Chicago Rideshare Accident Lawyer

You climbed into the back seat expecting a routine ride, not a crash that leaves you hurt, confused, and staring at medical bills you never budgeted for. Now you’re getting the runaround: the driver says talk to Uber, Uber says talk to the driver’s personal insurer, and nobody wants to admit which policy actually covers you.

Rideshare services like Uber and Lyft have transformed our travel habits, providing convenient transportation with a simple app. However, the situation is more complex when a rideshare driver is involved in a car crash.

Unlike regular car collisions, rideshare ones involve multiple parties – the driver, the other driver involved, the rideshare company, and often an innocent third party in the back seat.

That is exactly the kind of tangle D&W Law Group has spent decades untangling for injured Chicagoans, and our founding attorneys have been licensed to practice in Illinois since 1990 and 1993, long before Uber or Lyft ever existed.

Filing a personal injury claim after an Uber or Lyft accident in Chicago involves several steps and various unique issues. Between them, founding partners Lance C. Dale and Scott B. Wolfman bring more than sixty years of combined Illinois personal injury experience to rideshare cases, and our staff serves clients in English, Spanish, and Polish so language is never a barrier to getting help.

Our lawyers work hand in hand with victims and their families to get a fair and equitable amount for damages from the responsible parties’ insurance companies, whether it means going to trial before a judge or settling out of court.

Why A Rideshare Crash Is Not Like An Ordinary Chicago Car Accident

A routine two car crash usually involves two insurance policies and one negligence question. A rideshare crash can pull in four or five interested parties at once: the rideshare driver, the other motorist, Uber or Lyft’s corporate insurer, your own auto policy, and sometimes the owner of a leased vehicle.

• Layered insurance: Which policy applies depends on the exact moment of impact, not the crash as a whole.
• Independent contractor defense: Uber and Lyft classify drivers as independent contractors, and both companies routinely argue in court that they bear no responsibility for a driver’s negligence.
• Data you cannot access on your own: GPS pings, trip logs, and driver acceptance timestamps sit on company servers that usually require a subpoena or a formal records request to obtain.
• Multiple potential defendants: One crash may involve the rideshare driver, another motorist, a vehicle manufacturer, or even a government entity if a CTA bus or city vehicle was involved.

We built our rideshare practice around that layering, so you are not the one calling three different claims departments while you are still recovering.

Understanding Uber And Lyft’s Insurance Coverage

Both have insurance policies that cover their drivers and passengers in the event of an accident. Illinois law spells out exactly how much coverage must apply during each phase of a ride, and the amount is not left to Uber or Lyft’s discretion. The coverage depends on the driver’s status at the time of the accident:

For comparison, an ordinary Illinois driver only has to carry $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident in bodily injury coverage, with $20,000 for property damage. That gap is exactly why identifying the driver’s app status at the moment of your crash matters so much, and why rideshare companies fight so hard over which “period” applies to your claim.

Contact us for a free consultation if you’re unsure which policy applies to your crash.

Steps To Take Immediately After the Accident

These are smart measures that should be done after any motor vehicle accident.

1. Seek medical attention: Your health is the top priority. Even if you feel fine, some injuries may not be immediately apparent.
2. Call 911: Report the accident to the police and request medical assistance if needed. A police report will be crucial for your claim.
3. Gather information: Collect the driver’s name, contact information, insurance details and the driver’s status on the app (whether they were waiting for a ride, en route to pick up a passenger or carrying a passenger).
4. Document the scene: Take photos of the accident scene, vehicle damage, traffic signals, skid marks and any visible injuries.
5. Get witness information: If there are any witnesses, get their names and contact details.
6. Save your app data: Screenshot your trip receipt, driver information screen, and ride timeline before the app updates or the trip disappears from your history.

Reporting The Accident To Uber Or Lyft

After ensuring your or the victim’s immediate safety and gathering necessary information, report the accident to Uber or Lyft through their app or website. Both companies have a process for handling accident reports:

• Uber: Go to the “Help” section in the app, select “Trip Issues and Refunds,” then “I was in an accident.”
• Lyft: Go to the “Help” section in the app, select “Report an Accident” and follow the prompts.

Keep any statement you give short and factual. Insurers on both sides review these reports, and an offhand comment about feeling “fine” the day of the crash can follow you for months if your injuries turn out to be more serious than they first appeared.

