For customers who hail cabs, ride-share services like Uber or Lyft have served as a catalyst of ease. Today, anyone who needs transportation may use their smartphones to request door-to-door service, frequently for much less than the cost of a regular taxi.
More carpool, fewer single-car households, and reduced intoxicated people on the road are a few additional benefits mentioned by supporters. Several US cities see car accidents on a daily basis but relatively witness fewer Uber injuries than somewhere like Chicago.
However, it is not uncommon for rideshare fatalities to happen given the scant focus on criminal record checks and insufficient training. The incidence of accidents involving rideshare services has grown along with their popularity as a form of transport. In this article, we dwell on the reasons why ride-share services are leading to frequent accidents and fatalities. But before that, let us understand what are rideshare services.
What Are Ride-Share Services?
Ridesharing services are businesses that connect drivers of private cars with people looking for public transit comparable to a cab or taxi. The most popular examples of such services are Uber and Lyft. If you do not own a car or want to hire a luxury car, ride-sharing services could be your answer.
What you need is a phone with internet connectivity and the ridesharing application to book a ride. Once you make an account, you will be required to choose your choice of payment and enter the details accordingly. You must constantly verify that your account has adequate dollars or credit if you rely on this service.
There are many ridesharing firms that provide a variety of vehicle sizes and classes. Although occasionally a larger car may be sent out at no additional cost, the base level often delivers a hatchback or an automobile with an equal number of seats. Prices are typically based on a basic fare, duration, travel distance, as well as other factors, and are frequently equivalent to taxi fares.
Reasons Behind Ride-Share Accidents
The essence of the industry can be partly blamed for the cases involving these rideshare services. Many ride-sharing drivers work part-time jobs as their sole or secondary income source, hence they can be rather pushy when attempting to obtain passengers. Many ridesharing drivers act carelessly and in a dangerous manner in order to grab as many passengers as they can in a short period of time. This poses a significant issue in urban locations such as Chicago or Philadelphia.
These are some factors contributing to a rise in accidents of this nature:
1. Speeding
Taking customers to their destinations as fast as possible becomes a goal that rideshare drivers aim to achieve to get the five-star review ratings they depend on from their customers to keep driving for their ride-sharing businesses. This frequently results in drivers speeding, which unfortunately can lead to a number of serious if not fatal road accidents.
2. Lack of experience
Another frequent factor in rideshare collisions is inexperienced drivers. Additionally, drivers for ride-sharing services don’t need to be familiar with the area they are traveling in. Unfortunately, this inexperience causes numerous accidents every year between rideshare cars that are just ill-prepared for the road.
3. Driving while intoxicated
Numerous accidents in rideshare cars are caused by driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. There is no established timetable for when rideshare drivers are meant to work, and they never go through an alcohol or drug test before getting behind the wheel. As a result, it is simple for a rideshare driver to consume alcohol or other illegal drugs before deciding to use the app to start driving. Driving while intoxicated can seriously compromise one’s judgment, intellect, and other skills, which puts the lives of the driver, his or her companions, and other people in danger.
4. Driving while fatigued
Another typical factor in accidents involving ridesharing is driving when fatigued. Ridesharing operates around the clock, and unlike standards for commercial trucks or other regulated businesses, there is no limit to how many times rideshare drivers are on the roadway before resting.
Furthermore, a lot of ridesharing drivers also have daytime jobs in addition to working for Uber or Lyft. When behind the wheel or working full-time at multiple jobs can make you drowsy. Each year, driver drowsiness causes numerous collisions that harm drivers, customers, and other people only because a ridesharing driver was too exhausted to operate a vehicle properly.
5. Not following traffic rules
All drivers, particularly rideshare drivers, are obligated to abide by all traffic regulations. A driver who causes an accident by breaking the traffic law may be held responsible for any casualties the accident results in. Bypassing a no-driving zone, neglecting to use signal lights, rushing through a red light, failing to stop at red lights, refusing to yield, lane changes before signaling, and more are examples of signs and signals that ridesharing drivers frequently disrespect or disregard.
6. Driver aggression
Last but not least, driver aggressiveness also contributes to accidents and deaths with ridesharing cars, while being less frequent than most of the other reasons. There are well-documented instances of rideshare drivers abusing their customers, fighting with other drivers in the area, and purposefully hurting members of the public. Speak with an expert personal injury lawyer right away if you want to learn more about the typical reasons for ridesharing accidents or how much your claim might be worth.
Conclusion
In recent times, ride-hailing apps have proliferated in American cities and towns. While these services including Uber and Lyft have been lauded for keeping drunk people from driving, the increased number of ride-hailing drivers implies more automobiles are now on the road, increasing the likelihood of fatal traffic accidents. In this article, we listed six major reasons for ride-share accidents.