Thousands of taxicabs travel the streets of Philadelphia every day. Many Philadelphia residents choose to take taxis over cars due to parking difficulty, stressful traffic congestion, intoxication, among other reasons. Taxi drivers pick up passenger after passenger, many of whom are in a hurry, and deliver them to their desired destinations. Taxi drivers constantly deal with traffic, time pressures, and distracting passengers. All of these factors can lead to accidents, which may cause serious injuries for fares, people in other cars, bicyclists, and pedestrians. Just like any other type of car accident, if you have been injured in a taxicab accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you deserve to be compensated by the responsible party.
Common Causes of Taxicab Accidents
Cases involving taxi cab car accidents may be more complicated than other accidents for many reasons. One reason is that there are a variety of common possible causes for taxi accidents. Some common causes include:
- Fatigued drivers, who may work 12-17 hours per day
- Speeding or aggressive driving, for which taxi drivers are notorious
- Having drunk or otherwise difficult or distracting passengers in the cab
- Inadequate maintenance of the cab
Taxis are considered to be common carriers because they transport people for profit. Common carriers have the highest duty of care to passengers, so if the taxi driver acted negligently in any way and caused you injury, you should be able to hold him liable. Sometimes, however, the taxi company may be liable. For example, if the driver leased a cab from the company that was not properly maintained or fit to drive, the company should reimburse you. Companies may also act negligently by allowing unlicensed, unqualified, or untrained drivers or drivers who have poor driving records to drive their cabs.
Additionally, another driver on the road may be responsible for your injuries if they collided with a taxicab in which you were riding. In these instances, the other driver would not be held to as high of a duty of care as the cab driver himself, and the same negligence standard would apply as in any other type of car accident.