If you tend to drive almost everywhere that you go, you may usually think of injuries suffered in a car accident as injuries that are caused when someone else makes a mistake and hits your vehicle. It seems clear to you that, if they were negligent, that accident and those injuries would be their fault.
But things can get a bit more complicated if you’re riding in a rideshare vehicle at the time of the crash. You certainly did not cause the crash, but that doesn’t mean that the vehicle that you were in isn’t at fault. Can you sue that rideshare driver? How do you seek financial compensation in a situation like this?
You may have a few options
What you need to do is consider exactly how the accident happened to determine what your options are. For instance, if another driver caused the crash and it was not the rideshare driver’s fault, you likely have to pursue your case against that third-party driver. The rideshare driver may also have been injured and they may be looking to seek compensation from the same person you are.
However, if you think that the rideshare driver themselves was at fault, then you can seek compensation from them for causing the accident. You may have been in the at-fault vehicle, but that certainly doesn’t mean that the accident was your fault in any way. Passengers can typically seek damages from drivers even though those drivers may not be able to seek damages themselves.
Finally, you also want to consider the comparative negligence rules that are used in California. This means that a portion of negligence can be assigned to different parties. It could be determined that the rideshare driver was 50% at fault and the other driver was 50% at fault, and then you can pursue compensation from both of them. There are also cases in which the rideshare company itself may be blamed and could become part of the lawsuit.
No matter how this plays out, you can see how complicated it may become. Be sure you understand your legal options.