If you were injured as a passenger in a vehicle that was operating for Uber or Lyft, there are several different insurance policies you make a claim against to be compensated for your injuries, including:
- Liability Insurance. The driver at fault for the accident is required by Texas law to carry liability insurance. If the Uber or Lyft driver was not at fault, the first claim would be against the at-fault driver’s insurance company. However, if the at-fault driver either had no insurance (they were uninsured, which is illegal, but very common in Texas), or didn’t have enough insurance to cover your damages, you, your Uber accident lawyer, or Lyft accident lawyer can make a claim to either Uber or Lyft’s Uninsured/Underinsured policy (referred to as UM/UIM – see below).If the Uber or Lyft driver was at fault, then Uber or Lyft’s liability insurance policy would cover your damages, up to the policy limit, which is generally quite high.
2. Personal Injury Protection (PIP). If you carry PIP on your own automobile insurance policy, you can use this to cover medicals and part of your lost wages. Contrary to what some people think, making a PIP claim on your own insurance cannot (under Texas law) raise or affect your own insurance rates. PIP is protection you’ve paid extra for, and you should use it if you have it available to you. Failing to use it is like holding a winning lottery ticket, but failing to cash it in – which makes no sense!
3. Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Protection (UM/UIM). If the person who was at fault for the accident either had no insurance (uninsured), or didn’t carry enough insurance to fully compensate you for your damages, you can make a claim under UM/UIM insurance.
If the scenario above is true, you would first make a claim under Uber/Lyft’s UM/UIM Policy. In the rare event that their policy (which is quite large) is insufficient to cover your losses, you could potentially make a claim against your own UM/UIM policy. However, Texas law imposes certain requirements and notices that you must provide to your own insurance company, or you could lose this right.
Don’t Wait to Get the Help You Need – Time Is NOT On Your Side
Unfortunately, if you were injured in Texas in an Uber or Lyft rideshare accident, time is not on your side. Texas law has strict timelines for bringing these claims, that if missed, will likely prevent you from being able to get compensated for your injuries. Reach out to the Texas car accident lawyers at our San Antonio personal injury law firm today.