Had a LYFT Accident ? You Need a Lawyer.
Lyft drivers are only required to hold at least the state minimum of insurance. Pennsylvania has a low limit, and in many accidents, the policy will not cover the damages and injuries.
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About fifteen car crashes happen every hour in Pennsylvania. When a car collision happens that involves a car used as a ride-hailing car, the intricacies of insurance can be overwhelming. Many people injured in accidents with ride-hailing services do not get the compensation they should.
Our Lawyers Can navigate the insurance Minefield
Lyft is one of the ride-hailing companies permitted to operate in Pennsylvania. Ride-hailing companies are also know as Transportation Network Companies (TNC). Lyft drivers are regulated by Federal and State laws in Pennsylvania. When an accident involving a Lyft vehicle happens, it can be difficult to determine how to file claims and how insurance works.
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Negligence, Negligent Hiring, and Negligent Retention
Lyft uses a third-party background check that uses a social security number to verify whether a driver has a criminal record, bad credit, or more than three moving violations in three years. these background checks may be missing information and can even have incorrect information about an individual. Some estimates are that as much as 50 percent of the felony convictions in the U.S. each year are not loaded onto state and federal databases.
Lyft categorizes its drivers as “independent contractors” or “partners” rather than as employees. Courts have been unable to universally decide if drivers are in fact exempt from laws that pertain strictly to employees, such as charges of negligence.
Some courts have determined that Lyft drivers are employees as a result of the fact the company holds standards over the vehicles, drivers conduct, insurance coverage, and other controls typically reserved for employers.
In other cases, courts have deemed Lyft drivers to be responsible as employees, however most of the cases in which the ruling was likely to go in favor of Lyft have been settled out of court prior to issuing a formal decision.
This has created a gray area in law that is yet to be settled. Numerous cases, including one in Pennsylvania, currently are working their way through the court system.
An experienced personal injury law firm with experience handling Lyft cases is essential to getting the coverage and compensation deserved when a Lyft driver causes injuries. The complexity of Pennsylvania law and the unsettled nature of laws relating to Lyft drivers mean that it is easy for individuals to fail to get the benefit they deserve.
What You Can Do
If you have been injured in a Lyft vehicle, you should report the incident to law enforcement as soon as safe to do so. the Lyft app includes a feature for filing claims for car accidents and other injuries, however an injured person should speak with an attorney before engaging with the company to preserve as many rights as possible.
LYFT INSURANCE
Lyft drivers are required to hold at least the state minimum of insurance. Pennsylvania has a low limit, and in many accidents, the policy will not cover the damages and injuries.
Pennsylvania requires all drivers to maintain $5,000 in medical coverage that pays your bills, or the bills of passengers in your car. The state minimum for bodily injury is $15,000 per person and $30,000 per accident. That means if you hurt someone, your insurance will only cover up to $15,000 for an individual or $30,000 for all injuries in the accident. Drivers must also carry $5,000 in property damage to repair cars or other property they damage in an accident.
Additional coverage is available. Optional coverage can include things like theft protection and uninsured/underinsured coverage. Pennsylvania drivers should discuss their driving habits with an insurance policy writer to determine the best coverage for their needs. This is particularly important for drivers interested in working for Lyft.
Some insurance companies will write customized policies specifically for Lyft drivers. These policies are intended to save money for drivers while ensuring they are adequately covered at all times while working for Lyft.
INSURANCE
What Does the LYFT Insurance Actually Cover
Full-tort and Limited-tort Coverage
Pennsylvania further complicates the issue by offering a choice of full or limited tort policies. Limited tort policies are often called “no-fault” policies because when an accident happens, the driver uses their own insurance policy regardless of fault. Limited tort prevents drivers and their insurance companies from suing one another. Full tort policies allow not at-fault drivers to file lawsuits for damages.
No-fault policies can be cheaper to the consumer because the insurance company is able to spread the cost of liability among all policy holders and the limits of the policy prevent lawsuits that can be more expensive than the costs of the accident.
