Hit by an Uber or Lyft driver?

California Uber & Lyft Third-Party Injury Lawyer

You were not in the Uber. This page is for the people outside it.

If an Uber or Lyft driver hit your car, struck you while you were walking or cycling, or caused a crash that injured you in another vehicle, the driver’s app status can affect which insurance policy applies.

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The rideshare injury practice of

Law Offices of Burg & Brock

A Professional Law Corporation. Personal injury only, California only. Founding attorney admitted 1996.

✓ We establish the driver’s app status
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Cameron Yadidi Brock · Founding Attorney, Law Offices of Burg & Brock
California State Bar #183112 · Admitted 1996
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Can I Make a Claim If an Uber or Lyft Driver Hit Me?

Yes, if the rideshare driver was at fault.

Being hit by someone who happens to drive for Uber is, at its core, an ordinary negligence claim. What makes it different is the second question that follows: which insurance policy answers for it.

That depends on what the driver’s app was doing at the moment of impact, and you almost certainly do not know the answer. Establishing it is our job, not yours.

What needs to be determined

Was the rideshare driver at fault?
Was the app on?
Had the driver accepted a ride?
Was a passenger onboard?
Which insurance policy applies?
Were other parties also responsible?
What injuries and property losses resulted?

This Page Is for People Outside the Rideshare Vehicle

Another driver

You were driving your own vehicle and an Uber or Lyft driver hit you.

Passenger in another vehicle

You were riding in someone else’s car when the rideshare driver struck it.

Pedestrian or cyclist

You were walking or cycling when the rideshare driver hit you.

Motorcyclist or other road user

You were using the roadway outside the Uber or Lyft vehicle.

Were you the passenger in the Uber, or the rideshare driver yourself? Those claims work differently. See the passenger page or the injured driver page.

Who Pays When an Uber or Lyft Driver Injures Someone Outside the Vehicle?

Liability and coverage are two separate questions. Establishing that the rideshare driver was at fault does not by itself tell you which policy pays.

The rideshare driver caused the crash

The claim is against that driver. Which policy responds then turns on the app status at impact, which is what the next section is about.

Another driver also contributed

California apportions fault between responsible parties. More than one claim, and more than one insurer, can be involved at the same time.

The rideshare driver was offline

If the app was off and the vehicle was in personal use, the driver’s ordinary personal auto policy is generally the starting point rather than any commercial coverage.

The rideshare driver was working through the app

Transportation network company liability requirements may apply, at different levels depending on which phase of the trip they were in.

What we do not say, and what no honest page should say, is that Uber always pays.

Why Being Hit by an Uber or Lyft Driver Differs From Being Hit by Anyone Else

When an ordinary driver hits you, details are exchanged at the roadside and within a day or two you know which insurer you are dealing with. When the driver was working through Uber or Lyft, the fact that decides that question was on a phone you never saw.

The fact that sets the coverage is not yours to observe

Whether the app was off, open and waiting, or already carrying a rider changes which policy answers, and you were outside the vehicle when it mattered. A driver at the scene may not volunteer it.

You were never the customer

A passenger has an account, a trip receipt and a ride history sitting in an app. Struck from outside the vehicle, you have none of that. The paper trail a rider takes for granted has to be obtained rather than opened.

The coverage is a step, not a figure

Rideshare insurance does not scale smoothly. It moves between periods, and the distance between the lower primary coverage that applies to a driver waiting for a request and the commercial layer that applies once a ride is underway is a large one. The same crash can sit either side of that line.

The record that settles it belongs to a company, not to the driver

Trip data, log-in times and telematics are held on a platform, not in a glovebox, and they are not produced on request at the kerb. They are also perishable, which is why the request to preserve them is early work rather than something left until a claim is filed.

More than one insurer may end up on the claim

The rideshare driver, another motorist, an employer, a vehicle owner or a road authority can each carry part of the responsibility, and California divides fault between them rather than assigning all of it to one.

The Uber or Lyft Driver’s App Status Can Change the Insurance Coverage

California sets different liability requirements for each phase of rideshare activity. These are the figures that may be available when the rideshare driver is legally responsible.

App off

Personal use

The driver’s personal auto liability insurance generally applies.

California ordinary private-passenger minimums are currently 30/60/15.

Period 1

App on, waiting for a request

$50,000 bodily injury per person
$100,000 bodily injury per incident
$30,000 property damage

California also requires excess liability coverage of at least $200,000 per occurrence during this period.

