Uber and Lyft accidents can leave passengers, drivers, and other motorists facing serious injuries and complicated insurance questions. Because rideshare collisions involve many of the same liability issues as other traffic crashes, our Tucson car accident lawyers can investigate what happened, determine whose insurance applies, and identify every potentially responsible party.
The Mercaldo Law Firm has represented injured people throughout Arizona for more than 40 years. Call (520) 624-1400 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation with a Tucson rideshare accident attorney.
Why Choose The Mercaldo Law Firm for Your Rideshare Accident Case in Tucson?
At the Mercaldo Law Firm, we put our decades of experience behind every case. Our history of success and renowned legal reputation puts the following advantages on your side:
- A commitment to hands-on legal strategies and an individualized claim based on the unique circumstances of your case
- Over 40 years of experience, knowledge, and resources behind you throughout every step of the legal process
- Our record of recovering over $400 million for injured clients gives us strong negotiating powers with insurers and a renowned legal reputation in Arizona’s civil courts
We don’t charge upfront fees to injury victims. Instead, we offer a free consultation and use a contingency-based payment system, so you only pay for our legal services after we’ve recovered compensation for you.
What Causes Rideshare Accidents in Tucson?
Rideshares are private and convenient vehicles that arrive at the touch of an app. Unfortunately, a major university study reveals a 3% overall increase in car accident fatalities since the rise of the rideshare industry. This increase in traffic accidents may result from more individual vehicles on the road, as fewer passengers use buses and other forms of mass transit. Still, rideshare cars might be more prone to accidents due to the following common causes:
- Distracted driving, from a driver using their rideshare app to navigate and seek the next passenger
- Speeding to accomplish the maximum trips possible per shift
- Aggressive driving
- Tailgating
- Making unsafe lane changes
- Improperly merging
- Illegally passing
- Failure to yield the right of way
- Impaired driving
- Fatigued driving, especially when a rideshare driver has a full-time job and uses their rideshare job for a secondary income
- Inexperienced driving
- Failing to adjust speed to road conditions during storms or inclement weather
- Inadequate vehicle maintenance
In some cases, parties other than the rideshare driver may be at fault or contribute to an accident, such as a negligent road maintenance agency or the manufacturer of a defective vehicle part or tire. A Tucson rideshare accident lawyer pursues compensation from one or more liable parties under Arizona’s pure comparative negligence law.
What Types of Injuries Happen In Tucson Rideshare Accidents?
A rideshare accident happens in an instant, but painful and debilitating injuries can cause lasting or permanent physical trauma. Common injuries reported in rideshare accidents include the following:
- Lacerations, contusions, and abrasions
- Soft-tissue injuries like sprains, torn ligaments, and tendon damage
- Neck injuries
- Back injuries
- Broken bones
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Internal organ injuries and internal bleeding
- Spinal cord injuries
- Burns
- Traumatic amputations
- Facial and dental trauma
After an injury, the damages add up quickly when medical bills arrive at the same time that painful medical procedures and lengthy recovery time prevent a prompt return to work. These consequences of a rideshare injury are the damages in a rideshare accident claim.
Who Is Liable for a Rideshare Accident In Tucson?
Liability and insurance coverage in an Uber or Lyft accident depend on who caused the crash and the driver’s status within the rideshare app at that time. Rideshare drivers are generally classified as independent contractors, but that does not automatically prevent an injured person from pursuing applicable coverage or, in some circumstances, taking legal action involving the rideshare company. Available insurance may include the driver’s personal policy, coverage provided through the rideshare platform, or another responsible driver’s policy.
- If the rideshare driver was using their vehicle for private purposes, their private auto insurance coverage is in effect
- Once the driver turns on their rideshare app to seek a passenger, the lower-tiered coverage comes into effect with $25,000 in property damage, $50,000 per person, per accident in injury coverage, or $100,000 total bodily injury coverage per accident
- Once the driver has a passenger booked, while driving to the pick-up location, and throughout the rideshare trip with the passenger until drop-off, the top level of coverage is in place with up to $1 million available per accident
Insurance companies in rideshare claims commonly deny liability and dispute that their policy was in effect when the accident occurred.
Depending on the circumstances of the accident, the at-fault party could also be a third-party driver, a negligent road maintenance agency, or the manufacturer of a defective auto part.
How can a Tucson Rideshare Accident Attorney Help My Case?
Whether you were injured as a passenger in a rideshare vehicle or as a motorist in a collision caused by a rideshare driver, rideshare claims are complex, requiring evidence of liability and an understanding of the uniquely structured rideshare insurance system. An accident attorney from the Mercaldo Law Firm will do the following:
- Investigate all aspects of the accident
- Determine the cause of the crash and the at-fault party
- Pinpoint liability and the appropriate insurance policy
- Document compelling evidence of liability
- Make a careful calculation of your damages by assessing medical bills and consulting with medical experts
- Send the results of the investigation to the correct insurer
- Negotiate for the full amount of compensation available to you
Your Tucson rideshare accident attorney will assertively negotiate to recover the largest possible settlement for your accident damages.
Recoverable Damages In a Tucson Rideshare Accident Claim
When you can’t make a prompt return to work because of painful accident injuries, or you’re facing potential permanent disability, you have the right to compensation if the injuries were caused by someone else’s actions. A successful claim recovers compensation such as the following:
- Reimbursement for medical expenses
- Future medical expenses
- Out-of-pocket injury costs
- Lost wages
- Future income loss or diminished future earning capacity
- Compensation for pain and suffering
- Catastrophic injury compensation for permanent harm, such as loss of limb, organ loss, vision damage, hearing loss, or diminished quality of life
If a rideshare accident resulted in the loss of a loved one, our Tucson wrongful death lawyers can explain your family’s legal options under Arizona’s wrongful death liability law.
Contact Our Tucson Rideshare Accident Lawyers
You don’t have to be left responsible for the effects of a serious accident or leave your claim in the hands of an insurance company that does not have your best interests at heart. Call the Mercaldo Law Firm at (520) 624-1400 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation with our Tucson rideshare accident lawyers.