California Personal Injury Lawyers Blog
According to the Simi Valley Acorn, local taxi drivers and taxi company owners were at the Simi Valley City Council meeting on Monday to protest against the rise of Uber, a popular ride sharing service, in the community. Their main problem with Uber is that while taxis must abide by many regulations, Uber is often not subject to the same regulations. Accordingly, if there is a Simi Valley Uber car accident, the customer may not have the same rights as if he or she was in a Simi Valley taxi accident.
The taxi representatives said that they must abide by requirements such as background checks, inspections of taxis, fees and commercial insurance for their vehicles. They feel that Uber, a service where users order a ride from an Uber driver via an application on the user’s phone, does not have to abide by the same rules and therefore is able to operate at less expensive prices. This has cost taxi owners and drivers much of their business.
The result of the meeting is that the Simi Valley City Council will investigate the current Uber regulations, including how other cities or states regulate Uber, so that the issue can be addressed at a meeting at a later time. The object is to level the playing field and avoid violent confrontations between drivers of taxis and Uber vehicles, which have occurred in cities such as Paris, France.
If you are in an Uber vehicle and that vehicle is involved in an accident, your rights may be different from if you were in a taxi accident or another common carrier, such as a bus accident. It is very important to know your rights and if you are injured in an Uber car accident, you should call a California personal injury lawyer right away. Our personal injury lawyers are experienced with handling all types of automobile accidents and are happy to provide a free consultation for anyone involved in an Uber accident.