Period 2

Ride accepted, heading to the passenger

$1 million
primary commercial liability

Period 3

Passenger in the vehicle

$1 million
primary commercial liability

Insurance limits do not determine what your injuries are worth. These are the ceilings on policies that may respond where the rideshare driver is legally responsible. They are not a valuation of your claim, they are not guaranteed compensation, and they are not all automatically available in every circumstance. Which one applies depends on the driver’s actual app status and the facts of the collision.

Requirements are set under California’s transportation network company framework, administered by the CPUC.

How Can We Determine Whether the Uber or Lyft Driver Was Logged In?

This is the question that decides which insurance responds, and it is the one piece of information the injured person almost never has. You were hit from outside the vehicle. You could not see the driver’s phone, and a driver at the roadside may not volunteer it. Establishing it is investigative work, and it is ours to do.

What you may not know

✓Whether the app was off entirely
✓Whether the driver was waiting for a request
✓Whether a ride had already been accepted
✓Whether a passenger was in the car

What can establish it

✓The driver’s own statements
✓Rideshare trip records and platform data
✓The police report
✓Passenger and witness information
✓Timestamps and ride receipts
✓Phone or app records, where lawfully obtainable
✓Vehicle and scene evidence

You are not expected to obtain confidential platform records yourself. Those are pursued through the proper channels once a claim is under way.

What If an Uber or Lyft Driver Hit My Car?

This is the most common third-party situation. You were driving your own vehicle, going about your day, and a rideshare driver hit you. You may not have realised they were working until afterwards.

Two things run in parallel from that point: your injury claim, and the damage to your vehicle. They are handled differently, they may be covered by different limits within the same policy, and one can resolve long before the other.

If you carry collision coverage, using it to get your car repaired quickly does not give up your claim against the at-fault driver. It is often the sensible route while liability is being sorted out.

What a claim can involve

✓Bodily injury
✓Damage to your vehicle
✓Lost income while you could not work
✓Rental or loss-of-use costs, where applicable
✓Your own first-party coverage, where relevant
✓The rideshare driver’s applicable liability policy

Hit While Walking, Cycling or Riding a Motorcycle

Outside a vehicle there is nothing between you and the impact. The same collision that dents a car can cause life-changing injuries to someone on foot or on two wheels, and these claims are usually about the severity as much as the liability.

Pedestrian

Crossings, turning vehicles and parking manoeuvres are where most of these happen. A rideshare driver watching a phone for the next pickup is a specific and recurring hazard. Visibility, right of way and the driver’s attention are usually the issues.

Cyclist

Right hooks, door zones and drivers pulling over to collect a passenger are the recurring patterns. A rideshare driver stopping suddenly to make a pickup is a distinctly rideshare-shaped risk. See our practice areas for related claims.

Motorcyclist

Lane changes, left turns across your path and drivers who did not look twice. Injuries are typically severe, and insurers often raise rider conduct early. Our motorcycle accident page covers this in more depth.

What If the Uber Driver Was Offline?

If the driver was not logged into the platform and was using the car personally, the ordinary personal auto policy is generally the starting point rather than any commercial rideshare policy. Someone driving to the shops in a car they also use for Uber is, at that moment, just a driver.

Current California minimum liability, ordinary private passenger policy

$30,000 injury or death to one person · $60,000 injury or death to more than one person · $15,000 property damage

These are ordinary personal-policy minimums. They are not rideshare requirements, and the two should not be confused.

The status has to be proven, not assumed. It does not follow that someone who drives for Uber was working for Uber at the moment they hit you. Assuming it in either direction is how third-party claims go wrong, which is why establishing app status sits so early in our process.

What If More Than One Driver Caused the Crash?

California apportions fault. If two drivers each contributed, responsibility is divided between them rather than falling entirely on one, and you may have a claim against more than one insurer at once. You do not have to work out the split yourself.

The rideshare driver

Another motorist

A commercial vehicle operator

A vehicle owner

An employer

A vehicle or component manufacturer

A government entity responsible for the road

Another party the facts identify

What Compensation May Be Available After Being Hit by an Uber or Lyft Driver?

Medical expenses

Treatment already received.

Future treatment

Care the injury will still require.

Lost income

Time you could not work.

Reduced earning capacity

Where the injury limits future earning.

Pain and suffering

Non-economic harm from the injury.

Physical impairment

Lasting limitation caused by the crash.

Property damage

Your vehicle, bicycle, or other property.

Other supported losses

Anything else the evidence establishes.

