You order a ride.
You get in the back seat.
Ten minutes later, your driver is involved in an accident.
You were not driving. You did not cause the crash. You may not even know exactly what happened.
But now you are injured and trying to determine whose insurance is supposed to help you.
Welcome to one of the complications of rideshare accidents.
The App Can Matter
When a rideshare driver is involved in an accident, one of the important questions may be what the driver was doing at that moment.
Were they logged into the app?
Were they waiting for a ride request?
Had they accepted a trip?
Were they transporting a passenger?
Or were they using the vehicle completely outside of rideshare work?
Those details can affect which insurance policies may apply.
What If You Were the Passenger?
Passengers are in an unusual position because they generally have little control over the accident.
You may be injured because of something your rideshare driver did, something another driver did, or a combination of events.
That does not mean you should be left trying to figure out the financial consequences alone.
The important part is identifying every potentially applicable source of insurance coverage.
Save Your Trip Information
If you are involved in an accident during a rideshare trip, save the information in your app.
Take screenshots if necessary.
Keep the driver's name, vehicle information, trip receipt, pickup location, destination, and approximate time of the crash.
That information can help document that you were an active passenger when the collision occurred.
Do Not Assume the Rideshare Company Is Automatically Responsible
People often say, "Uber will pay for it," or "Lyft has insurance."
The actual answer can be more complicated.
Insurance coverage and legal responsibility are not necessarily the same question.
The circumstances of the accident, the driver's status, the parties involved, and the available policies all need to be reviewed.
What If You Were Hit by a Rideshare Driver?
You do not have to be an Uber or Lyft passenger for rideshare insurance issues to matter.
You could be driving your own vehicle, riding a bicycle, walking through a crosswalk, or sitting at a red light when a rideshare driver hits you.
Again, the driver's activity at the time of the crash may become important.
More Technology Can Mean More Evidence
Rideshare accidents can also create useful digital records.
Trip histories, timestamps, GPS information, app activity, photographs, police reports, and other records may help establish what was happening around the time of the accident.
The important thing is recognizing early that this is not necessarily an ordinary two-driver insurance claim.
If you were injured while riding in an Uber or Lyft, or were hit by a rideshare driver in Palm Beach County, call my office at 561-540-3636.