In most cases, regardless of other factors, drivers with no-fault policies will report damages and injuries to their personal insurance provider before addressing other avenues for recovery, such as filing against the Lyft drivers personal policy or seeking redress through Lyft.
No-Fault Insurance Coverage Complicates Lyft Accidents
Under Pennsylvania law, no-fault policy holders must use their own insurance coverage for any accident, regardless of fault.
This applies in most Lyft accident cases, and means that before an injured person can sue Lyft for damages, the driver must file a claim with their personal insurance coverage. Once the limits of that policy are eclipsed, Lyft’s insurance coverage kicks in and covers the difference.
There are situations where this is not the case. If a Lyft driver causes an accident that results in serious bodily injury or death, the injured person or their legal representative may go after Lyft directly.
In many cases, Lyft will seek to settle claims out of court. This has had two effects on accidents: courts have not been able to establish hard and fast rules for dealing with corporate responsibility for Lyft drivers and injured persons are not able to sue in court, often signing a non-disclosure agreement that holds Lyft not responsible while covering the injured persons losses.
Injured drivers seeking damages against Lyft in Pennsylvania stand to benefit greatly by hiring competent legal aid. A lawyer experienced in handling these types of personal injury claims helps to ensure proper compensation and protects injured drivers and passengers rights for health care.
Built-in Insurance for Lyft Drivers
When a Lyft driver is logged on to the app or actively driving a passenger, Lyft provides insurance coverage, however the policy varies depending on what particular action the driver is doing at the time of the accident.
A driver of a Lyft car that is not logged on to the app is considered to be on personal time. If they are involved in an accident, they will need to rely on their personal insurance policy to remedy the situation.
Once a driver turns on the app and logs in, they are covered under Lyft’s contingent insurance coverage. Lyft covers up to $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident, and a $25,000 maximum limit for property damage. This coverage is only available if the driver’s personal policy will not cover the damages. Lyft drivers will not have to pay a deductible.
Once a driver has accepted a ride, Lyft provides a $1 million per accident policy that is intended to function as primary insurance. Drivers that have uninsured motorist coverage or maintain comprehensive collision coverage will also be covered by similar policies held by Lyft. These coverages are intended to repair or replace damage to a vehicle regardless of fault.
Regardless of whether a person is injured as a Lyft driver, a passenger in a Lyft car, or a driver or passenger of a vehicle struck by a Lyft car, the insurance provided by Lyft is restricted. Injured persons should understand that under Pennsylvania law, they are not entitled to recoup the entirety of the Lyft insurance policy. Expecting to be awarded the full $1 million policy value is unrealistic and prevented from law in most situations in Pennsylvania.
Non-Vehicular Injuries
Car collisions are not the only way people can get injured by Lyft drivers and their cars. A person is still covered under the Lyft policy up unti the moment the trip ends, which is considered to be when the driver and passenger part ways.
A Lyft driver who accidentally shuts a coar door or trunk lid on a passenger’s fingers would still be considered to be within the scope of driving. In most cases in Pennsylvania, the injuries may not be covered by an individuals personal policy, but will be covered under Lyft’s policy.
The situation gets more complicated when injuries are deliberately caused by a Lyft driver. Numerous cases involving TNC drivers who have assaulted passengers, sexually attacked passengers, and even kidnapped passengers have made national news in recent years.
While it is true that these types of assaults could happen with taxi and chauffeured transportation, they are exceedingly rare. Even within the TNC circle, millions of perfectly safe rides are delivered for each ride that ends in a physical or sexual assault or kidnapping.
When any of these situations occur, it is absolutely imperative that the injured person contact law enforcement at the earliest instance.
Lyft has added a feature to it’s app that allows a passenger to call for help without alerting the driver. The feature relies on the tap of an icon that immediately notifies Lyft and law enforcement to a problem. the driver is then suspended from the app until an investigation has been completed.
This process can, unfortunately, take a significant amount of time. Lyft does not allow the driver to continue during this time unless there is conclusive evidence the attack did not happen. Drivers falsely accused of assault are not allowed to work until their innocence is proven in an effort to prevent continued assaults.
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