Spring Valley Uber & Lyft Accident Lawyer
As late as 2010, ridesharing was just an idea on a corporate whiteboard. Today, drivers for companies like Uber and Uber Eats provide service for more than a hundred million customers a month. When companies expand this quickly, there are usually growing pains. In this instance, these growing pains directly affect rider safety. Many ridesharing operators have little experience driving in certain areas of town. Many have even less experience ensuring that their passengers are safe during their travels.
A Spring Valley Uber & Lyft accident lawyer from Cameron Law is only the most visible member of a highly-professional team that’s dedicated to maximum compensation for your serious injuries. Our team includes hard-working investigators and assistants who do the thankless work that helps ensure a successful result in your case. We also have the resources to partner with doctors, accountants, and other professionals when needed. These diverse individuals have one thing in common, which is a commitment to victims’ rights.
First Party Liability and Spring Valley Rideshare/Uber/Lyft Accident Lawyers
We mentioned the two major kinds of rideshare operator inexperience above. Legally, both shortcomings constitute a lack of care.
Many drivers are overly dependent on GPS navigation devices. Smartphones are very dangerous because they combine all three kinds of distracted driving, which are:
- Manual (hand off the wheel),
- Cognitive (mind off driving), and
- Visual (eyes off the road).
Hands-free devices aren’t much safer. Because these gadgets are visually and cognitively distracting, driving while using a hands-free smartphone is like driving while intoxicated.
Many ridesharing operators overly rely on such gadgets because they drive in unfamiliar areas of Las Vegas. In general, GPS is a good navigational aid, but this technology has its limits.
Driving safely is just one part of a rideshare operator’s legal duty. These individuals must also provide safe environments for their passengers during transit. Pick-up and drop-off falls and in-transit assaults are perhaps the biggest hazards in this area.
Dark corners might be convenient places to pick up and drop off passengers. But they aren’t safe places for such activities. That’s especially true if a mobility impaired individual must get in or out of a large vehicle.
As for in-transit injuries, many people hail Ubers and Lyfts because they have been drinking. When people are intoxicated, casual disagreements sometimes become violent conflicts. If a driver doesn’t step in to stop such escalation and the fight causes injury, a Spring Valley rideshare/Uber/Lyft accident lawyer may be able to obtain compensation for these injuries. This compensation usually includes money for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering.
Third Party Liability
Negligent drivers are legally and morally responsible for the wrecks they cause. The ridesharing company that the negligent driver was working for at the time is financially responsible for damages, at least in most cases. The respondeat superior rule applies if:
- Employee: In Nevada, employers are responsible for the negligence of their employees. For many purposes, including tax purposes, most ridesharing operators are owner operators or independent contractors. However, these individuals are employees for negligence purposes, since the employer has some control over their behavior.
- Scope of Employment: This respondeat superior prong is equally broad in Nevada. Typically, any act which benefits the employer in any way is within the scope of employment. This category includes activities like deadheading (driving without a passenger while waiting for a paying customer).
Vicarious liability is very important in ridesharing crash claims. Personal auto insurance policies usually don’t cover commercial losses. Respondeat superior and other such theories ensure that the judgment a victim/plaintiff obtains is more than a piece of paper.
Rely on a Dedicated Spring Valley Uber & Lyft Accident Lawyer
Injury victims are usually entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced Spring Valley rideshare/Uber/Lyft accident lawyer, contact Cameron Law. We routinely handle matters in Lincoln County and nearby jurisdictions.
