An Uber accident can leave you facing unexpected emotional distress, lost income, medical bills, and long-lasting disabilities. Most victims are left unsure of how much compensation they can pursue because Uber drivers work under a unique rideshare model. You can also be left wondering who is responsible for paying for your damages. Unfortunately, there is no standard amount for an Uber accident claim. The value of your claim depends on factors like the insurance coverage that applies during the accident, the liable party, and the severity of your injuries. Knowing these factors will help you set realistic expectations and fight for your right to fair compensation.

How Much Can I Sue For After An Uber Accident

You can pursue the full amount of your damages after a ridesharing crash involving an Uber driver. The settlement amounts often depend on the severity of your injuries. Your damages can range from a few thousand dollars to over $1 million. You can secure your damages by settling an insurance claim for the Uber accident case. The law also allows you to file an Uber accident lawsuit if the insurance claim does not result in adequate compensation.

The legal damages you can pursue include:

  • Lost wages
  • Loss of consortium for your family
  • Reduced earning capacity, if your injuries are severe enough to impair your professional life
  • Medical expenses
  • Pain and suffering
  • Property damage
  • Emotional distress, particularly if your injuries leave you with a disfigurement

Lost Wages

In a personal injury case, lost wages mean the amount of money you would have earned had the Uber driver not injured you through their wrongful act. These damages are easy to calculate because they are based on what you were earning before and during the accident. Lost wages can include the following:

  • Bonuses
  • Commissions
  • Overtime pay
  • Regular pay is either a salary or an hourly rate
  • Personal, vacation, or sick days
  • Self-employment income, and
  • Any other lost perks or benefits, like free meals or a car allowance

The statute of limitations in personal injury cases is usually two years. However, some injuries have shorter or longer statute of limitations. Your attorney can help you establish the period during which you have eligibility to sue for lost wages.

The law requires you to prove the amount of income you allege to have lost. The calculation is pretty straightforward if your injury is for a relatively short and fixed period. You will require the following testimonies if you were due for a raise or paid based on performance:

  • Occupational expert
  • Forensic accounting

There is no standard way of proving lost wages in California. Some of the ways you can use include:

  • A letter from your employer, and
  • Past pay stubs and tax returns

You require the above only if you have regular employment. The letter from the employer should contain the following:

  • Your job title
  • The time you were employed
  • Confirmation that you were employed at the time of the accident
  • The number of hours you work per week

Sometimes, it can be challenging to secure a letter from your employer, have irregular income, or be self-employed. In this situation, you can use past pay stubs and income tax returns to prove lost income. IRS Form 4506 can help you access copies of your past tax returns from the Internal Revenue Service.

Loss Of Consortium

If you or your spouse is injured in an Uber accident, both of you can sue the at-fault party. However, the law only allows you to sue for loss of consortium, while your spouse can sue for pain and suffering, lost wages, and medical expenses. Loss of consortium can be the loss of the following:

  • Ability to have children
  • Enjoyment of sexual relations
  • Love, care, comfort, companionship, protection, assistance, society, affection, and moral support

The amount you can recover depends on your case. You can be awarded a huge amount if you suffer severe and long-term injuries. These damages are considered non-economic because they are subjective and challenging to calculate. As a result, loss of consortium damages can be more than economic damages, which are easy to calculate.

Your loss of consortium damages will be calculated to extend until the end of your spouse's life if your spouse is permanently injured. Life expectancy is measured as it was before your partner's injury. The court can award you past and future loss of consortium that does not exceed $4 million.

The elements of loss of consortium are spelled out under California Civil Jury Instruction ‘’CACI’’ 3920. You can only win a case and recover these damages if you prove by a preponderance of the evidence the following elements:

  • Your spouse suffered injuries because of the Uber driver’s negligence, recklessness, defective parts, or other wrongful act
  • You and your spouse were legally married at the time of the Uber accident
  • You were affected by your spouse’s loss of consortium
  • The loss resulted from the Uber driver’s wrongful act

The most uncomfortable part of a loss of consortium case is proving that your partner’s injury significantly affected your marriage, especially if it is the loss of sex. This situation often prompts couples to become personal regarding their partner's inability or change in behavior. However, most of these cases are resolved out of court without the need to testify. If you intend to pursue a loss of consortium compensation, consult an attorney who knows how to present your losses to the court. An attorney will present your case in a manner that will maximize damages while minimizing the discomfort you experience on the witness stand. A loss of consortium claim is often a separate and independent decision. It does not depend on whether your injured partner proves the injury in court. 

