Were You a Passenger in a Taxi Accident?

Were You a Passenger in a Taxi Accident?

Even with the rise of ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft, taxi cab businesses are still alive and well. People often hail cabs to and from airports, for transport in large cities, or simply for a joyride when they see a cab pass on the street. Cabs are convenient and can take you where you need to go when you dont have access to a vehicle or perhaps when youve had too much to drink. In any event, people still frequently take cabs, and taxis are a regular sight in many cities.

Taxi drivers operate their vehicles for a living, so you think they would take particular care in doing so. However, many taxi drivers make negligent and dangerous decisions behind the wheel that can cause them to crash. Often, taxi drivers may crash when they have passengers and those passengers can suffer severe injuries.

There is NO excuse for taxi drivers to put their passengers at riskand they should certainly know better. If you riding to a destination in a taxi, but instead was injured in a taxi accident, you need the right attorney on your side ASAP. The team of lawyers and legal professionals at Trust Guss Injury Lawyers, handle complex car accident cases involving taxi cabsand we can help you! Our intake department is available for your free case evaluation, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at (800) 898-4877, or contact us now by CLICKING HERE.

Negligent Taxi Cab Drivers Are Everywhere

When someone has a specific duty of care and does not meet it, this is called negligence in legal-speak. For example, regular drivers have the duty to drive in reasonably safe ways. Taxi drivers, however, have a higher duty of care.

The law considers taxis common carriers because they transport people for money. In Texas and many other jurisdictions, common carriers owe a particularly high duty of care to their passengershigher than the usual standard for everyday drivers. When taxi drivers make careless decisions, they often breach their duty of care and courts can deem them negligent.

If your accident happened because a taxi driver did not drive in a way that would keep you safe, talk to a lawyer right away to see if youre entitled to compensation.

Driving a Taxi Can Lead to Dangerous Behavior

Taxi drivers are on the road almost every day, often in heavy traffic or bad weather. They get to know the roads of their cities in and out and are so used to driving that they may become overly confident in their driving abilities. Even if someone drives for hours a day, they still need to drive as carefully as everyone else!

Taxi drivers are also often in a rush. Passengers may run late, which can lead to a taxi driver speeding, making dangerous lane changes, or other careless behavior. A taxi driver may also want to get passengers to where they are going faster so they can pick up more fares sooner. All of this can lead to dangerous crashes.

Weve all seen the movies and TV shows with taxi drivers taking dangerous shortcuts, cutting off other traffic, honking, and behaving aggressively. This is not just fictionMANY taxi drivers act like this in real life. Any of these behaviors can cause a taxi driver to collide with another vehicleand injure their passengers.

As a passenger in a taxi, you can feel helpless because you exercise no control over how the driver acts. You are quite literally along for the ride and your life is in the drivers hands. A taxi driver must NEVER risk your health and safety by violating traffic rules and otherwise driving in dangerous ways. Our attorneys hold taxi drivers accountable when they injure their passengers, so please call today to discuss your options.

Who Is Liable if Your Taxi Crashed?

Taxi accident cases can present numerous complications—especially with the question of liability. In many situations, victims can hold employers liable for any harm caused by negligent employees, so you might assume that a taxi company will face responsibility for your losses. However, it is not always so clear-cut in the case of taxi accidents.

Many taxi drivers are independent contractors, and companies are usually NOT liable for the acts of independent contractors. In some instances, however, taxi companies MAY face liability. Your attorney may need to examine many factors, including:

  • Did the taxi company own the taxi or did the driver lease or own the taxi?
  • Did the taxi company let an unlicensed or incompetent driver operate one of its taxis?
  • Was the company aware of a driver’s dangerous behaviors—but continued to let that driver operate a taxi?
  • Did the taxi company fail to inspect or maintain a taxi cab, and then the cab crashed as a result?

Determining whether the driver, taxi company, or both were liable is only THE BEGINNING of your case. From there, youll need to file an insurance claim with the appropriate companies. Sometimes, taxi companies cover their drivers, sometimes drivers carry their own policies, and sometimes BOTH have applicable policies.

Juggling multiple insurance claims with companies that want to delay or deny your claim is the LAST thing you need after a crash. Youre already dealing with serious injuriesyou dont deserve to deal with more than that!

Were here to help at the law firm of Stewart J. Guss, so please dont hesitate to enlist our team of legal professionals and attorneys as soon as you can.

DONT WAIT to Call a Taxi Accident Law Firm as SOON as Possible

At the law firm of Stewart J. Guss, we know how to handle complicated car accident cases involving taxis, Ubers, limos, Lyfts, and more. We can investigate your accident, insurance claims, lawsuits, and anything else to help prove your case. We start with a free consultation to hear about your accident and tell you how we can help.

Because we take all of our personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis, you will not owe us a DIME unless we win your case.

For our free consultation with a member of our team, call our office 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 800-898-4877, or contact us now by CLICKING HERE. If youd like to talk about a potential case, contact us to get help on your case IMMEDIATELY!