Uber accidents can cause devastating injuries. Contact an Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas at McDonald Worley for help with your crash.
Ridesharing apps are highly convenient and this is part of the reason why they’re so popular among everyday consumers. However, as safe as Uber or Lyft may appear on the surface after hours and hours of restless marketing campaigns, there are several accident claims against such ridesharing companies. An accident victim can sustain serious injuries and emotional distress, face loss of income, and even may have to deal with property damage as a result of a crash. However, Uber accident liability against the at-fault driver is not properly understood compared to other motor vehicle accidents.
Most of what an accident victim must do to secure a safe spot in the case is to be done at the accident scene itself. Knowing how to proceed with your case and how an uber accident attorney in Las Vegas can help may help your chances of recovering compensation for your losses. Insurance companies can be very non-cooperative and may even try to slash down your compensation sum. In other cases, it may not even come to that, as your claim may be rejected due to a minor technicality.
The McDonald Worley law firm is ready to assist clients caught in trouble due to accident injuries and more. Our legal team’s goal is to hold the liable parties accountable for their negligence and also demand a fair and thorough settlement for all damages sustained. Reach out to an Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas to see if we can help with your claim.
Can an Uber Accident Attorney in Las Vegas Help You Sue For Uber Car Crashes?
This may seem like a rhetorical question, but many people don’t know that they can indeed sue the Uber driver and even the company for a car crash. However, there are certain conditions tied to it that make the whole thing quite complicated. While you can sue the company, you’ll have to prove that they had a share in the negligence that led to the accident. This whole concept can seem confusing on the face of it but a capable car accident attorney in Las Vegas can help you better understand your position in the case.
Here’s when you can sue the Uber company for a car crash in Vegas:
- If you were an Uber passenger (through the ridesharing app)
- If the driver’s tracker and GPS app was on when the accident happened
- If the accident resulted from negligence (drunk driver crash, distracted driving leading to a fatal crash, etc.) on part of the driver
- If the driver had a record of poor driving performance but Uber neglected it
- If the Uber GPS app somehow distracted the driver
Note that all of this applies only when the driver is driving for Uber and has the Uber GPS tracking app on. Since Uber does not hire drivers as employees but rather keeps them as contractors, what they do during their work time with Uber is the only time the company can be held accountable. This may make things complicated but your Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas can still guide you through the process and help you understand your options in personal injury claims concerning Uber rides.
The company’s insurance policy is meant to protect its business interests but with legal help, you can claim fair compensation. However, in the case of gross negligence, i.e., drunk driving on part of the driver, violation of speed limits, hiring a driver despite past police reports against them, and so on, you may be able to sue the company for compensation.
Also, you need to know who can sue for medical expenses and more in auto accidents involving Uber rideshare cars:
- The passenger (if they got a ride via their app)
- Another driver, if the Uber driver (while the app was on) showed negligence
- A pedestrian hit by the Uber car
In other cases, you may not be able to sue Uber, for instance:
- If the driver did not have the Uber app on while driving
- If the accident was caused by the negligence of another driver, in case of a multiple-vehicle crash
- If you did not book a ride via the Uber app but simply happened to be in a car driven by someone who usually works for Uber (but not at that time)
However, your Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas will be better able to explain your position in the whole case. The attorney will go over your legal options during your initial consultation session with a competent car accident attorney from McDonald Worley.
How Can Uber Be Responsible For a Car Crash?
Establishing negligence is key to securing compensation from a liable party in tort law, as is the case with Uber car crashes. But how is Uber responsible for all of this? As it so happens, the entire model design reeks of negligence on part of the company which can make them liable for any damages incurred upon you in a rideshare accident. How so?
Have you ever noticed how Uber works?
You’ve got a driver, who knows very little about where you’re headed. Perhaps they’re new in town and could not secure a job. Now the driver will get you where you need to be but will have to focus back and forth between the road and the GPS display. And they’re on the clock. Usually, these jobs come with a tiered earning structure – the more rides you do, the more you earn. This necessitates a rush-type behavior.
All of this sounds pretty risky and it is!
Uber drivers are not selected after a rigorous screening process. Almost anyone with a car and a phone can join the fleet and start working. This, coupled with all the details we just shared can create safety hazards for the people in and around the driver. Uber safeguards its business interests by not hiring people but simply signing them up as contractors, meaning what they do off-duty is not Uber’s problem.
This again is unfair considering that it allows the company to escape liability in case one of its drivers causes a crash.
