Whether you are visiting Henderson or live there and often use taxis to get around, an accident is not something you want your driver involved in—you need to make it to your destination safely. An accident often comes with substantial medical expenses and the pain of recovering.
If you get into an accident while in a taxi, an experienced Henderson taxi accident lawyer at Edward Bernstein and Associates can help you recover the compensation you deserve and the medical care you need.
Contact Edward Bernstein and Associates for your free consultation. We can review your case and create a plan of action to proceed with settlement negotiations or take your case to trial to recover the compensation you deserve.
Henderson Taxi Accident Guide
- Common Causes of Henderson Taxi Accidents
- Who Is Responsible for My Damages After a Taxi Accident?
- Recovering Damages After a Taxi Accident
- What to Do After a Taxi Accident
- Henderson Taxi Accident Lawyer FAQ
- Contact a Henderson Taxi Accident Lawyer Today
Why Call Edward Bernstein and Associates After a Taxi Accident
Edward Bernstein and Associates has experience in vehicle accidents, including taxi and uber wrecks. We thoroughly investigate your case and work hard to help you recover the compensation you deserve. If an insurance company refuses a fair and reasonable settlement, we are not afraid to litigate your case for a suitable outcome.
Common Causes of Henderson Taxi Accidents
Taxi drivers get into accidents for many of the same reasons other drivers get into accidents. In some cases, the accident is not the taxi driver’s fault. Unlike non-taxi drivers, those who drive a vehicle to transport the public have state and federal regulations they must abide by.
If a taxi driver is at fault for an accident, an accident investigation may find that a taxi driver was ignoring the rules of the road or federal and state regulations.
Some of the common causes of taxi accidents include:
- Distracted driving, including texting, talking on the phone, drinking, eating, fiddling with the radio and other controls, checking navigation, or even talking to passengers.
- Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol: If a taxi driver works a long shift, he may be more apt to use something stronger than coffee to keep him awake. Drugs and alcohol, including legal and illegal prescription drugs, impair your abilities, and an impaired taxi driver is at a much higher risk of getting into a wreck.
- Vehicle maintenance: If a taxi driver or a taxi company, depending on who is responsible, doesn’t maintain the vehicle, it could malfunction and cause an accident. Common maintenance issues include tires, lights, brakes, signals, steering and suspension, and others.
- Reckless or aggressive driving.
- Fatigued driving.
- Poorly maintained roads.
- Driving inappropriately for the weather: A driver might not drive slow enough for weather conditions, in which case, he might be negligent.
Who Is Responsible for My Damages After a Taxi Accident?
After a taxi accident, the driver and others could share responsibility for your injuries and other losses. In some cases, the taxi company might share responsibility. Additionally, another driver might have full responsibility if that driver crashed into your taxi. Your Henderson taxi accident attorney will investigate the accident to ensure he names everyone responsible for your damages.
Those who could share in the liability for your losses include:
- The taxi driver.
- The taxi company. If a taxi company fails to follow regulations and its driver wrecks, you could hold the taxi company responsible.
- The vehicle manufacturer. Sometimes, the taxi company or taxi driver keeps up with vehicle maintenance, but parts still fail. If the failure should have been a recall or the manufacturer’s fault, you could recover compensation from the vehicle manufacturer.
- A municipality. If an unsafe road caused an accident, you could hold the city responsible for your injuries and other losses.
Recovering Damages After a Taxi Accident
Accidents could cost you a lot of medical expenses and missed work. They could also cause pain, suffering, and emotional distress because of injuries or a lost loved one. Recovering the compensation you deserve for these damages isn’t always easy. Insurance companies will fight tooth and nail to prevent paying out—or if they must, they will offer the least amount possible.
Every claim an insurance company pays out decreases its profit. They will use every trick in the book to save themselves money. Experienced Henderson taxi accident lawyers know the tricks that insurance companies use and will circumvent those tricks to help you recover the compensation you deserve.
You could recover compensatory damages in the form of economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
Sometimes referred to as special damages, economic damages have a monetary value.
Most people in accidents caused wholly or partially by others recover some form of economic damages, including:
- Medical Expenses: These could include doctor’s appointments, surgeries and follow-up appointments, prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, ambulatory aids, and medical equipment such as oxygen tanks.
You could also recover compensation for various therapies related to your injuries, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, cognitive therapy, and psychological therapy. If your doctors recommend long- or short-term rehabilitative care at a health facility, you could also recover those costs. If you need a home health care aide, whether part-time or full-time, the defendant is also responsible for covering those costs.
Finally, you could also recover expenses for upgrading a vehicle to hand controls and your home with wheelchair ramps, handrails, grab bars, widened doorways, and other amenities to make your home accessible.
- Income: One of your biggest worries is most likely how you will pay the bills and put food on the table if your injuries prevent you from working or if you lose a loved one in a taxi accident. An experienced Henderson taxi accident lawyer will fight for you to receive compensation to make up for lost wages. Additionally, if your injuries prevent you from working for the rest of your life, you could receive compensation for loss of future earning capacity.
