Receiving Compensation After a Florida Rideshare Accident

Whether you’re visiting Florida or just need a ride from your residence to your destination, rideshare platforms like Uber ensure it’s easy to book a pickup. Within seconds, you can have a ride scheduled and ready to pick you up at your hotel or residence. The driver drops you off safely at your destination and you get on with your day or evening activities.

Most of the time your ride goes off without a hitch. However, sometimes your Uber is involved in an accident and you’re suddenly dealing with damages. An estimated 127 fatal Uber-related crashes in 2021 were reported to authorities. So, can you recover compensation for your Uber accident? In some cases, the answer is yes.

What Qualifies as an Uber Accident?

Simply being in a vehicle with other passengers doesn’t always qualify as a rideshare accident. This applies whether the driver is behind the wheel of an Uber, Lyft, or other rideshare platform.

If the driver is connected to the rideshare app, meaning this is how you booked the ride, there’s a good chance it qualifies as a rideshare vehicle. If a driver is associated with the rideshare platform and is involved in an accident, you may be able to recover compensation through the platform’s insurance.

Some examples of when this can apply include:

• Your personally owned vehicle is hit by a rideshare driver
• You’re a passenger in a rideshare vehicle and are injured in an accident
• You’re a pedestrian or bicyclist and hit by a rideshare driver, this can also apply to motorcyclists

You may also be able to file a claim for a rideshare accident if you’re injured in an accident while using public transportation. For example, if you’re on a city bus and it’s struck by a driver of a rideshare vehicle.

Factors That Can Affect The Value of Your Uber Accident Claim

Regardless of whether your injuries are minor or life-altering, receiving compensation is often a priority. Your compensation can help offset costs associated with the rideshare accident which often include medical expenses, lost income, and property damage costs.

While every rideshare accident claim is different, all must meet the same requirements. To file a personal injury claim in Florida after a rideshare accident, you must meet the four elements of negligence.

• Duty of care. You must prove the at-fault party owes you a duty of care. All drivers, including those associated with rideshare platforms, have a duty to other motorists to follow all traffic laws.
• Breach of duty. The at-fault party must be in breach of their duty of care for your claim to progress through the system. In a traffic accident, this typically means showing the at-fault driver breached their duty when they failed to follow all traffic laws. An example is if the rideshare driver runs a red light and crashes into another vehicle.
• Causation. The third element of negligence requires you to show that the accident with the rideshare driver is the cause of your injuries. If you’re wondering about any pre-existing conditions that may increase your chances of sustaining injuries, Florida recognizes the eggshell doctrine. This doctrine allows accident victims to receive compensation for any injuries sustained in the accident, even ones that may be more likely to occur due to a pre-existing condition. An example can be if an accident victim has brittle bone disease and ends up being diagnosed with a broken arm. While their health condition may make them more susceptible to a broken bone, the accident is the primary cause of the injury.
• Damages. You must prove the damages that resulted from the accident. These damages can be injuries or financial problems caused by the accident. Submitting receipts, bills, and other documents can help show that your damages are caused by the accident.

Severity of Your Injuries

The severity of your injuries plays a role in the value of your rideshare accident claim. Injuries typically comprise a significant portion of a claim. Minor injuries typically result in lower medical costs. You may only miss a day or two of work.

Since your damage amounts are lower, you should expect the same from your personal injury claim. More severe injuries typically result in longer hospital stays and more time off work.

If your ride-share accident has left you with more severe damages, you want to save all receipts and bills. This can include any paperwork relating to:

• Emergency room
• Hospital stays
• Doctor visits
• Diagnostic tests
• Rehabilitation

Counseling sessions can also be included in a personal injury claim, as long as the therapy relates directly to the accident. For example, if you’re experiencing PTSD symptoms after being in an accident with a rideshare driver.

Compensation for Future Care

The value of your claim typically increases if you require long-term care. This is something you want to discuss with your healthcare provider before settling a claim with the insurance company. Some of the factors that may affect the value of your claim, after calculating current damages include:

• If physical therapy is prescribed by your physician
• Do you need long-term counseling
• Did you suffer a disfigurement like scarring or an amputation
• Did the accident cause a lifetime impairment like a loss of hearing or vision
• Do you need home nursing care
• Will you require any assistance devices like a wheelchair
• Can you return to work and perform the duties of your job
• Do you need to take a less-paying job due to your injuries?

Forgetting to ask yourself these questions can affect the value of your accident claim. After all, you don’t want to calculate a lower claim amount only to learn that you still have outstanding medical expenses.

Taking your time to calculate your damages, both economic and non-economic, can help ensure you receive fair compensation for your damages in a rideshare accident.

Let a Florida Injury Attorney Help With Your Rideshare Accident Claim

Rideshare platforms like Lyft and Uber have attorneys ready to help defend their drivers from personal injury claims. If you’re injured in an accident involving a rideshare employee, don’t go through the legal process alone. Talk to an attorney about your rideshare accident claim.