Reduced Earning Capacity

The law allows you to pursue damages for lost earning capacity if you suffer injuries in an Uber accident. You will be compensated for work-related income that is reasonably certain to be lost in the future because of the accident or other wrongful act. Unlike lost wages, it can be challenging for you to prove lost future earnings because the loss has yet to happen.

You do not have to suffer a permanent injury to claim lost earning capacity. The court can award you these damages if your injury has not fully resolved by the time of settlement or trial. Often, this will happen with severe or permanent injuries, like traumatic brain injuries, which are anticipated to continue for some time.

You will have two years to file a lost earnings case in court. However, some causes of action have shorter or longer statute of limitations periods. The statute of limitations starts when you realized or should have discovered your injury. You can lose the right to sue for your injuries if you fail to file your case within the designated statute of limitations. However, in the case of a severe injury, you do not have to go back to work before the statute of limitations period is over. Lost earning capacity damages permit you to recover for losses which go beyond the end of the statute of limitations period.

The income included in lost earning capacity includes:

  • Personal, vacation, or sick days
  • Raises
  • Self-employment income
  • Bonuses
  • Commissions
  • Overtime pay
  • Profit-sharing or 401 (k) contributions
  • Salary, and
  • Any other lost benefits or perks, like free meals or a car allowance

The following factors can affect the calculation of your damages:

  • Your performance reviews and talents
  • Your long-term employment goals and interests
  • Opportunities for promotion in your field
  • The policies of your company about promotions, raises, cost-of-living increases, and other benefits
  • The terms of your employment contract, if any
  • Whether your income was fixed or performance-based
  • What you earned previously
  • Your health status before the accident
  • The period you have worked before retiring
  • Your life expectancy before the injury
  • Your age
  • The time you are expected to go back to work
  • The period during which your injury is likely to last

Punitive Damages

You can also pursue punitive damages, but they are only meant to punish the liable party for egregious wrongdoing. These damages are rarely awarded in car accident cases.

You can pursue the amount of financial compensation, which can cover all of the above losses. If the accident occurred because of negligence, the negligent party will be liable. The amount of compensation you require will depend on the degree of your injuries. It also depends on the medical care you need to recover from your injuries. Severe injuries are devastating, costly, and more painful than minor injuries. Fatal injuries are worse and can attract a wrongful death claim by your relatives.

Pain And Suffering

Pain and suffering injuries are hard to state in a dollar amount. They are often non-economic damages. However, you can recover them even if they are hard to determine. Sometimes, compensation for pain and suffering can be more than for medical bills.

The only way you can understand the extent of your legal damages is to develop an attorney-client relationship with a skilled personal injury attorney. An attorney will help you know the compensation you should expect in your claim.

You can maximize the amount of settlement if you seek representation from a personal injury attorney from a reputable law firm. Most insurance companies underpay insurance claims to safeguard their profits. An insurance adjuster may reach out to you and present an initial settlement offer that appears fair, but it may not be. If you do not receive legal guidance, you will not see how this offer is inadequate. Your personal injury attorney will help you know if the settlement offer is fair or not. An attorney can also help you file a personal injury claim for the compensation you deserve.

Whether Uber’s Insurance Policy Can Cover Your Losses From A Rideshare Accident

Uber offers extensive insurance coverage to compensate passengers and other drivers in the event of an accident caused by their ridesharing services. However, insurance companies covering Uber have strict laws for when the insurance will cover any accident. These laws only apply based on when the accident occurred. You will be forced to approach the auto insurance of the Uber driver if Uber’s insurance company does not cover the accident.

Uber often touts its $1,000,000 in liability coverage, but can only access this coverage if:

  • You were in the Uber from the point of pickup to the time of departure, or
  • The driver has accepted you on the Uber app, but is still en route to pick you up.

