West Palm Beach Ridesharing Accident Lawyer

In large cities such as West Palm Beach, residents and tourists alike have become increasingly dependent on rideshare services such as Uber and Lyft. We now routinely call a rideshare for long trips to the airport as well as short ones to the supermarket. We rely on the convenience offered by a rideshare service; however, we are also placing our safety in the hands of the rideshare driver. Most rideshare trips are uneventful, but accidents do happen and when they do the occupants of a rideshare vehicle can suffer serious, even fatal, injuries. If you were injured in a West Palm Beach ridesharing accident, or you are the surviving family member of someone fatally injured in one, you could be entitled to compensation for your physical injuries, emotional trauma, and financial suffering.

Being involved in a rideshare accident can be a frightening event. The aftermath often involves seeking treatment for physical and psychological injuries as well as struggling with the financial impact of the accident. Facing all these challenges alone can be exhausting. Fortunately, you do not need to go it alone. A West Palm Beach ridesharing accident lawyer at Demand the Limits can help. We have the experience, commitment, and resources needed to identify the at-fault party (or parties) and pursue compensation on your behalf for your physical and emotional injuries. Contact us today by calling (561) 600-3555 or contact us online to schedule your free case evaluation.

What Causes West Palm Beach Rideshare Accidents?

In Palm Beach County, there were almost 25,000 motor vehicle collisions in 2022, according to the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FHSMV). While it is impossible to know how many of those accidents involved a ridesharing vehicle, some experts contend that the advent of ridesharing vehicles has increased the number of car occupant and pedestrian deaths by two to three percent. Many of the same factors that contribute to all motor vehicle accidents, such as speed and aggressive driving, also contribute to rideshare accidents. Distracted and drowsy driving, however, are believed to be even more common contributing factors in a rideshare accident given that the driver has often been on the roadway for hours and is constantly checking a GPS device while en route to the destination.

Florida Law and Rideshare Liability Insurance Coverage

Florida law imposes special liability insurance coverage requirements on vehicles that are operated as rideshare vehicles. Specifically, the law requires a rideshare driver to have at least $1 million in liability coverage for property damage, physical injury, and death when a passenger is in the vehicle. The law further requires the driver to have $50,000 in physical injury or death liability coverage anytime the app is on, and the driver is actively looking for a passenger. The big rideshare companies, such as Uber and Lyft, often provide the required insurance coverage as well as providing uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage for their drivers.

Does Florida’s No-Fault Insurance Law Impact a West Palm Beach Ridesharing Accident?

Florida is one of a handful of states that have a “no-fault” insurance law. The no-fault insurance law means that if you are in another vehicle and you are involved in a collision with another vehicle, your own Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance will cover medical bills up to $10,000 without regard to who was at fault in a collision.

The no-fault law applies without regard to whether one of the vehicles is a rideshare vehicle. If you are the occupant of a rideshare vehicle, the driver’s PIP coverage should cover your injuries at the rate of 80 percent of reasonable medical bills and 60 percent of lost wages up to the $10,000 limit. That means that PIP insurance does not cover 100 percent of your medical bills or your lost wages. Moreover, PIP coverage does not provide any compensation for non-economic damages, such as mental anguish, scarring and disfigurement, or pain and suffering.

Can I Pursue a Traditional Personal Injury Accident for a West Palm Beach Rideshare Accident?

The Florida no-fault insurance law requires an injured victim to utilize the appropriate PIP insurance in most cases; however, the law also acknowledges that PIP insurance is not sufficient to compensate a victim or surviving family member for serious injuries or for the death of a family member. As such, the Florida no-fault law includes a “serious injury” threshold that, if met, allows a victim to pursue additional compensation through a traditional personal injury lawsuit. Florida law allows a victim to leave the at-fault system and file a traditional, negligence-based, personal injury lawsuit if the victim suffered any of the following:

• Significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function.
• Permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability.
• Significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement.
• Death.

In a traditional car accident lawsuit, the injured victim must prove that another party’s negligence caused or contributed to the accident to be entitled to compensation. Sometimes, the negligence of more than one party contributed to an accident. For example, imagine that a distracted driver runs a red light and crashes into the rideshare vehicle in which you are traveling. The distracted driver was clearly negligent; however, if the rideshare driver was also negligent because he was speeding, you may be able to pursue additional compensation from the rideshare driver who is required to carry additional liability coverage.

What Compensation Am I Entitled to for My West Palm Beach Rideshare Accident?

A rideshare accident victim or surviving family member may be entitled to economic and non-economic damages from the at-fault party or parties. Economic damages represent the objective, easily quantifiable costs and expenses associated with the accident, such as:

• The cost to repair or replace your vehicle.
• Doctor and hospital expenses.
• Lost wages and income.

Non-economic damages represent the subjective, less easily quantifiable, costs and expenses related to the accident and may include things such as:

• Physical pain and emotional suffering.
• Diminished quality of life.
• Scarring and disfigurement.

If you are a surviving parent or child of someone who was killed in a West Palm Beach rideshare accident you may also be entitled to compensation in a Florida wrongful death lawsuit for things such as lost future earnings, pain and suffering, and the loss of guidance and companionship.

Get Help from an Experienced West Palm Beach Ridesharing Accident Lawyer

If you were injured in, or lost a family member because of, a West Palm Beach rideshare accident, you may be entitled to pursue monetary compensation for the physical injuries, psychological trauma, and financial hardship endured as a result of the collision. An experienced West Palm Beach ridesharing accident lawyer is the key to making sure that all responsible parties are held accountable and that you are fully and fairly compensated for all injuries. A West Palm Beach ridesharing accident lawyer can help by:

• Assisting with the location of medical providers.
• Conducting an independent investigation of the collision.
• Uncovering evidence that proves negligence on the part of another party.
• Negotiating an advantageous out-of-court settlement.
• Aggressively litigating on your behalf in court.

At Demand the Limits, our experienced West Palm Beach personal injury accident lawyers have extensive experience with rideshare accident cases. We fight hard to defend the legal rights of all West Palm Beach injury victims. Call (561) 600-3555 or contact us online to schedule your free case evaluation. Don’t delay – the sooner you have an attorney fighting for you, the better protected your legal rights will be.