Lawsuit Filed Against San Antonio and Lime Scooters

Lime is in the news again after a woman has filed a lawsuit against the scooter company and the City of San Antonio following an incident in which her scooter hit a pothole on the street. According to the woman, she was propelled from the scooter and seriously injured. The lawsuit is targeting both the scooter company and the City of San Antonio for damages related to her injuries.

The Claim Against San Antonio

Perhaps the better of the two claims is against San Antonio. The woman claims that there was insufficient lighting and the presence of the pothole caused her to be catapulted from the scooter into the street.

However, sovereign immunity limits a plaintiff’s recovery in a tort against a municipality. This is true in both Texas and Florida and the laws are similar between both states. In Florida, a plaintiff is capped at a total recovery of $200,000, even in cases of wrongful death. In Texas, a plaintiff can recover $250,000. There are also other burdens put on the plaintiff in these lawsuits such as when they must file the lawsuit and the requirement to give the government a certain amount of time to respond.

However, potholes are a common reason for lawsuits directed against municipalities. In this case, the area had recently been repaved and the city left a pothole in the street, without sufficient lighting, and without any markings to warn drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, or scooter operators.

The Claim Against Lime

Lawsuits against electric scooter companies are occurring with more frequency. The claim against Lime alleges that the scooter itself should have been able to traverse the small pothole. Because it couldn’t, the plaintiff is alleging a design defect. Interestingly, these two claims appear to be at cross purposes. If the pothole is considered small enough, then the City of San Antonio may not have deemed it problematic enough to fix and otherwise could not be held liable for the injury.

On the other hand, the claim against Lime is the better claim economically since the plaintiff’s damages are not limited by sovereign immunity. If the plaintiff can hold Lime responsible for the lawsuit they could be entitled to a six-figure settlement given that she likely missed time from work.

This is a bit of a risky maneuver, however. While logistically, it might be possible to hold both Lime and San Antonio responsible, claiming that the pothole was both small and a primary cause of the accident could result in neither party being liable.

The strength of the plaintiff’s lawsuit lies in the fact that she is not responsible for her injuries and the accident could have happened to anyone. At least, it would be difficult for a jury to establish that her blame outweighed either the city’s or Lime scooters.

Talk to a Miami Personal Injury Attorney Today

The Miami personal injury attorneys at the office of Alan Goldfarb, P.A. can help you recover damages in a Lime scooter accident or a lawsuit against a municipality. While these lawsuits are complex, our experienced attorneys have successfully filed lawsuits against municipalities. Talk to us today for more information.

Resource:

tpr.org/post/woman-sues-lime-and-san-antonio-scooter-accident