Woodland Hills Uber Accidents

You’d been looking forward to your New Year’s Eve festivities for months. After all, it’s not every night you get time away from your kids. The night started out great; you had dinner and drinks (just two!) at your friend’s Malibu getaway and stayed late to usher in the new year. But on your way back home to Woodland Hills, just before the Hindu temple, a vehicle coming the other way swerved into your lane, causing you to lose control. You veered off the road and rammed into a tree.

The next thing you remember is waking up in the emergency room, unable to feel anything below your waist. You hope it’s temporary but you also fear the worst. You assumed the other driver was drunk, but soon learned that she was a completely sober Uber driver. Right now you’re just wondering whether you’ll ever walk again, but you also need to figure out how to file a claim for your injuries.

Now that you’ve received medical attention, it’s time to get in touch with a skilled Woodland Hills Uber accident lawyer. Since multiple parties will be involved in your claim and it’s often confusing when rideshare companies are involved, you’ll need professional legal help in order to get the compensation you deserve.

Since you were left unconscious, you didn’t have the opportunity to make observations, take notes, and exchange information. Fortunately, the Uber driver that hit you stopped and took responsibility for her negligence. After all, she had witnesses (paying customers) in the backseat.

However, let’s review the steps you should take right after an accident, starting with the information you should obtain:

• Names and contact information of any drivers involved in the accident
• License plate numbers and descriptions of all vehicles involved
• Insurance information

The next steps are more specific to Uber drivers (and will help you determine the coverage available):

• Check to see whether the driver is logged into their Uber app (if they have passengers, then they should be); if they’re not logged in, then they’re not an Uber driver for claim filing purposes.
• If they’re logged in and searching for riders, then Uber provides up to $50,000 per person in injury liability ($100,000 per incident) and up to $30,000 in property damage coverage.
• If they’ve accepted a ride and are on their way to pick them up, or if a passenger is in the vehicle, then Uber provides up to $1 million in liability coverage.
• Go to Uber’s First Notice of Loss or Trip/Data Verification page to verify the trip (you’ll need to enter the Uber driver’s name along with other vital information).

This information will help your Woodland Hills Uber accident lawyer determine the next course of action. In addition to the normal procedures involved in reporting a car accident, when it involves an Uber driver you also need to file an accident report with the company.

While Uber offers a certain amount of insurance coverage for its drivers, covering property damage and bodily injury of passengers and third parties, they’re notoriously difficult to work with. That is why it’s so important to consult the services of an attorney before agreeing to a settlement (by the way, accepting a settlement ends your claim).

Some of the well-documented feedback from individuals filing accident and injury claims with Uber involve the following issues:

• Denial of claim, saying it was not the Uber driver’s fault (regardless of evidence suggesting otherwise)
• Failure to reply to claims or questions about claims
• Low settlement offers
• Downplaying the seriousness of the accident or injury

These tactics aren’t limited to just Uber, as insurance companies have every incentive to limit payouts and close cases as quickly as possible. It’s just that Uber accidents add another layer of complexity to the challenge of getting fairly compensated. Experienced attorneys, especially those who have worked on these types of cases before, know how to work with the parties involved and can apply the appropriate pressure to secure your interests.

If you’ve been injured in an accident involving an Uber driver, you may find the claims process particularly complex. By going it alone, you risk losing out on the full value of your claim. An experienced Woodland Hills Uber accident lawyer will understand these complexities and fight for every penny you’re owed. Contact the skilled professionals at the Law Offices of Gary K. Walch, a Law Corporation, today.