Even if you can work, but only part-time, or your injuries force you to take a job that pays less, you could recover the loss of partial future earning capacity. Regardless of your age, most who can no longer work because of accident injuries recover compensation for wages through the time they would normally retire.
- Death-Related Expenses: If you lost a loved one in a taxi accident, you could recover several death-related expenses, including:
- Funeral and burial expenses.
- Cremation expenses.
- Certain probate court expenses.
- Probate attorneys’ fees and costs.
Non-Economic Damages
Not everyone can recover non-economic damages. Sometimes known as general damages, non-economic damages do not have a monetary value.
In most cases, only those who have long-term or permanent injuries or who have lost a loved one recover non-economic damages, including:
- Pain and suffering, including emotional distress.
- Loss of quality of life if you have to make changes such as using ambulatory aids or taking prescriptions for the rest of your life.
- Loss of companionship if you can no longer enjoy time with your family or attend family activities and events.
- Loss of consortium if you can no longer have a physical relationship with your spouse.
- Loss of use of a body part, such as an arm or toe.
- Loss of use of a bodily function, such as eyesight or bladder.
- Inconvenience if you have to hire someone to do the chores you usually do, including but not limited to home maintenance and repair, lawn maintenance, house cleaning, and grocery shopping.
- Amputation of a digit or limb.
- Disfigurement or excessive scarring.
What to Do After a Taxi Accident
Always seek medical attention as soon as possible, even if your injuries seem minor. Even a small cut could become infected and cause much more medical expenses than you expected. Keep track of your doctor’s appointments and your recovery.
One way to do this is to journal every day, including:
- How the accident happened and those involved in the accident.
- Whether you went to the emergency room and when, if you did.
- All of the doctors you saw for accident-related injuries.
- The date, time, and reason for all doctors’ appointments.
You should also contact a Henderson taxi accident lawyer to schedule a free case evaluation. The sooner you retain an attorney, the sooner the attorney can investigate the case and gather the evidence to show the defendant’s negligence.
Henderson Taxi Accident Lawyer FAQ
What if a taxi driver doesn’t have insurance?
Nevada requires taxi drivers to carry insurance for personal injury and bodily injury. However, if the taxi driver or company doesn’t have insurance or doesn’t have enough, a Henderson personal injury attorney can help you recover the compensation you deserve.
I suffered injuries in a taxi cab accident, but I was not a passenger. Can I still recover compensation?
Possibly. Pedestrians, bicyclists, and passengers or drivers in other vehicles involved in a wreck with a taxi driver could recover damages.
Can I warn people of bad taxi drivers by posting on my social media?
If you were involved in an accident, you should never post about the accident on social media. Insurance companies troll social media accounts, looking for you to use what you post to deny your claim or offer you a pittance. Furthermore, the taxi company could bring charges against you if you state the taxi driver was terrible and the accident was someone else’s fault.
This falls under “don’t make unnecessary statements.” Remember, insurance companies can use anything you can against you—including photos of your activities that you post on social media.
Should I settle my case myself?
We do not recommend that you attempt settlement negotiations on your own, even if you have minor injuries. Insurance companies are in business to make money. Every claim they pay out means their profits drop. They will use every trick in the book to deny your claim or offer you a pittance. While they might still try that on an attorney, an experienced Henderson taxi accident lawyer knows the laws and can circumvent many problems the insurance company raises regarding your case.
How long do I have to file a Henderson taxi accident case?
You have two years to bring an action against an at-fault driver for causing your injuries. We do not recommend waiting to contact a Henderson taxi accident lawyer. Before you file a lawsuit or initiate settlement negotiations, we must have time to investigate your case, review medical records, interview witnesses, and take other actions to prove your case.
Additionally, the longer you wait, the more likely you’ll forget pertinent facts that could make or break your case. Finally, we often must retain witnesses, including accident investigators and medical professionals, especially if your doctors believe your injuries will cause long-term or permanent disabilities.
How do I pay for medical expenses until I receive my settlement?
Since you are out of work, any money that comes into the house will most likely pay for your housing, utilities, and food. Most people, even those with some savings, do not have enough to cover their medical expenses, especially when they have catastrophic injuries.
You can use your vehicle insurance and health insurance policies to pay for some of your medical expenses. Because the defendant should be paying these bills, your insurance companies will get reimbursed when you receive a settlement or trial award.
For medical expenses that your insurance doesn’t cover, including deductibles and uncovered fees, you can ask the doctors not to report you as late to the credit reporting agencies as you are in settlement negotiations or litigation.
When you receive your settlement or trial award, we will pay any outstanding medical expenses and reimburse your insurance companies before we cut you a check.
How do I pay for an attorney until I receive my settlement?
Your initial case evaluation is free and without obligation. The taxi accident lawyers at Edward Bernstein and Associates work on a contingency basis, so if we don’t win your case, you don’t pay. If we win, we deduct our fees from your settlement or trial award.
Contact a Henderson Taxi Accident Lawyer Today
If you suffered injuries or lost a loved one in a taxi accident, contact a Henderson taxi accident lawyer at Edward Bernstein and Associates at (702) 728-4137 for a free case evaluation today.