Who Pays to Repair My Car After an Uber or Lyft Driver Hits Me?

Property damage is its own claim, running alongside the injury claim rather than inside it. People are often surprised that the two move at different speeds and are handled by different adjusters, sometimes at the same insurer.

A liability policy carries a separate property damage limit, which is usually far lower than the bodily injury limit. That matters most when a vehicle is written off.

What affects the repair claim

✓Who was at fault
✓Which liability policy applies
✓The property damage limit on that policy
✓Repair cost against the vehicle’s value
✓Whether it is declared a total loss
✓Rental or loss-of-use, where applicable
✓Your own collision coverage, where you carry it

Evidence to Preserve After Being Hit by a Rideshare Driver

You may not know the driver’s app status, and that is expected. Preserve what you can reach. Platform records can be obtained later through the proper channels, but scene evidence disappears within hours.

At the scene

✓Photographs of both vehicles
✓The Uber or Lyft driver’s vehicle
✓The licence plate
✓The driver’s name and details
✓Passengers and witnesses
✓Road conditions
✓Traffic signals and signage
✓Police information

Digital and rideshare

✓Screenshots if any platform status is visible
✓Dashcam footage
✓Nearby surveillance or doorbell video
✓Timestamps
✓Rideshare identifiers on the vehicle
✓Phone communications
✓Any trip-related evidence available

After the crash

✓Medical records
✓Repair estimates
✓Towing and storage records
✓Wage-loss documentation
✓Insurer correspondence
✓Receipts for out-of-pocket costs

What Should I Do After an Uber or Lyft Driver Hits Me?

Get medical care

Be examined even if you think you are unhurt.

Call police when appropriate

A report creates an independent record of the collision.

Photograph vehicles and scene

Both vehicles, the road, signals and any debris.

Identify the rideshare driver

Name, licence and which platform they drive for.

Record plate and vehicle details

Make, model, colour and registration.

Identify passengers and witnesses

Anyone in the Uber may be able to confirm the app status.

Preserve video

Dashcam, nearby cameras and doorbell footage go quickly.

Save medical and property records

Bills, estimates, towing and storage.

Be careful with early settlement

A first offer usually arrives before the injury is understood.

Consider legal advice

Particularly before giving a recorded statement.

Should I Report the Accident to Uber or Lyft?

Usually yes, in the practical sense that the platform and its insurer need to be identified for a claim to go anywhere. Both companies have processes for reporting a collision involving one of their drivers.

Keep it factual. Report what happened, when, where, and which vehicle was involved. Record who you spoke to and when. Avoid speculating about fault, your own conduct, or how badly you are hurt before you know.

Reporting the collision is not the same as making a legal claim against the company, and it does not by itself make the platform legally responsible for what its driver did.

Can I Sue Uber or Lyft if Their Driver Hit Me?

The honest answer is more useful than a yes or a no, both of which appear on plenty of other websites.

The driver’s negligence is what creates the claim. Rideshare insurance may then respond to it, depending on app status, without that automatically making the platform itself legally responsible for the collision. Those are separate questions and they have separate answers.

Whether a direct claim against a transportation network company is available depends on the facts and the applicable law. Other parties may also share responsibility.

For most people hit by a rideshare driver, the practical route is the claim against the driver and whichever policy answers for it. That is usually where the recovery comes from.

How Burg & Brock Investigates a Third-Party Rideshare Claim

UberLawyer.com is the dedicated rideshare injury practice of the Law Offices of Burg & Brock. Step two is the one that separates this from an ordinary car accident claim.

Confirm the driver and platform

Establish who they were and which company they drive for.

Determine app status

Off, waiting, en route or carrying a passenger. This decides which policy responds.

Preserve crash evidence

Scene, vehicles, footage and witnesses, before any of it goes.

Determine liability

Who caused it, and whether more than one party contributed.

Identify applicable insurance

Every policy that may respond, not just the obvious one.

Document injuries and property loss

Medical records, repair estimates, wage loss.

Present the claim

To the correct insurer, with the evidence assembled.

Litigate when necessary

If an appropriate resolution cannot be reached.

How Long Do I Have to Make a Claim?

2 YEARS*

General limitation period

*Many California personal injury lawsuits generally use a two-year limitation period. That is the usual rule, not a promise that your claim has exactly two years.

Government claims are the clearest exception and can require formal notice within months rather than years. Property damage can run on a different clock again.

Insurers can also impose their own notice requirements, separate from the statute of limitations.

