Newark, NJ Uber & Lyft Accident Lawyer
Car accidents involving Uber and Lyft vehicles have some complications that make these claims different from regular car accident cases. The presence of multiple, potentially overlapping insurance policies makes it hard to know which policy to file your claim with. Additionally, victims often have questions about who to sue: the driver or the rideshare company.
Fortunately, our Newark, NJ Uber and Lyft accident lawyers can help by taking your case, determining how to proceed, and filing your claims for you. We can then negotiate with insurance companies and, if necessary, take your case to court to get you the damages you need.
For a free case review, call us today at (718) 841-0083. The Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers at The Carrion Law Firm are prepared to take your call.
What Insurance Covers a Newark, NJ Uber or Lyft Accident Case?
It is important to understand the multiple overlapping insurance policies that you might be able to file your claim with. When you are seeking damages after an injury in a car accident, insurance often fails to fully cover your needs. However, Uber and Lyft have high-dollar insurance policies that often cover injury victims. If the insurance policy does not cover your case, our Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers can take your case to court and fight for the rest of your compensation there.
Your No-Fault Insurance
If you were driving when you were hit by another car, your no-fault insurance should cover your injuries. NJ uses a no-fault insurance system where each driver is supposed to use their insurance first after an accident to compensate medical expenses and lost wages, regardless of who caused the accident. However, other policies might overlap with this coverage, providing additional benefits.
Your Driver’s Insurance
Whether you were riding in an Uber/Lyft or in another driver’s car as a passenger, your driver is required to carry no-fault insurance. This covers the driver, but it also covers any passengers in the car (as well as pedestrians and bikers hit by that car).
If the rideshare driver was off duty, their personal insurance will usually cover you instead of any of the policies below.
Uber/Lyft Driver’s Rideshare/Commercial Insurance
For an Uber or Lyft driver to be able to use Uber or Lyft’s insurance policies, they need to have their own insurance. Every driver is required to carry no-fault insurance, as discussed above, but rideshare drivers also must carry commercial driver’s insurance. This often comes in the form of a special policy for rideshare drivers called a rideshare policy. If Uber or Lyft’s insurance companies refuse to cover your case for whatever reason, this policy should be a good policy to file a claim against if an on-duty rideshare driver caused your crash.
This policy only applies while they are engaged in commercial driving – i.e., while they are on duty as an Uber/Lyft driver.
Uber/Lyft Supplemental Policies
Both rideshare companies also have supplemental policies that kick in in limited circumstances. These policies typically cover around $50,000.
This policy only kicks in if the driver was on duty but did not have a ride set in their app yet. It also only kicks in if needed. If the driver has sufficient insurance to cover your claim without this insurance, it might not be accessible.
Uber/Lyft Insurance
Uber and Lyft each also provide their drivers with a high-dollar insurance policy. Typically, this covers $1 million per accident, but NJ law actually requires rideshare drivers to have $1.5 million worth of coverage.
This policy only applies when the Uber or Lyft driver has a passenger in their vehicle or when they are on the way to pick up a rider they’ve already accepted in the app.
Because Uber and Lyft both seek to avoid lawsuits, this policy is quite strong and covers a lot. In fact, it often covers anyone involved in the crash rather than covering only the rider and the Uber/Lyft driver. Talk to your Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers about whether this policy is available to cover your injuries after a serious crash involving one of these rideshare companies.
Can You Sue Uber or Lyft for an Accident in Newark, NJ?
Typically speaking, Uber and Lyft cannot be sued for injuries in an Uber or Lyft accident. Companies can usually only be sued for an employee’s negligence committed during their work duties. Because Uber and Lyft insist that their drivers are contractors rather than employees, this prevents victims and Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers from filing lawsuits against Uber and Lyft.
Uber and Lyft can be held liable in some limited circumstances. Typically, the accident or injuries would have to be their direct fault rather than their employee’s fault to bring these companies into a lawsuit. The primary way this happens is by suing them for negligent hiring or retention – though the cases where this applies are quite rare. Sometimes, these companies can be held liable for putting a dangerous driver behind the wheel if they missed past driving issues, DWIs, assaults, or other dangers in their background check.
Even if you cannot sue these companies, you can sue the driver directly in many cases. In many cases, your first route to recovery will be to file with the insurance policies listed above. If the insurance companies refuse to pay a fair settlement, then you may be entitled to sue the driver directly if you have injuries that meet NJ’s “serious injury” threshold. In those lawsuits, you can have a judge and jury set damages instead of an insurance company. Then, our Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers can fight to have the insurance companies or the driver pay your damages.
Call Our Newark Uber and Lyft Accident Lawyers Today
If you were injured in an accident involving an Uber or Lyft driver, call The Carrion Law Firm’s Newark Uber and Lyft accident lawyers today. For a free case review, contact us at (718) 841-0083.