If I am Hit By a Lyft Driver in New York, Who Do I Sue?

If you’re hit by a Lyft driver in New York, you should immediately contact an experienced New York Uber and Lyft rideshare accident lawyer. Lyft will often take extreme steps to deny accident survivors the financial support they need to overcome their losses. If you want to stay one step ahead of that bad-faith conduct, you need a knowledgeable ally on your side.

Fortunately, we have decades of combined experience going to work on survivors’ behalf. We can advocate for your right to damages based on the total value of your losses, no matter how complicated your case seems.

Evidence Determines Who You Can Sue After a New York Lyft Accident

New York established its burden of proof so that the people bringing personal injury cases forward would have to gather evidence to prove their right to a claim. What does that mean for you?

You must have evidence assigning liability for your losses compiled and organized if you want to name a specific party responsible for your Lyft accident.

The evidence you can use to make your point may include the following:

• Electronic data from Lyft’s app
• Physical debris from the accident scene
• Evidence of environmental damage
• Bystander statements
• Expert witness testimonies
• Phone data
• Videos and photos from the scene of your accident

Our New York personal injury lawyers can gather this evidence on your behalf.

Lyft Accident Lawyers in New York Can Investigate Your Circumstances

We don’t want you returning to the scene of your accident to play Sherlock Holmes, especially if you’re seriously injured. You deserve time to address your injuries and emotionally recover from your crash.

Fortunately, our team can work with experienced investigators to gather the evidence needed to hold the right parties accountable for your losses.

Contacts Play a Role in Most Lyft Accident Cases

If you’re hit by a Lyft driver in New York, contracts play a considerable role in determining who you’re allowed to sue. Our team can break down any contracts involved in your case so you can more effectively fight for the damages you deserve.

Where do contracts have the most sway? They establish Lyft’s relationship to your accident. Usually, Lyft doesn’t like to offer financial support to accident victims.

Likewise, it doesn’t like to offer legal protections or benefits to the people in its employ, as those benefits cost money. As such, the corporation often prefers to work with independent contractors. 

Independent contractors view Lyft as a client, not an employer. The company subsequently doesn’t have to provide its independent contractors with the benefits of legal protection in the wake of an accident. However, the company may misrepresent an employee’s employment status after an accident to avoid providing them with support.

How to File a Lyft Accident Claim Before Your Statute of Limitations Expires

Unfortunately, you have a limited amount of time to take legal action against corporations and individuals. It doesn’t matter who’s responsible for your accident – if you don’t file a claim before New York’s personal injury statute of limitations expires, the court may waive your right to accident compensation.

The personal injury statute of limitations gives you no more than two years to act on your losses. The sooner you reach out to a lawyer for support, the sooner you can fight for the damages you need to recover.

What Compensation to Ask for in a Lyft Accident Claim

The compensation you demand from Lyft or its affiliates can fully encompass the value of your accident. You can establish that value by accounting for the economic and non-economic losses you faced as a result of someone’s negligence.

The losses we can integrate into your rideshare accident claim may include the following:

• Lost wages
• Reduced quality of life
• Property damage and restoration
• Emergency medical care
• Long-term medical treatments
• Emotional distress
• Pain and suffering
• Temporary or permanent disabilities

Notably, you cannot include non-economic losses in your request for support when filing an insurance claim after a Lyft accident. However, you may have the opportunity to file both an insurance claim and a personal injury, depending on your circumstances. Our team can elaborate on your rights as we delve deeper into your case.

How to Identify Bad-Faith Negotiating Tactics

As mentioned, insurance claims adjusters and institutions like Lyft can both take advantage of bad-faith negotiating tactics to deny you the financial support you need after an accident. If you want to stay one step ahead of these bad actors, you need to know what tactics they most frequently use.

Both insurance claims adjusters and corporations can purposefully slow down negotiations or make it harder for you to contact the people who understand your losses.

Some parties hide evidence relevant to your recovery or may even destroy it. Others may pressure you into accepting settlement offers without weighing the actual value of your losses.

This range of bad-faith behavior only encompasses a portion of the tactics bad actors can use against you. If you want to fully address your losses while in conversations with insurance companies and corporations like Lyft, consider working with a Lyft accident lawyer in New York.

Get Justice After a New York Lyft Accident

If you’re hit by a Lyft driver in New York, you can sue Lyft, its independent contractors, and any affiliates who may bear some of the responsibility for your accident.

Our rideshare accident lawyers in New York can guide you through the process of compiling your claim without infringing on the space you need to recover.

We want you to walk away from your case with as much compensation as you need to fully recover. If you’re ready to learn more about your right to rideshare accident compensation, consider booking a free, no-obligation case consultation with our staff today.