Most rideshare injury claims settle, but the ones that settle well are usually built as if they were headed to trial. Here is how a New Jersey lawsuit after an Uber or Lyft crash typically works: who gets named, what has to be proven, and where these cases tend to be won or lost.

Step 1: Figure out who belongs in the case

A rideshare crash can involve several defendants, each with different insurance:

  • The rideshare driver, if they caused or contributed to the crash.
  • Any other driver who caused or contributed to it.
  • The rideshare company, where there's a basis for a direct claim, such as negligent screening. When the company itself can be sued.
  • Others, such as a vehicle owner who lent the car, a road contractor, or a government entity responsible for a dangerous road. Claims against public entities have a 90-day notice requirement. The Tort Claims Act notice rule.

Step 2: Lock down the app period

Before anything else, you need to prove what the driver was doing in the app. That decides whether the driver's personal policy, the $50,000/$100,000 "waiting" coverage, or the $1.5 million "active ride" coverage applies (N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10). In a coverage investigation, the company must provide the driver's exact log-on and log-off times for the 12 hours before and after the crash when a directly involved party asks (N.J.S.A. 39:5H-12(c)). How to secure the app data.

Step 3: Prove fault

Fault is proven the same way as in any car case: police reports, photos, witnesses, vehicle damage, and sometimes accident reconstruction. Rideshare cases add two useful sources: GPS and speed data from the trip, and phone-use questions, since rideshare drivers interact with an app while driving. New Jersey bans handheld phone use while driving (N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.3).

Fault can be shared. Under New Jersey's comparative negligence statute, you can recover as long as you are not more than 50% at fault, with your award reduced by your share (N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1). Passengers are rarely at fault at all. Comparative negligence explained.

When the police report gets it wrong

A police report is an officer's best reading of a chaotic scene, often based on whoever talked first. It is not the final word on fault, and the officer's conclusions are often not admissible at trial at all. Video from nearby businesses, traffic cameras, dashcams (many rideshare drivers run one), trip GPS, and independent witnesses can all contradict a mistaken report. That evidence needs to be requested quickly, because many systems overwrite footage within days or weeks.

Step 4: Prove the injuries and losses

Damages include medical bills not covered by PIP, lost income, future care, and pain and suffering. One rideshare-specific advantage: in a case arising from a prearranged ride, the rideshare company and driver can't assert the verbal threshold (N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10(j)), so passengers suing them generally don't need to clear the permanent-injury test. How pain and suffering is valued.

Step 5: The lawsuit itself

A New Jersey injury case follows a familiar path: complaint, written discovery and depositions, defense medical exams, mediation, and trial if needed. Claims against Uber or Lyft may be moved to arbitration under their terms of service. The stages of a New Jersey injury lawsuit. How rideshare arbitration works.

The deadline

File within two years of the crash for most injury claims (N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2), and two years from death for wrongful death claims (N.J.S.A. 2A:31-3). All New Jersey deadlines.

See our Uber and Lyft accidents page or request a free case review.