Can Uber or Lyft Drivers be Sued for Accidents?

A car accident can lead to a great deal of pain and suffering. It is the kind of incident that is not easy to get over and leave behind. If you were in a collision as a passenger in a Lyft vehicle, the injury done to you may be especially bad. Most people are not in the habit of fastening their seat belts when in the back of a car. And almost no one buckles up when riding as a passenger in a private car service. If you are like most people, you are lulled into a sense of comfort when riding in a Lyft vehicle because you believe the person behind the wheel is an experienced professional. This is not always the case. 

Lyft and Uber are the dominant companies in the ridesharing industry. They have grown at an astonishing rate in the last few years. To keep track with the ever-increasing demand for their services, they have been willing to hire anyone. Young and old, experienced and non-experienced, good and bad driving record-Lyft drivers fall into all these categories. You never can tell which kind of driver will pick you up. If you had the misfortune of getting into a Lyft vehicle driven by an inexperienced, incompetent, and reckless driver and they drove in a way that caused an accident, then you do have the right to claim compensation. The journey to getting the money you deserve will not be easy but hiring a lyft accident lawyer will get you to where you need to go.

The First Steps After Your Recovery

A car accident is a traumatic event. You will need to put your recovery first. An accident that has led to a long period of hospitalization and multiple surgeries may force you to postpone any type of action against the driver and the company responsible for your condition. However, once you are conscious, lucid, and able to think, you should speak to a ridesharing accident lawyer.

It is right for you to surround yourself with family and friends after the accident. In fact, you may have a loved one who knows a lawyer or believes they can recommend one to you. While you should always show gratitude to people trying to help you in such a time of need, it is important that you get the right lawyer for your case. Not every attorney is qualified to take on Lyft. The ridesharing industry is new, and the very existence of Lyft and Uber have added complications to California tort law. You need someone who is specialized in the field to pursue your claim. Indeed, if the lawyer recommended to you is honest and ethical, they will come to the same conclusion and help you find an attorney suitable to take your case.

Do I Sue the Driver or the Company?

At the start, you need not sue anyone. Your lawyer will open negotiations with the persons responsible for the accident. But here is where it gets tricky. Lyft drivers are contractors. And the company insists that any compensation owed to an accident victim should be covered by the insurance carried by their drivers. The problem is that not all drivers carry the same kind of coverage. The driver whose recklessness led to your injuries may not have adequate insurance.

In this instance, Lyft will step in. Although the company is willing to give accident victims up to a million dollars in compensation, they will not offer this amount from the start. They will offer something much less, and it will be up to your attorney to get a higher amount.

The Process of Negotiation

Hiring a ridesharing accident lawyer puts you in the hands of a professional with deep insight into how Lyft operates. The company is not organized and structured like a traditional corporation; nor does it use the same processes. The highly de-centralized and distributed nature of Lyft can make it hard to understand how decisions are made. But in the end, it is just as accountable for the errors of the people who work for it as any other company.

To minimize the amount of money it must pay to accident victims, Lyft will argue that it is not wholly responsible for the accident because its drivers are not technically employees of the company. Lyft has even gone so far as to claim that the very act of picking up a passenger establishes an exclusive contract between the driver and the passenger. Most courts do not buy this argument and Lyft knows it. They will nevertheless try to use it to forestall the efforts of your attorney.

This is all part of the negotiation process, which can go on for months. An experienced Lyft accident attorney in Los Angeles knows how to counter the various legal arguments that Lyft will make to minimize its liability. Although your attorney is obliged to keep you informed of all developments in the negotiation, you need not worry about the legal moves that Lyft will try to make. Such an attorney will have seen them before and will make short work of them.

Your attorney must prove that the accident was caused by the recklessness of the Lyft driver, that Lyft is liable for these misdeeds, and that it must compensate you for medical expenses, lost revenue, and pain and suffering. Lyft will not want to take the case to trial-especially if you have been badly injured. Although the company retains the services of high-power law firms, nothing beats the appearance and testimony of a badly hurt plaintiff. They know the odds are against them if they argue before a jury. Indeed, the company will not even want you to file a lawsuit, as lawsuits are public and can tarnish their image.

West coast trial lawyers know how to use these vulnerabilities against Lyft. Before your lawyer goes into the negotiating room with the Lyft legal team, they will have already gathered enough facts to pressure them into making an adequate settlement.

The first thing your Lyft accident attorney in Los Angeles will do after they take your case is investigate the causes and circumstances of the accident. Inquiries will be made into the mental and physical state of the driver. The driving record of the Lyft operator will also be investigated. If it is less than stellar, this fact can be used to further your claim. If the accident has caused you to lose your livelihood or has led to permanent disability, statements from your physicians explaining all this will also be leveraged during the negotiation.

What Can You Hope For?

West coast trial lawyers who specialize in ridesharing accidents are the best at what they do. They spend their lives going up against Uber and Lyft to help get justice for their clients. If Lyft refuses to give adequate compensation, you may need to sue them. The company will still want to avoid a jury trial, and they may push you into filing a lawsuit in order to delay things. In the end, if the facts and the law are on your side, they will have to yield. You may not get the exact amount you want, but you should get enough money to pay your bills and re-build your life.