Las Vegas Lyft Accident Lawyers

When a Lyft ride ends in tragedy, contact Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP for legal assistance. Our attorneys can represent your claim using years of experience in the legal field. We know how to handle even the most complex rideshare accident insurance claims and lawsuits in Las Vegas, Nevada. Our team will make you and your family feel confident in your future even after sustaining catastrophic injuries. Call (702) 560-5520 to speak with a Las Vegas Lyft accident lawyer today. Our attorneys can be your compassionate advocates.

Injured Lyft Rider, Motorist, or Pedestrian? We Can Help

Lyft drivers have caused a string of injuries, even deaths since the rideshare company’s creation in 2012. Negligent, incompetent, and reckless drivers have collided with other motorists, injured riders, and crashed into vulnerable bicyclists and pedestrians. It is our firm’s mission to hold Lyft and its drivers responsible for the actions that cause accidents. We aren’t afraid to file claims with Lyft’s insurance carrier or take your case to trial if need be. Our injury lawyers have the determination to secure success no matter what it takes.

Whether you were riding in a Lyft vehicle, driving another vehicle, or traveling as a bicyclist or pedestrian at the time of your accident, contact us. You may be able to hold the Lyft rider, Lyft, the city, a product manufacturer, and/or other parties liable for your injuries. An investigation of your accident may uncover that the Lyft driver was looking at his or her cell phone at the time of the crash. Lyft, like Uber, requires its drivers to use cell phones while driving to accept new riders.

Also, while Lyft requires all new drivers to have fewer than 3 traffic violations within 3 years and clean criminal histories with no gross misdemeanor or felony driving convictions, they only review their drivers’ criminal histories every three years and check for traffic violations annually.

Nevada law requires Lyft and other rideshare drivers to work only up to 12 hours in a 24-hour period, but with the prominent Las Vegas nightlife, this often means Lyft drivers work day jobs and then drive for Lyft at night, leaving them prone to exhaustion.

An investigation may also find evidence that Lyft itself could have prevented your accident. Negligent driver hiring procedures or handling accident claims in bad faith are examples of situations that may point to Lyft’s liability. Lyft maintains a $1 million insurance policy meant to reimburse injured accident victims for their medical bills and other damages. Lyft’s insurance company, however, may try to take advantage of you.

Lyft Insurance Requirements in Nevada

Lyft and other rideshare platforms — known as Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) —  require drivers to carry not only their own car insurance policies but also a commercial insurance policy. This is because most insurance companies have exclusionary policies for rideshare vehicles that eliminate coverage during times when drivers use their personal vehicles for rideshare purposes.

Commercial coverage policies for TNCs in Nevada can be confusing. Whether or not a driver’s commercial coverage applies depends on which TNC phase the car and driver were in during the event or accident. Lyft and Uber use a 3-phase system to determine applicable coverage during a collision or other accident.

• Phase 1 is when the driver logs into the app and is available to accept a passenger. During this phase, contingent coverage covers the driver while the app is in “driver mode” with no passengers. This coverage activates in the event of an accident and the driver’s personal insurance doesn’t provide coverage. Contingent coverage provides the Lyft driver with up to $50,000 dollars in coverage for injuries per person with a limit of $100,000 total per accident. It also provides up to $25,000 in property damage coverage.
• Phase 2 begins when the driver accepts a request for transportation. This is when primary coverage begins.
• Phase 3 starts when the passenger enters the vehicle and ends when the passenger exits the vehicle. This phase continues protection under primary coverage which includes up to $1 million in coverage per accident.

Drivers aren’t considered as driving for Lyft if they aren’t logged into the Lyft app. During phases 2 and 3, TNCs, including Lyft, must provide continuous insurance coverage for no less than 1 million dollars for bodily injury or death as well as for the destruction of property in an accident that occurs during transportation services. Those limits decrease to $50,000 per person, $100,000 per collision, and $25,000 for property damage while logged into the transportation app and taking requests but not actively carrying passengers.

The TNC’s insurance coverage also applies when an at-fault driver in another vehicle is underinsured and the injured person’s medical expenses exceed the coverage by the at-fault driver.

Victims injured during a Lyft ride accident may be able to sue Lyft for compensatory damages when the company minimizes the insurance payout. Rideshare companies typically settle lawsuits out of court in order to avoid negative publicity.

Who Pays for Damages After a Lyft Accident?

Because Rideshare operators are independent contractors, Lyft often tries to deny all responsibility for claims after an accident. If the Lyft driver is at fault, Lyft’s 1 million dollar insurance coverage policy is the best option for recovering losses. Unfortunately, Lyft may deny your claim by denying driver fault,  or they may offer an inadequate amount of money for compensation. That’s why it’s important to seek representation from knowledgeable and experienced attorneys like those at Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP to advocate for you, first through a demand letter to the company highlighting the strength of your case along with how you’d prefer Lyft to resolve it. If the demand letter isn’t successful, the next step is filing for damages to try to receive fair compensation.