Additionally, specific driving situations pose a higher risk of drowsy driving-related accidents, which is true for Uber too in many cases. Most of these crashes occur either in the late afternoon or between the hours of 12 am and 6 am. These times overlap with usual energy slopes controlled by the circadian clock—our internal timekeeping system that controls sleep, appetite, and other biological processes.
This impairment makes a person less attentive to their environment and easily confused. It reduces their reaction time, making it tougher to avoid dangers in the roadway. Inadequate sleep is also bound to deteriorate decision-making that may lead to risk-taking behind the wheel.
Since independent contractors have to take ride after ride to maximize their earnings, the possibility of them getting drowsy or at least inattentive is very real.
Your Uber accident attorney in las vegas can cover the rest of the details for you.
Uber Car Crash Statistics
A brief look at the statistics will give you an idea of the risk factor for Uber cars throughout the USA, and this also applies to Vegas. Between 2017 and 2018, a total of 97 fatal crashes involved Uber vehicles. These accidents led to 107 fatalities, including drivers in 21% of the instances, the same percentage for the riders. In 58% of the cases, the other vehicle or pedestrian suffered fatalities as well.
These numbers are for fatal crashes alone, the instances of total car accidents are much higher, and did not decline (as much as expected) during the COVID days. Uber crashes, as the above data shows, are much more common and frequent than you might have expected. This does not make Uber any more dangerous than a regular passenger car, but that’s the point: we normally assume that they are much safer which is not the case.
How Much Does Uber Offer As Compensation?
Uber can be made to pay up for your losses if you can prove that they were liable for your losses somehow. Also, if there were multiple passengers on the ride when the crash happened, you’ll have to split the settlement sum with them based on the intensity of the damages sustained.
There are several possibilities concerning Uber accidents:
- Passenger injured in an accident caused by an Uber driver
- Passenger in an Uber injured in an accident caused by another driver
- Passengers in another vehicle hurt by an Uber crashing into their vehicle
- Passengers in another vehicle hurt when a negligent Uber driver crashed into their car but not logged into the Uber app
For the first three scenarios (and other comparable cases), you can seek compensation benefits from Uber as per their policy. Uber can cover losses up to a million for damages sustained due to negligence on part of an on-duty Uber driver. However, your specific settlement sum will be affected by the intensity of your situation.
For instance, traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries can cost much more than what is expected in a regular bodily injury case. An experienced Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas can help you calculate all your losses and then seek compensation from the liable parties (which can be Uber in some cases). However, if a third party is responsible for the crash, they’ll have to have an insurance coverage plan to be able to pay for your damages.
Reasons to Hire an Uber Accident Attorney in Las Vegas
Insurance adjusters will try to come up with all the excuses they can to reduce your compensation claim, or even deny it completely. This includes looking through your medical records, using your words against you, and so on. This is why many crash victims choose to hire an Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas to safeguard their interests in the whole matter. A car accident attorney in Las Vegas will help you claim a fair settlement for your insurance claim by doing the following:
- Thoroughly investigating the case and filling in the gaps with evidence
- Working with a legal team to prepare your case
- Calculating all the losses sustained, including medical costs and loss of income
- Offering legal representation at all stages of the process
- Identifying the responsible party or parties
- Handling settlement negotiations with the insurance adjuster
- Preparing witnesses for trial if needed
- Taking matters to the court if the negotiations stall
- Demanding fair financial compensation based on your losses from the Uber crash
- Holding the negligent driver accountable and filing for punitive damages in court in case of gross negligence or mal intent, i.e., reckless driving, crash leading to loss of life, etc.
A capable Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas will make all the difference in your case and make sure that you are provided with all the types of compensation you deserve. Since the exact nature of cases is different for all, you need someone who has vast experience dealing with such cases and will fight to deliver justice in your case.
Since Uber crash cases are much more complicated than regular accident cases, having legal assistance to be able to demand your compensation rights can help take some stress off of you. And McDonald Worley law firm is here to help you out!
Seek Legal Help From The McDonald Worley Law Firm
Over the years, our legal team has dealt with all sorts of car crash compensation cases, including those involving Uber rides. Though such cases are complex, an Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas can simplify the details for you and help you make an informed decision for your case.
Not only will we debrief you on the whole situation during our free initial consultation session but will also handle your legal matters without any upfront payments. If we are successful with your claim we take out our legal fees from the compensation check, so it doesn’t come out of your pocket.
Legal help is only a phone call away, reach out today to schedule an appointment with an Uber accident attorney in Las Vegas and let us handle the rest!