Chattanooga has various ridesharing options, such as Uber and Lyft. They are fairly new to the Chattanooga market, but they have gained significant popularity in the last couple of years. Chattanooga uber accident lawyers have handled a lot of cases involving Uber drivers, Lyft drivers, as well as taxi cab drivers. If you have been involved in a serious common carrier collision, reach out to a qualified accident attorney that can examine your personal injury claim, and help you determine what legal options are available to you.
Common Carriers
Common carriers include anybody who drives for the public. That would include taxi services, drive share services, and rideshare services like Uber and Lyft. It would also include buses and vans. There are some boating companies in Chattanooga, as well. Those would also be common carriers. They are required to have certain levels of insurance and have qualified drivers who meet certain safety standards.
How are Common Carrier Accidents Different From Regular Accidents?
As a Chattanooga uber accident lawyer might explain, there is not a great technical difference, between common carrier accident and personal car accidents, but there are some practical differences. The practical differences include that the driver is engaged in a commercial enterprise, so they are held to a high standard.
That driver is driving for money and therefore, the public and juries generally tend to expect a higher level of care from a person selling a driving service or renting a driving service to the public. Also, they usually tend to have higher insurance policy limits, which allows for higher recovery in some cases. The taxi status does not have an effect on the injury claim. It means that the driver is supposed to pay attention and to protect the people in their care, but so is everybody else driving a car.
Who is Responsible for Paying Damages?
Uber drivers have their own insurance. Uber also provides insurance on top of that. Several cases have been settled with Uber, achieving good results for clients. Sometimes those results have been from Uber’s own insurance. People can recover damages caused by an Uber driver by making an insurance claim against the driver and against Uber. These are very complicated claims. The person is much better off hiring a lawyer to bring these types of claims. They ultimately may require a lawsuit to resolve the claim. From a legal perspective, they work the same as other car wreck claims.
Additional Steps to Take in an Accident
Those involved in an Uber accident need to make sure that they know who the driver is, and the vehicle on the other side of the collision. Oftentimes, a person is injured in an Uber vehicle, but it is not the Uber driver’s fault. It is the fault of the driver of a second vehicle. If a person is not the driver of the Uber vehicle, they may not be in contact with the other person. They need to get the other person’s contact information, know all of the people who were involved in the collision, and make sure that the person records who the driver was and what car they were driving.
Rules for Punitive Damages
The rules for punitive damages in Uber accidents are the same for punitive damages in any other type of case in Tennessee. In Tennessee, if a person and their Chattanooga uber accident lawyer can prove that the driver acted with a wanton disregard or recklessness for the safety of others or intentionally caused the accident, a person can recover punitive damages. If a person was an Uber driver who is acting with especially egregious disregard for safety, a person can sometimes recover punitive damages.
Consulting a Skilled Chattanooga Uber Accident Attorney
When dealing with an Uber driver, taxi cab service, or other common carriers in Chattanooga, you should work with a Chattanooga uber accident lawyer because the insurance situation is even more complicated than normal. Having three or four different insurance companies at play and investigating the case with a giant, multinational corporation is very technical, requires a great level of expertise, and requires rapid response. It is important to hire an attorney who can provide those things very early in a case. Work with a skilled lawyer that could fight for a positive outcome for you.