How Much Is a Third-Party Uber or Lyft Accident Claim Worth?

Insurance limits are not case value. A $1 million policy limit tells you the ceiling of what a policy could pay. It tells you nothing about what any particular claim is worth.

Injury severity

Medical treatment

Future care

Lost earnings

Property damage

Permanent effects

Fault and apportionment

Available insurance

Number of responsible parties

Strength of evidence

The Attorney Behind Our Rideshare Injury Content

Cameron Yadidi Brock, founding attorney at the Law Offices of Burg & Brock

Cameron Yadidi Brock

Founding Attorney, Law Offices of Burg & Brock
California State Bar #183112 · Admitted 1996

Cameron founded the firm and has practised California personal injury law since 1996. His work covers serious motor-vehicle collisions, catastrophic injury and wrongful death, including cases involving pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists struck by vehicles.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Third-Party Rideshare Claims

What if an Uber driver hit my car?

You have a claim against that driver for your injuries and your vehicle. Which insurance responds depends on whether the app was on and what stage of a trip they were in.

Does Uber’s insurance cover people in another vehicle?

It can. The rideshare liability coverage exists to respond to claims by people the driver harms, which includes people in other vehicles, on foot or on bicycles. Whether it applies depends on the driver’s app status at the time.

What insurance applies if the Uber driver was waiting for a ride?

That is Period 1. California requires $50,000 per person, $100,000 per incident and $30,000 property damage, plus an additional excess liability layer.

What if the Uber driver had already accepted a passenger?

Periods 2 and 3 both carry a $1 million primary commercial liability requirement, whether the driver was en route to collect someone or already carrying them.

What if the Uber driver was offline?

Then the ordinary personal auto policy is generally the starting point rather than commercial rideshare coverage. Current California minimums for a private passenger policy are $30,000, $60,000 and $15,000.

Can I make a claim if I was a pedestrian hit by an Uber driver?

Yes. Being outside the vehicle does not weaken the claim, and pedestrian injuries are often the most serious. The same app-status analysis applies.

What if I was riding a bicycle?

The same principles apply. Cyclist collisions with rideshare drivers frequently involve pulling over to collect a passenger or turning across a bike lane, and the evidence for that is worth preserving quickly.

What if I was riding a motorcycle?

A claim is available on the same basis. Expect the insurer to raise rider conduct early. Our motorcycle accident page covers this ground.

Does Uber’s $1 million policy mean my case is worth $1 million?

No. It is the ceiling on what a policy could pay, not a valuation of anyone’s claim and not an amount anyone is entitled to. Case value comes from injuries, losses and evidence.

Can I sue Uber directly?

The driver’s negligence creates the claim, and rideshare insurance may respond to it without the platform automatically being liable itself. Whether a direct claim against the company is available depends on the facts and applicable law.

What if another driver was also at fault?

California apportions fault between responsible parties. You may have claims against more than one driver and more than one insurer at the same time.

Who pays to repair my car?

Where the rideshare driver is at fault, the applicable liability policy’s property damage limit generally responds. Your own collision coverage can also be used to get the repair moving without giving up the claim.

How long do I have to file a claim?

Many California personal injury lawsuits use a two-year limitation period, but shorter deadlines apply in some situations, particularly where a government entity may be responsible.

California Uber & Lyft accident attorney The main rideshare practice page. Read more →Injured as a passenger If you were riding in the Uber or Lyft. Read more →Injured Uber or Lyft driver If you were the one driving for the platform. Read more →Motorcycle accident attorney Rider claims in California. Read more →Car accident practice areas The wider range of collision claims we handle. Read more →Cameron Yadidi Brock Attorney profile and credentials. Read more →

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Talk to a California Lawyer After Being Hit by an Uber or Lyft Driver

We can investigate whether the rideshare driver was online, which insurance applies, who was responsible, and what losses should be documented.

No attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for you. Case costs and expenses are explained in your written fee agreement. UberLawyer.com is the rideshare injury practice of the Law Offices of Burg & Brock, A Professional Law Corporation.

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Attorney Advertising. This page provides general information and is not legal advice. Reading this page or contacting the Law Offices of Burg & Brock through UberLawyer.com does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different and depends on its own facts and applicable law. Insurance requirements described here reflect California’s transportation network company framework and ordinary private passenger minimums, and can change.

Responsible law firm: Law Offices of Burg & Brock, A Professional Law Corporation. UberLawyer.com is the firm’s dedicated rideshare injury practice, not a separate law firm. California State Bar #183112. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

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