Injured in a
Lyft or Uber
Accident?

Seek medical attention first, even if you feel fine — some injuries appear hours or days later. Document the scene with photos, get the driver's information and Lyft trip details, and report the accident through the Lyft app. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance adjuster before consulting a Gilbert Lyft accident lawyer.

Lyft classifies its drivers as independent contractors, which limits direct lawsuits against the company itself. However, Lyft's $1 million commercial insurance policy applies when the driver was transporting you or en route to pick you up. Our attorneys identify every available insurance source and pursue the maximum recovery for your injuries.

Liability in an Uber autonomous vehicle accident can fall on Uber Technologies as the operator of the AV system, the backup safety driver if they failed to intervene when required by their contract, the vehicle or component manufacturer if a hardware defect caused the crash, and third-party software or mapping contractors if a technical failure contributed. Under Arizona law, the registered owner of an AV is treated as the operator when the autonomous system is engaged — placing Uber directly and squarely in the chain of responsibility. These cases require deep investigation of sensor logs, the backup driver's employment contract, Uber's internal safety protocols, and any software version records from the day of the crash.

A backup safety driver's legal responsibility is defined first by their written contract with Uber or the staffing agency that placed them, and then by the general duty of care owed to members of the public. The contract typically requires the driver to remain fully attentive, keep their hands near the wheel, and be ready to take manual control at any moment the vehicle's behavior is unsafe. If the driver was watching a phone, looking away, or otherwise inattentive — and that inattention contributed to the crash — they and their employer can be held personally liable in addition to Uber. The 2018 Tempe fatality is the most prominent Arizona example of precisely this failure.

When an Uber AV is in active commercial service — transporting a paying passenger at the time of a crash — Uber's $1 million commercial liability policy typically applies in the same way it does for a human-driven Uber trip. AV accidents also open the door to separate product liability claims against Uber, vehicle manufacturers, or software contractors, which can result in additional recovery beyond the insurance policy limit. An attorney can evaluate which theories and policies apply to your specific accident and how best to pursue all of them simultaneously.

Sí. Conectamos a víctimas de accidentes con un abogado de accidente de Uber o un abogado de accidente de Lyft que habla español y atiende a toda la comunidad del East Valley, incluyendo Gilbert, Mesa y Chandler. La consulta es gratuita y confidencial, y usted no paga honorarios a menos que gane su caso.

Arizona's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is two years from the date of the accident. For product liability claims — which may apply in AV accidents — the same two-year period generally governs. However, evidence in AV crashes is especially time-sensitive: sensor logs, dashcam footage, and software version records can be overwritten or deleted quickly. We strongly recommend contacting an attorney as soon as possible after any rideshare or autonomous vehicle accident.

Uber frequently attempts to distance itself from backup driver liability by pointing to the staffing agency that provided the driver. Our attorneys address this directly by examining the actual degree of control Uber exercised over the driver's training, daily duties, vehicle access, and real-time monitoring. Where Uber controlled the driver's conduct in meaningful ways — as it typically does in AV programs — agency law principles can hold Uber responsible regardless of who issued the paycheck. This argument does not succeed where attorneys understand how to rebut it.