Rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft provide valuable services to residents throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is very simple for individuals to open up their phone, press a button, and have a ride show up to take them to their destination. However, what happens if you are involved in an accident with a rideshare vehicle in Pennsylvania? These accidents can become incredibly complicated, particularly when working to obtain compensation. Here, we want to discuss steps that you can take if you have been injured in an accident with a rideshare vehicle.
Steps to Take After a Crash Involving a Rideshare Vehicle
When a crash involving an Uber or Lyft vehicle occurs, it is important to understand that the initial response will be just like any other vehicle crash.
- Seek medical care. Any person involved in a vehicle accident in Pennsylvania needs to seek immediate medical care. This medical care not only ensures a victim’s well-being, but it also establishes a solid link between the crash and the injuries.
- Call 911. Nearly every vehicle accident that occurs in Pennsylvania has to be reported to law enforcement officials. The police need to come to the scene to conduct an initial investigation and fill out an accident report.
- Gather evidence. If you are able to do so safely at the scene of the crash, you should use a phone or any other type of camera to take photographs of everything you see, including vehicle damage, debris, skid marks, traffic and weather conditions, injuries, and more. If there were any eyewitnesses in other vehicles or nearby, you need to get their names and contact information so they can be asked for statements later on.
However, accidents involving rideshare vehicles will have some distinct differences, particularly relating to whether or not you were a passenger in the rideshare car as well as issues related to insurance carriers. Accidents involving rideshare cars will have additional steps that you need to take.
- Reporting the incident to the rideshare company. If you were a passenger inside of the rideshare vehicle when the crash occurred, there will be a way inside of the company’s app for you to report the crash to the rideshare company.
- Contact your insurance carrier. Regardless of whether or not you were a passenger inside the rideshare vehicle or in another vehicle when the crash occurred, your insurance carrier needs to be notified about the incident. They need to know that the crash involved a rideshare vehicle.
- Understanding the rideshare insurance system. For crashes caused by rideshare drivers, major companies like Uber and Lyft have a “tiered” insurance system in place.
- If a rideshare driver caused the crash but they were not signed into the app to work, then their personal insurance carrier will be responsible for paying compensation to victims.
- If a rideshare driver caused the crash and they were signed into the app to work, but they did not have a passenger, then their personal insurance carrier will still be primarily responsible for covering the expenses of the other parties. Uber and Lyft do have supplemental insurance policies that may kick in to pay in the event the driver’s personal carrier denies the claim or if the insurance limits are exhausted.
- If the rideshare driver caused the crash and they were signed in to the after work and had a passenger or were on the way to pick one up, then both Uber and Lyft are supposed to have $1 million insurance policies that cover every party involved.
It is crucial for any person involved in a crash with a rideshare vehicle to seek legal assistance as soon as possible. A Pennsylvania rideshare accident lawyer will be able to conduct a complete investigation into the case and help their client recover total compensation for their losses.