As Arizona continues to grow, rideshare accidents are on the rise. If you’re a passenger who uses Uber or Lyft, here’s a few things you should know.rideshare accident arizona, rideshare accident lawyer
Every Uber and Lyft driver is required to carry liability insurance in case they cause an accident. In fact, the parent company is required to carry a million dollar umbrella policy on top of that. But what about in cases where the driver isn’t at fault on?
July 22nd, Lyft driver Terry Hill was sitting at a red light waiting to make a left-hand turn with two passengers in his back seat. All of a sudden, an unknown driver in a stolen vehicle slammed into the side of Terry’s vehicle, killing him and the two passengers instantly. We know for certain that Terry was not liable for this accident. Therefore, his liability insurance did not apply to the passengers. But we also know that the other driver didn’t have any insurance in the stolen vehicle, so that insurance didn’t apply either. What happens now?
Because we know that rideshare accidents happen all across the country, I should tell you that in some states, there is no laws that require uninsured motorist coverage. But in Arizona, the laws do require that rideshare companies carry a minimum $250,000 of uninsured motorist coverage. If you apply the law in Terry’s case, there’s $250,000 of uninsured motorist coverage. That’s for Terry and the two passengers. That’s just not enough.
Here’s what you should know. As a driver, every auto policy allows us to add underinsured and uninsured motorist coverage, and that covers us in every vehicle, including a rideshare. That means any amount of uninsured motorist coverage that I have on my policy would be added on top of the 250,000.
My heart goes out to Terry and the two passengers that died in this accident. With over 20,000 rideshare drivers in Arizona today, these accidents are becoming all too familiar. I wish I could prevent all accidents, but I can’t. I wish I could tell you how much insurance coverage to have, but it’s impossible to tell. All I can do is give you my advice and tell you to protect yourself, protect yourself in all vehicles, including a rideshare.
If you’ve been involved in a rideshare accident, please contact the law office of the AZ Home Town Law Firm at 602-495-1005.
