Personal Injury & Insurance Lawsuits Against Uber

There are a number of active personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits that have been filed against Uber, both in connection with bicyclists and pedestrians who have been killed, as well as Uber drivers themselves who have been killed while on the job and who are now being told that there are insurance coverage issues. Below, we discuss these lawsuits, and how they fit into broader litigation against Uber:

Uber Driver Killed Now Facing Insurance Coverage Issues

The Uber driver who died in a tragic crash which was the fault of the other driver was, at the time, working for the rideshare service. Sadly, the at-fault driver did not have insurance, leaving the decedent’s family dependent upon Uber’s coverage. Now the company has claimed that their driver did not have the insurance coverage that he understood he had; Specifically, while the family claims that Uber’s website leads drivers and others to believe that they have $1 million in uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, Uber’s insurance is claiming that the coverage is $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident. As a result, the lawsuit is against both Uber and its insurance company, Farmers Insurance Exchange, for both wrongful death and breach of contract.

Yet there are also concerns involving fraud: Uber’s website does indeed list $1 million in third-party liability coverage, but makes no mention of accidents involving uninsured drivers, and lists additional details only in the fine print.

Uber Driver Hits & Kills Cyclist

Meanwhile, a wrongful death lawsuit has also been filed against Uber and one of its drivers in connection with the driver hitting a cyclist, who died one week later from his injuries. The lawsuit alleges careless, reckless, wanton and gross negligence. The family of the deceased has decided to not only sue the driver, but also Uber, because they claim that Uber is vicariously responsible by failing to:

• Have and/or enforce the proper policies and procedures in place to train and/or monitor its drivers
• Have in place and/or enforce an adequate safety program for the protection of the public
• Ensure that its drivers had proper training and experience to ensure that they could navigate a vehicle safely
• Properly investigate the driver’s background, driving record, etc. to ensure that he could safely operate the vehicle

Other Recent Developments Against Uber

In related litigation, Uber’s recent attempts to force mandatory arbitration clauses for customers who sue the company were shot down by state courts for violating their constitutional right to a jury trial.

 Contact Our Macon, Georgia Personal Injury & Insurance Dispute Attorneys

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident and/or is experiencing difficulties with an insurance claim, contact the Macon personal injury attorneys of the Law Offices of Buzzell, Welsh & Hill today to find out how we can help.

Sources:

wbaltv.com/article/maryland-family-sues-uber-over-insurance-coverage/41470053

live5news.com/2022/10/15/wrongful-death-lawsuit-filed-against-uber-after-bicyclist-killed/