In many respects, an accident involving a taxi cab is similar to that involving any other vehicle. If you suffer harm, you generally have the right to pursue monetary damages. However, because a taxi accident involves a driver for hire and a transit company that employs him or her, the matter may be more complicated. It also makes a difference if you were a passenger in the taxi or another driver with whom the taxi collided.
Your Rights as a Passenger
If you are a passenger in a taxi injured at the time of the collision, you have the right to file an insurance claim and/or lawsuit against the responsible parties. These may include the driver of the taxi, the driver of the other vehicle, or the taxi company itself. You can file against any or all of these parties if you have evidence of their responsibility for the accident.
In some respects, recovering damages for a taxi accident as a passenger is easier than if you were the other driver because the question of your own liability for the accident rarely, if ever, comes into play. However, recovering damages as a passenger can be more difficult if there were other passengers who also sustained injuries. There may not be enough insurance coverage to pay out all the claims for damages.
Your Rights as Another Driver
If a taxi collides with your vehicle, you typically start by doing what you usually do after a car accident, which is to exchange insurance information with the other driver. You should call the police so that they can write up an accident report. You may be able to take legal action against the taxi driver and/or the cab company if you can prove negligence against either that caused or contributed to the accident.
As a driver, the question of your own responsibility for the accident may come into play. Depending on the laws of your state, partial liability could reduce your damages or prevent you from collecting at all. The cab company’s insurer will probably try to pin most, if not all, of the liability for the crash on you. You can help support your case by gathering as much evidence as you can at the scene by taking pictures of the damage and obtaining statements from witnesses, or contact information if there is not enough time.
If you were injured in a collision involving a taxi as either a passenger or another driver, contact a law office. A car accident lawyer in Woodland Hills, CA, like from Barry P. Goldberg, may be able to help you recover damages.
