing a lawsuit after the statute of limitations will prevent the accident victim from recovering any monetary damages for their injuries.

The skilled legal team at Bentley & More LLP is ready to help you maximize the monetary recovery you receive for your rideshare-accident injuries. Our legal team can assist during settlement negotiations and handle all insurance company communications. If your legal matter does not resolve through the settlement process, we can litigate your case in the court system and pursue the highest possible compensation award on your behalf.

For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a San Bernardino rideshare accident lawyer, please call us at (949) 870-3800 or contact us online. Our legal team takes on rideshare companies and ensures they are liable for injuries that happen. These companies earn high profits; they should pay you the compensation you need.

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Bentley & More LLP – ​Santa Bernardino Office

Phone: (949) 870-3800