Corona Amazon Delivery Vehicle Accident Lawyer
As if traffic was not bad enough in Corona, more Amazon delivery vehicles are now operating here than ever. If an Amazon driver injured you, our attorneys can help you get the recovery you deserve.
Getting coverage for your damages after an accident with an Amazon vehicle is no easy task. Strict insurance rules and what damages will be covered often confuse victims still reeling from their injuries. Our team can explain what your insurance will cover and what it will not. Since Amazon is one of the world’s most lucrative businesses, they offer high insurance coverage that we can help you file for. Still, insurance typically only covers losses like medical expenses and missed wages. To recover all your damages, including pain and suffering, we will gather evidence that allows us to file a lawsuit.
Call The Carrion Law Firm today at (718) 841-0083 to receive your free case review with our Queens Amazon delivery vehicle accident lawyers.
How to Recover Damages After an Accident with an Amazon Delivery Vehicle in Corona, Queens
After getting hit by an Amazon delivery vehicle in Corona, one of your first thoughts will likely be how to cover your damages. Under New York’s no-fault insurance rules, you can first use your insurance to help cover your medical bills and income you missed because your injuries prevented you from returning to work. Our Amazon delivery vehicle accident attorneys can also help you file a claim with Amazon and the driver’s commercial insurance. However, we will want to find a way to file a lawsuit since that is usually the sole way to cover the full extent of damages you suffered.
Your Insurance
This is a no-fault state, meaning your own insurance will kick in to cover your economic losses after a vehicle accident. You can file a claim with your provider without having to submit evidence of the other driver’s negligence before getting compensation. Documentation of your injuries and the accident itself is typically enough.
However, your insurance might not provide enough coverage for the harm you sustained. Many people purchase a minimum policy of $50,000, which medical bills can quickly exceed. Even if you have higher policy limits for medical coverage, your insurance will only pay 80% of your lost wages. To recover the remaining losses, we will need to turn to other sources of compensation.
Amazon and the Driver’s Insurance
The silver lining to being involved in an accident with an Amazon delivery driver is that you will typically have multiple insurance options to pursue in addition to your own. Amazon “Flex” drivers must possess commercial insurance for when they are on duty and personal coverage for when they are not working. If a Flex driver made deliveries when they hit you, we can help you file a third-party claim against their commercial policy. We can file a claim with their personal insurance provider if they are off duty.
Amazon also provides liability insurance with limits of up to $1,000,000 for accidents involving on-duty drivers. After exhausting your insurance, we can file a claim with Amazon to cover the gap. Unfortunately, none of these insurance options will likely reimburse you for your non-economic damages.
A Lawsuit
To recover economic and non-economic damages, you must file a lawsuit. However, you need to meet one of two thresholds before you can do so. One threshold we can overcome to file a lawsuit is for serious injuries. I.S.C. Law § 5102(d) provides a list of serious injuries, ranging from death to any non-permanent injury that disables you for 90 or more days out of the initial 180 days after your accident. You will need medical evidence to meet this bar, so make sure you get treatment immediately after your accident and follow-up care as directed.
You will also need medical records if we want to overcome the basic economic loss threshold. If all your medical treatment, lost income, and property damage add up to more than $50,000, you will be allowed to file a lawsuit.
A great deal of investigation goes into these determinations, so you will want to get in touch with our team as soon as your injuries permit and get your case started. C.V.P. Law § 214(5), the state’s statute of limitations, is only three years from the accident date, which is far less time than it sounds. Besides determining whether you have a right to sue, we must identify which parties we can name in your lawsuit.
Who to File Your Amazon Delivery Vehicle Accident Lawsuit Against in Corona, Queens
Several parties are typically involved in an Amazon vehicle accident case, but not all of them can be sued. The structure of Amazon’s business relationship with Flex drivers and its delivery service partners (DSPs) generally protects the company from liability. Amazon contracts with DSPs and Flex drivers, so it does not “employ” them. Because they are not standard employees, the legal principle of vicarious liability does not apply, and Amazon cannot be sued for their negligence.
Instead, we must file your lawsuit against the Flex Driver, DSP, or both. Some Flex drivers are independent contractors working directly with Amazon without other parties involved. In that case, we will file your claim against them and any other drivers involved in the crash. Most times, though, Flex drivers are employed by a regional DSP. Since a Flex driver working for a DSP is a traditional employee, vicarious liability will apply. Thus, the DSP can be sued for the driver’s negligence, even if the DSP did not act negligently.
Of course, we will review your case for others we can sue. For instance, the accident might have been caused by a defect with the Amazon Truck or negligent repairs. If so, we can file a claim with the truck’s manufacturer or mechanics responsible for the repairs.
Call Our Amazon Delivery Vehicle Accident Attorneys in Corona, Queens Today for Support
For a free case evaluation with our Amazon delivery vehicle accident attorneys, contact The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.