Filing A Personal Injury Claim

While each case is different, here’s a general step-by-step outline of the process:

1. Contact an attorney: It’s advisable to consult with a rideshare injury attorney experienced in Lyft and Uber accidents. They can help you understand your rights and navigate the claims process.
2. Notify your insurance company: Inform your own insurance company about the accident, even if you were a passenger. Your policy may provide additional coverage.
3. File a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance: If the rideshare driver was at fault, you’ll need to file a claim with their insurance company. If another driver was at fault, file a claim with their insurance.
4. File a claim with Uber or Lyft’s insurance: If the rideshare driver was on the app and either waiting for a ride or carrying passengers, you can file a claim with Uber or Lyft’s insurance. Provide all necessary documentation, including the police report, medical records, and any other evidence of your injuries and damages.

Illinois Is An At-Fault State

Illinois operates under an at-fault system, also known as a tort system. This means that the driver found to be most at fault for the accident is responsible for covering the damages and injuries resulting from the crash. Fault is determined by the following:

1. Investigation: After an accident, an investigation will determine who was at fault. It involves reviewing the police report, witness statements and evidence such as traffic camera footage.
2. Comparative negligence: Illinois follows a modified comparative negligence rule. If you are found to be 50% or less at fault for the accident, you can still recover damages, but your percentage of fault will reduce your compensation. If your share of fault is found to be more than 50%, you are barred from recovering anything at all, which is why insurers push so hard to shift blame onto the injured passenger or another driver.

What Is The Statute Of Limitations For Rideshare Accident Claims In Illinois?

If you were injured in an Illinois rideshare accident, you generally have two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit under Illinois’ personal injury statute of limitations. For property damage, the deadline is five years.

Missing these deadlines can mean losing your right to compensation entirely, making it vital to act quickly. Gather evidence, get medical attention and speak with a lawyer as soon as possible.

If your rideshare crash involved a CTA bus, a city vehicle, or another government-owned vehicle, a much shorter notice period can apply, sometimes as little as one year with written notice due even sooner. That short window is one more reason to talk to a lawyer immediately rather than waiting to see how your injuries heal.

Illinois Raised The Bar On Rideshare Safety Standards

For years, Uber and Lyft benefited from a special exemption that kept them out of the “common carrier” category that applies to buses, trains, and taxis, entities that owe passengers the highest degree of care under Illinois law.

In 2023, Illinois lawmakers passed legislation ending that special carve-out for the rideshare industry, a change the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association described as removing the exemption that had been granted in 2015 and holding rideshare companies to the same safety standard as other for-hire transportation.

What that means for you: a rideshare passenger hurt by a negligent driver, an unsafe pickup, or a preventable assault has a stronger legal argument today than a passenger did just a few years ago. We track how Illinois courts are applying this heightened standard so we can use it to your advantage when we negotiate with Uber, Lyft, or their insurers.

What If An Uber Or Lyft Hit A Pedestrian Or Cyclist?

Pedestrians and cyclists are more vulnerable in accidents, and injuries can be severe. The good news is that both Uber and Lyft carry large insurance policies, sometimes up to $1 million, that may apply depending on the driver’s status at the time of the crash.

These policies can provide vital coverage for medical bills, lost income and emotional suffering. Chicago’s dense downtown grid, with rideshare pickups and drop-offs stacked along streets like Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive, creates constant friction between rideshare vehicles and people on foot or on bikes.

We can help navigate these claims, especially when you are recovering from serious injuries.

Types Of Damages You Can Claim After A Rideshare Accident

After sustaining rideshare accident injuries, you may be entitled to substantial compensation depending on how the crash affected your life.

Economic damages include:

• Medical expenses: These include emergency care, ongoing treatment, rehab, therapy and prescriptions.
• Lost wages and earning capacity: Covers time off work and any long-term impact on your ability to earn.
• Property damage: Compensation for damage to your car or personal belongings.
• Out-of-pocket costs: Includes travel to appointments, home modifications or medical devices.

Noneconomic damages include:

• Pain and suffering: Physical and emotional pain caused by the accident.
• Emotional trauma: Anxiety, depression or PTSD that develops as a result.
• Loss of enjoyment of life: When injuries prevent you from doing things you once loved.
• Loss of consortium: For spouses of severely injured victims who lose companionship or support.

In rare cases, punitive damages may be awarded if the driver acted with extreme recklessness. These are meant to punish egregious behavior, not just compensate victims.

Calculating The Value Of Your Rideshare Accident Claim

Many factors influence your claim’s value, like injury severity, medical costs, time off work and the pain you have endured.

Our attorney Mark Curran III brings a finance degree into that calculation alongside his law degree, which matters most when a rideshare crash causes a permanent injury. Projecting future medical costs and lost earning capacity accurately, rather than accepting the insurer’s first number, is often what separates an adequate settlement from a fair one.

Because every case is unique, working with an attorney can help ensure you are not undervaluing your claim.

Can Rideshare Platforms Be Held Accountable?