Compensation Available to Lyft Accident Victims

Compensatory damages for people injured in Lyft accidents in Nevada may include:

• Payment for medical expenses including hospitalizations, surgeries, physical and occupational therapies, medications, rehabilitation services, home health care, and short or long-term care.
• Lost wages and earning capacity,
• Payment for car repair bills,
• Compensation for pain and suffering.

In the tragic event that a victim dies from a Lyft-related accident, the deceased person’s family may file a wrongful death lawsuit for compensation for funeral expenses and loss of financial support.

If a victim bears some of the responsibility for their injuries — for instance, if they weren’t wearing a seatbelt — a jury during a trial may determine that a percentage of the blame belongs to the victim under Nevada’s modified negligence rule. However, as long as they determine that the Lyft driver bears at least 50 percent of the blame, the company remains liable for damages.

When more than one person is injured in a Lyft accident each must file a separate claim, though as the lawsuits progress through the process some claims may end up bundled together into a single lawsuit against Lyft.

How Long Do I Have to File a Lyft Accident Claim?

In Nevada, accident victims have 2 years from the date of the accident to file a claim against Lyft. This typically occurs after filing insurance claims to first attempt to negotiate adequate compensation. Nevada law also requires accident victims to notify Nevada’s Department of Motor Vehicles within 10 days of the incident if the investigating police don’t do so.

Though you legally have up to 2 years to file a claim against Lyft, it’s best to file your claim as soon as possible after negotiating with the Lyft driver’s commercial insurance company. The earlier the case becomes registered the more likely you are to receive timely compensation. The longer you wait to file a claim the less likely you are to win a settlement or a court case.

Common Causes of Lyft Accidents

Like most car accidents, negligent driving is the most common cause of Lyft accidents. In Las Vegas these often include:

• Distracted driving,
• Fatigued driving,
• Following a vehicle too closely,
• Failing to use a turn signal,
• Failing to yield when appropriate,
• Failing to stop
• Road rage
• Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs

What Should I Do After an Accident With a Lyft?

There are some important precautions to take BEFORE you accept your Lyft rideshare. Always ask for the driver’s name and check to make sure it matches the name displayed on your Lyft request. Sometimes drivers use substitutes, and these substitutes may not have met Lyft’s requirements for drivers and may invalidate insurance. You should also look for drivers with ratings between 4 and 5 stars. Make sure to check for fully functioning seatbelts before accepting your Lyft ride.

If you experience an accident involving your Lyft rideshare, first call 911 to ask for emergency help from medical professionals to evaluate your condition and perform stabilizing procedures before transporting you to an area hospital.

Remain at the scene of the accident. If you haven’t sustained injuries serious enough to limit your mobility and you don’t need to help stabilize or care for other victims until help arrives, use your smartphone to take photos of the accident location, the Lyft vehicle, and any other involved vehicles, objects, or structures. Take photos of the Lyft vehicle’s license tag as well. These photos may be important for your insurance claims or to file a lawsuit against Lyft.

Write down the Lyft driver’s full name and contact information. You can also ask to photograph the Lyft driver’s license. Finally, write down the names and contact information of any nearby witnesses. Eye witness testimony is a helpful factor in building and proving a case for compensation against Lyft.

Why You Need an Attorney After a Lyft Accident

If you experienced an accident during your transportation with a Lyft driver and sustained serious injuries such as those involving the back, neck, head, or other injuries requiring long or significant medical treatment, you need a skilled Lyft accident lawyer to represent you for compensation for your medical expenses and lost earnings.

A major company such as Lyft has plenty of resources to spend on fighting lawsuits and liability allegations. This can put you in a tough spot as an accident victim. It is your burden to prove the Lyft driver’s fault for your accident to recover compensation. Unfortunately, insurance companies will not be on your side during this battle. You will have to fight for recovery alone – unless you retain a Las Vegas personal injury attorney.

Many accident victims find themselves in disagreement with Lyft about the amount of compensation they plan to pay out for an accident, or in a disagreement about which insurance policy applies to their unique accident situation. Often, the company does not agree to compensate accident victims fairly.

What is the Average Settlement in Lyft Accidents?

There are many factors involved in determining an appropriate settlement for victims of Lyft accidents, including:

• The severity of the accident victim’s injuries,
• The amount and expense of the necessary medical treatments
• Who is considered at fault in the accident
• The insurance phase during the accident and the policy limit

The lawyers at Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP have what it takes to obtain maximum compensation for you after a Lyft accident. Whether you’re living with permanent injuries from your wreck or are having trouble getting Lyft’s insurance company to offer a fair settlement, we can help. Our Lyft accident lawyers will confidently negotiate the terms of settlement on your behalf. We can even take your case to trial if that’s what it takes to ensure fair compensation. We won’t stop until we believe you’ve won the best possible results.

After a Lyft accident, don’t try to navigate the insurance claims process on your own. You may end up accepting an unfair settlement offer without a lawyer’s help. Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP operates on a contingency-fee basis, meaning you’ll never pay for our services out of pocket. First consultations are always free. You’ll only pay if we win your financial recovery. Even then, we take our fees out of what we secure – not out of your pocket. To learn more about your Lyft accident, contact us today.