Pedestrians and motorists are often not covered. The personal auto insurance policy of the Uber driver will cover the accident if Uber’s million-dollar liability insurance coverage does not do so. Uber drivers carry only the state minimum liability insurance. The minimum liability insurance in California is as follows:

  • $15,000 property damage per accident
  • $30,000 bodily injury per victim
  • $60,000 bodily injury per accident

Uber has a backup policy in place if the rideshare driver’s coverage does not cover the accident. This provides more protection than the state minimum. The Uber backup policy insurance limit is as follows:

  • $25,000 property damage for every crash
  • $50,000 bodily injury for every victim
  • $100,000 bodily injury for every crash

However, the above slightly generous coverage is only applicable if the Uber driver's policy does not cover the accident. Still, you will not receive the required compensation if you suffer severe injuries. For example, if you suffer a traumatic brain injury, the medication alone can exceed the policy limits. Additionally, if you turn to the at-fault driver for compensation, the ridesharing company can claim that its driver is an independent contractor, not an employee. Uber will be held responsible for your injuries if the driver is classified as an Uber employee.

Uber Accident Claim And Shared Fault

Sometimes, you and the Uber driver can be partially liable for the accident. Various state statutes solve the shared fault cases in different ways. You will receive less compensation if you were partially liable for the accident. Although this is often an issue in most Uber accidents, particularly if you were outside the Uber car. A passenger in an Uber is rarely at fault for the driver’s actions. However, pedestrians or other motorists can see the settlement value of their injury lawsuit reduced. Personal injury statutes have a rule for shared fault crashes. These rules are classified as follows:

  • Contributory negligence
  • Modified comparative negligence, and
  • Pure comparative negligence

Comparative Negligence, Modified Comparative Negligence, And Contributory Negligence

Even if you were 99% at fault, you can sue to help cover your costs if you suffer injuries in an Uber accident. The law allows you to do so because California is a ‘’pure comparative negligence’’ state. Your compensation will be reduced based on your degree of fault. For example, if you were 60% at-fault for the accident and suffered $10,000 in damages, the judge will award you $4000. This will be $10,000 less 60%.

California follows stricter ‘’comparative negligence’’ laws that prohibit recovery if you were 50% or more to blame for the accident. Sometimes, ‘’contributory negligence’’ laws are followed, which do not allow you to recover any amount even if you were only 1% to blame for your injuries.

Comparative Negligence Law In California

Most states in the United States are comparative negligence states, including California. They apply comparative fault statutes. You can recover damages in a personal injury case against an at-fault party according to California’s pure comparative fault laws. However, your compensation will be reduced due to your own fault or degree of fault.

In a personal injury lawsuit, the court will determine the percentage of your own negligence that contributed to the Uber accident. Your percentage of fault will reduce the damages awarded if you were partially responsible for your injuries.

Comparative negligence works by reducing compensation for your own injuries in proportion to your own fault. Comparative fault statutes cover most of California injury cases. The following are claims covered by these rules:

  • Medical malpractice
  • Product liability
  • Slip and fall accidents
  • Premises liability
  • Bike accidents, and
  • Car accidents

Modified Comparative Negligence

Pure comparative negligence laws or modified comparative negligence laws are applied in comparative negligence states. A 50% rule or a 51% rule is applied in states that apply the legal doctrine of modified comparative negligence. You will not recover any damages if you were 50% or more at fault for the accident in a state that applies the 50% rule. This rule still applies in states that apply the 51% rule.

Contributory Negligence

Contributory negligence rules bar you from pursuing damages for an injury accident if it is established that you were negligent in any way and you contributed to the occurrence of the crash. This rule used to apply in California, but the California Supreme Court ruled that it was unfair in 1975. Later, it was changed to comparative fault.

Find A Personal Injury Attorney Near Me

Being involved in an Uber accident can be overwhelming. You could be dealing with significant injuries, medical bills, and emotional distress. Most people often wonder about the average compensation for Uber accidents in California. Generally, settlements for minor Uber accidents range between $ 10,000 and $50,000. Moderate damages can attract compensation ranging from $50,000 to $ 200,000. Every Uber accident is unique, and compensation will depend on the specific facts of the case and the injuries sustained by the victim.

Having an experienced attorney by your side can make a significant difference in your Uber accident claim. An attorney understands how insurance companies work and can help you build a strong case. An attorney will provide legal advice that suits your case. For reliable legal advice and representation in California, contact The Personal Injury Attorney Law Firm. Call us at 800-492-6718 to speak to one of our attorneys.