Uber and Lyft designed their platforms to limit their liability in accidents involving their drivers. However, there are circumstances under which they can be held accountable:

1. Negligent hiring: If plaintiffs can prove that Uber or Lyft failed to vet their drivers properly, the platforms may be liable for accidents caused by those drivers.
2. Vehicle maintenance: If a vehicle defect that the rideshare company should have known about caused the accident, they could be held responsible.
3. App malfunctions: If a malfunction in the rideshare app contributed to the accident, the company might be held liable.
4. Assault or misconduct claims: Companies can face liability for failing to catch red flags in a driver’s background before letting that driver onto the platform.

Where Rideshare Injury Lawsuits Are Filed In Cook County

Most rideshare injury lawsuits arising in Chicago are filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County. Claims seeking more than $30,000 in damages, which covers nearly every serious rideshare injury case, are heard in the court’s Law Division, while smaller claims stay in the Municipal Department.

Most Law Division cases are heard at the Richard J. Daley Center, located at 50 West Washington Street, Chicago, IL 60602. The Daley Center is accessible from the CTA and from Metra’s Union Station, Ogilvie Transportation Center, and Van Buren Street Station, all within walking distance.

Filing in the right division, with the right damages allegation, is a small technical step that can slow your case down for months if it’s done wrong, which is one more reason to have a lawyer prepare your complaint rather than filing it yourself.

Recent Case Results

Prior results reflect other rideshare-adjacent and motor vehicle claims our firm has resolved for clients. Every case is different, and these figures describe past outcomes, not a promise about your case.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Steering Clients Through the Aftermath

Determining liability and navigating the insurance claims process demands a thorough understanding of state laws and rideshare company policies. If you are injured in a rideshare accident, seeking guidance from an accident attorney experienced in this niche field can help ensure your rights are protected and you receive the compensation you are owed.

Uber and Lyft accident attorneys at D&W Law Group have the specific knowledge and experience to handle the intricacies of rideshare accident claims. Our firm also holds membership in organizations including the American Association for Justice and the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, and carries an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

They are also skilled negotiators who can deal with insurance companies to get you the largest possible settlement.

Initial consultations are free, and we charge no legal fees until we secure damages in court or a fair out-of-court settlement.

Serious Lawyers For Serious Injury Cases

Call Today For A Free Consultation

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a lawyer right after a rideshare crash, or can it wait?

You do not need to hire a lawyer at the scene, but you should talk to one before you give a recorded statement to Uber, Lyft, or any insurer. Early statements about your injuries are often used later to argue you were not really hurt, and a short consultation can help you avoid that trap.

What if the rideshare driver was using multiple delivery or ride apps at once?

Many rideshare drivers run Uber, Lyft, and delivery apps simultaneously, a practice sometimes called multi-apping. Figuring out which company’s insurance policy was active at the moment of the crash requires pulling records from every platform the driver was logged into, not just the app the passenger used.

Can I still recover damages if I was partly responsible for the crash?

Yes, as long as your share of fault is 50% or less under Illinois’ modified comparative negligence rule. Your compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault, but you are not automatically barred from recovering.

Will my case go to trial in Chicago, or does it usually settle?

Most rideshare injury claims settle out of court once liability and insurance coverage are clear, but we prepare every case as though it will be tried before a jury in the Law Division. That preparation is often what pushes an insurer to offer a fair number instead of a lowball figure.

What should I do if Uber or Lyft deactivates the driver’s account after my crash?

Deactivation does not end your claim, and it can sometimes support it by showing the company recognized a safety problem. Keep records of any communication about the driver’s status and let your attorney know right away.

Does it matter which Chicago neighborhood the crash happened in?

It can matter for which police district responds and where witnesses can be reached, but the insurance and liability rules described here apply the same way whether your crash happened downtown, in Wicker Park, or in the suburbs of Cook County.

What if I was a rideshare driver injured by another motorist?

Rideshare drivers hurt by another driver’s negligence can pursue a claim against that driver’s insurer, and depending on your app status at the time, Uber or Lyft’s underinsured motorist coverage may also apply if the at-fault driver lacks enough insurance.

How long will it take to resolve my rideshare accident claim?

Timing depends on how quickly you finish medical treatment, how cooperative the insurers are, and whether the case needs to be filed in court. Simple claims with clear liability can resolve in months, while cases requiring litigation in the Law Division often take longer.

Talk to a Chicago Rideshare Accident Lawyer Today

You don’t have to sort out which insurance policy applies, chase down trip data, or negotiate with Uber and Lyft’s claims teams on your own. Our attorneys have been sorting out Illinois motor vehicle claims for decades, and we offer a free consultation to walk through what happened and what your case may be worth.

Contact D&W Law Group today for your free consultation.