Car Accident Lawyer

Ride-hailing services such as Uber have changed the way people get around, especially in big cities. Uber and its competitors have flooded the roadways with more vehicles, making car accidents more likely. An accident can also occur while the driver is distracted by the app used to connect with fares or speeding to pick up a rider. Therefore, the odds are fairly good that, sooner or later, you may be involved in a collision with a driver who works for Uber.

Uber drivers carry extra insurance that covers them while working. The amount of coverage provided by this insurance, and whether it applies at all, depends mostly on whether the driver had a passenger at the time. Here are some of the scenarios that may occur in an accident with an Uber driver.

The Driver Has a Passenger

Uber’s driver-partner insurance provides more coverage if the driver either had a passenger in the car or was en route to pick the passenger up at the time of the accident. In this scenario, the insurance policy provides up to $1 million in liability coverage. If you are injured by an Uber driver with a passenger or a request to pick one up, you can file a claim with the driver-partner insurance much as you would with a driver’s personal insurance.

The Driver Is Available To Pick Up a Passenger

In this scenario, the driver is working and has his or her Uber app turned on but has not yet received any requests to pick up passengers. If the accident occurs while the driver is driving around waiting for fares, the Uber driver-partner insurance still applies. In this case, however, the amount of coverage is significantly less. Insurance will pay a total of $100,000 in injury liability, with a limit of only $50,000 per person injured in the accident.

The Driver Is Not Working

This situation occurs when the driver is not looking to pick up fares and does not have his or her Uber app turned on. In this situation, the driver’s personal car insurance covers the accident instead of his or her driver-partner policy. This means that you obtain the driver’s personal insurance information and file a claim just as you would if he or she did not work for Uber.

While ride-hailing means convenience for many, it can be decidedly inconvenient if the driver injures you by colliding with your vehicle. Contact a law office to speak with a car accident lawyer, like from Davis & Brusca, about how to collect the damages you are owed following an Uber accident.

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