An Uber accident may occur when you least expect it. You may be returning home from a night out with friends, visiting a friend, or in a strange town on vacation. Wherever you are heading, chances are you were not accounting for a negligent driver to cause an accident. For some, getting into a stranger’s car can be intimidating. While Uber presumably vets the driver and has a driver’s license, you do not know for sure as you have never met them. You must trust that they are a competent driver. And if they don’t drive prudently, your safety is out of your control to a certain extent. Suppose you were in a car accident in your Uber and determined you have a case. But is it worth pursuing? You must learn to determine the value of a DC Uber accident.
This will depend on the damages you incur. However, determining the value of a DC Uber accident is complex. There are countless elements to consider, many of which we will discuss below. You must determine whether the defendant has insurance. If this is a person you know, and they do not have insurance, you may choose not to sue them.
On the other hand, if they do have insurance, you might wish to pursue the case despite knowing them personally. This makes sense primarily because the tortfeasor’s insurance rates will increase regardless of whether you sue them. The only difference your lawsuit will make is (1) to cost the insurance carrier money and (2) to compensate you for your damages.
Before explaining in-depth how to determine the value of a DC Uber accident, you must understand who is liable for the accident. Liability is the equivalent of guilt in a criminal context but for a civil case. If a defendant is found liable, a court believes by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant acted negligently or intentionally in causing the alleged injuries. Typically, in an Uber accident, negligence is the applicable cause of action. We establish negligence by showing that the defendant owed a duty to the plaintiff, the defendant breached that duty by acting carelessly under the circumstances, and that breach of duty caused you injuries. Even if you were only a passenger, the defendant still owes you a duty to behave reasonably under the circumstances on the road.
Now that we have a basic understanding of liability in Uber accidents, the next step in evaluating a case’s merits is understanding the types of damages recoverable in Uber accidents. Below, we break down each pecuniary injury you can recover for in an Uber accident.
As the infographic above shows, you can recover three categories of damages. Medical expenses and lost wages account for your economic damages or special damages. Meanwhile, you can still be compensated for noneconomic damages such as emotional distress, the pain from your injuries, and loss of enjoyment of life, among others.
Hospital bills, physical therapy bills, and ambulance fees are all simple to calculate. The key here is to ensure that all of the medical treatment you seek compensation for is causally related to your Uber accident by your doctor. If the medical records do not specifically refer to your Uber accident, the insurance company will correctly deny compensation for that medical bill. It is your job as a patient to explain to your doctor how it happened and ensure he includes it in his records if that is what happened.
Note that insurance carriers will try to compensate you for less than your medical expenses cost you. This is a ploy to save money on their end. A skilled Uber accident attorney will not allow this. There is no reason why a personal injury lawyer should accept a reduction in medical expenses when calculating the value of a case.
Also, it is imperative to consider future medical expenses when evaluating your claim. These may include the cost of prescription medications or monthly or annual follow-up care for the injury resulting from the Uber accident.
The only way to recover lost wages following an Uber accident if you were the passenger is if your injuries prohibit your work. To recover compensation, you must have a valid note from your doctor, who excuses you from work and relates the injury to your Uber accident. If you are a driver, you can recover lost wages for being unable to drive your Uber vehicle. But this is only for a reasonable time. As a plaintiff, you must mitigate damages. This means you must get your car repaired in a reasonable time; you cannot recover for months of lost wages because you waited a month to get your vehicle fixed.
You must consider all the factors to determine the value of a DC Uber accident case. We have discussed the economic damages in the case above. That is simpler to calculate because if it is a medical expense, you receive a bill denoting precisely what you owe. If it is a lost wage claim, you can calculate an exact number representing your lost wages. But what about the pain and suffering you underwent? This is more difficult to calculate. One jury might award a different number from the next despite having watched the same trial.
What factors should be considered to determine the value of a DC Uber accident? While there is no rule like “$25,000 for a broken arm”, a jury awards what it deems appropriate to make the plaintiff whole. In other words, they give an award when they learn exactly what the victim went through. For example, if a single mother tears her labrum in an Uber accident, she will have to undergo profound suffering to support her children. This may include going to work to pay bills despite pain. It may consist of driving her kids to sports practice despite her shoulder injury and helping them carry their gear.
This is all exacerbated, given a torn labrum. The pain and suffering award for the sympathetic single mother may be larger than the award for the 24-year-old man who can still perform all his regular duties. Of course, he, too, is still suffering immense pain and deserves to be compensated. However, the amount of compensation to make him whole may be deemed less than for the single mother.
Legal representation in the courtroom can lead a jury to determine the value of a DC Uber accident is more significant than if you handle your case on your own. In addition to a thorough understanding of what a case is worth through several decades of experience, our experienced litigators also understand what juries respond to. Our mission is to win you as much compensation as possible for your severe injuries. We know these injuries can be painful. And the toll they take on your quality of life and your ability to pay bills if you miss time from work can be substantial.
If you are injured in an Uber accident or want to determine the value of a DC Uber accident, call our office today for a free consultation.