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Hurt in an Uber or Lyft accident in Orange County? The first question that decides your case isn't who hit who — it's whether the rideshare app was on, off, or in an active ride. ALL Trial Lawyers handles the answer, the insurance claim, and the lawsuit if it comes to that. We've recovered millions for injured clients across Southern California, and we don't get paid unless you do.
When you're in a regular collision, there are usually two insurance policies in play. When a rideshare is involved, you can have three, four, or more — and they all want to point at each other.
Rideshare companies don't employ their drivers. Uber and Lyft classify drivers as independent contractors, which means the company is going to argue that the driver's personal auto insurance should pay first. The driver's personal insurer is going to argue the opposite — that the moment the app went on, the policy stopped covering the vehicle. And depending on where the driver was in the trip, Uber or Lyft's $1 million commercial policy may or may not apply.
This is the part of the case that gets injured people undercompensated when they don't have a lawyer. ALL Trial Lawyers handles rideshare claims regularly. We know how to identify which insurance period applies, which policies are stacked, and which carriers to push.
Every Uber or Lyft accident falls into one of three periods, and the period decides how much coverage is available to you. Here's how it works.
The driver is off duty. The Uber or Lyft app is not running. Only the driver's personal auto insurance applies — and many personal policies exclude commercial use, leaving gaps.
Driver's personal policy onlyThe app is on but the driver hasn't accepted a ride yet. Uber and Lyft provide limited contingent coverage — typically $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident, $25,000 property damage — only if the driver's personal policy denies the claim.
$50K / $100K / $25K contingentThe driver has accepted a ride and is on the way to pick up the passenger, or the passenger is in the car. This is the strongest coverage period — Uber and Lyft's full $1 million liability policy applies, plus uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
$1,000,000 commercial policyIf you were a passenger in an Uber or Lyft when the accident happened, you're almost always in Period 2 or 3 — the highest coverage period. If you were hit by an Uber or Lyft driver, the period depends on what the driver was doing at the moment of impact, and that takes investigation to prove.
Rideshare cases come from every angle. Here are the four most common situations we see in Orange County.
You hailed a ride and got hurt — whether your driver caused the crash or another vehicle did. As a passenger, you almost never have any fault, and the rideshare company's $1 million policy typically covers your injuries.
You were driving your own car when an Uber or Lyft driver caused the collision. Your recovery depends on which insurance period the rideshare driver was in — and proving it requires app records the company doesn't volunteer.
You were walking or biking and were struck by a rideshare driver. These cases often involve serious injuries and the same insurance-period analysis as driver-on-driver collisions.
You drive for Uber or Lyft and were hurt by another driver while logged into the app. You may have access to Uber or Lyft's uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage in addition to a claim against the at-fault driver.
Rideshare cases can be worth significantly more than ordinary car accident claims because the available insurance is larger. But the same factors that drive value in any injury case still apply:
Call 866-811-4255 for a free case review. We'll tell you what we think your claim is worth and walk you through how the insurance breaks down.
California law recognizes two categories of damages in injury cases. A complete claim accounts for both.
California's statute of limitations for personal injury cases is two years from the date of the accident. Rideshare cases have an extra reason to move quickly: the in-app data that proves which insurance period applies sits on Uber's or Lyft's servers, and getting it requires a properly preserved claim and, in litigated cases, a subpoena.
Insurance carriers and rideshare companies move fast to investigate from their side. Adjusters call within days, sometimes hours, asking for recorded statements that get used to undercut your claim later. The longer you wait to call a lawyer, the more ground you give up.
If a city bus, county vehicle, or other government driver was involved in your accident in addition to the rideshare, the deadline can be as short as six months to file a government claim. Don't wait.
Most lawyers handle rideshare cases the way they handle regular car accidents and miss money on the table. We start every Uber or Lyft case by establishing which period applies and which policies stack — that single decision often doubles or triples available coverage.
Rideshare cases often require expert witnesses, accident reconstruction, and medical record review. We pay for all of it. You owe nothing unless we recover for you.
Insurance carriers know which firms settle fast and which firms file. When a carrier knows your lawyer is willing and able to take a rideshare case to a jury, settlement offers go up. We don't pressure clients to take low offers.
If your case is strong, we'll tell you. If we think the offer on the table is fair, we'll tell you that too. We don't make promises we can't keep, and we don't quote case values before we've reviewed the medicals and the trip data.
Most clients have never been through this before. Here's what to expect.
You call us. We listen, ask questions, and tell you whether you have a case worth pursuing. No pressure, no fee.
We pull the police report, identify the rideshare driver's status at impact, and map out every policy that may apply to your claim.
Once your treatment stabilizes, we send a demand to the right carriers with full damages documented. Most cases settle here.
If the carriers won't pay fairly, we file. We're prepared to take your case to a jury — and the carriers know it.
If you're reading this from the scene or shortly after, here's what protects your rideshare case:
If you were a passenger and the app was active, Uber's or Lyft's $1 million commercial liability policy applies. As a passenger you generally have no fault, which makes these among the strongest cases we handle. The complication is that Uber and Lyft will still try to push the claim onto the at-fault driver's policy first when another vehicle caused the crash.
The driver and the rideshare company know, but they don't always volunteer it. We pull the police report, request trip data from the company, and in some cases subpoena the records. The period determines whether you're dealing with a $50,000 contingent policy or a $1 million commercial policy, so getting the right answer matters.
You can still recover. If another driver caused the crash, that driver's insurance pays first. If their policy isn't enough to cover your damages — or if they were uninsured — Uber's and Lyft's uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage typically applies during Periods 2 and 3.
Suing the company itself is harder than suing the driver, because Uber and Lyft classify drivers as independent contractors and use that classification to limit direct corporate liability. In most cases the recovery comes through the company's commercial insurance policy, not a direct lawsuit against the company. We use lawsuits strategically when policy limits aren't enough.
For Periods 2 and 3, Uber's and Lyft's $1 million commercial policy applies regardless of the driver's personal insurance status. For Period 1, the contingent coverage applies if the driver's personal policy denies the claim. Period 0 — app off — is the hardest scenario, because only the driver's personal policy applies and it may not cover commercial activity.
ALL Trial Lawyers works on contingency. You pay nothing upfront, and our fee comes out of the settlement or verdict only if we win. If we don't recover money for you, you don't owe us a fee.
You may have several layers of coverage available, depending on what period you were in and who caused the crash. We've handled cases on behalf of Uber and Lyft drivers, and we know how to navigate both the rideshare company's coverage and your own personal policy.
The general statute of limitations is two years from the date of the accident. Claims involving government vehicles or public agencies have shorter deadlines, sometimes as little as six months. Call as soon as possible after the accident.
No. Most settle without trial, especially when the injuries are well documented and the insurance period is clear. We prepare every case as if it's going to trial, because that preparation is what produces serious settlement offers. If the carriers won't pay fairly, we're ready to litigate.
Our headquarters is in the City of Orange, with additional offices across Orange County and throughout Southern California. We meet with injured clients in person, by phone, and by video.
Call ALL Trial Lawyers now. We'll listen to what happened, identify which insurance period applies, give you an honest read on your case, and walk you through next steps. No fee, no pressure, no obligation.
All fields are required. If you need immediate assistance, do not hesitate to call us at (866) 811-4255.