The short answer is yes, you may sue a delivery company for an accident. This holds true even when they insist the driver is an independent contractor and not a direct employee.
However, delivery corporations like Amazon, FedEx, and UPS have meticulously structured their business models to create legal distance between the company and their drivers. They do this to shield themselves from responsibility when accidents happen, making it harder for victims without the help of an experienced delivery accident lawyer to hold them accountable. This structure makes pursuing justice more complex than in a typical car accident case.
Despite these corporate shields, laws in Illinois provide clear avenues to establish a company’s liability. This is particularly true if their actions—or their failure to act—contributed to the crash that caused your injuries.
If you have questions about an accident involving a delivery driver, call our team at LegalRideshare Injury Lawyers for a straightforward conversation about your situation. Our number is (312) 767-7950.
Why Suing a Delivery Company Is More Complicated Than You Think
When you are hit by a delivery driver in a branded van, you might assume the company behind the logo is automatically responsible. Unfortunately, these companies have built a system designed to challenge that very assumption.
The Independent Contractor Defense
The primary argument companies use to deflect responsibility is claiming the driver is an independent contractor, not an employee. Simply put, they are attempting to use this classification as a legal shield. Under a legal principle called respondeat superior, employers are generally responsible for the actions of their employees while they are on the job. By classifying drivers as contractors, companies try to sidestep this rule entirely.
They want the benefits of a vast delivery network—the logos on the vans, the uniforms on the drivers, the quotas they must meet—without accepting the legal responsibilities that come with being an employer.
The Rise of Delivery and Increased Risk
The demand for e-commerce and food delivery has exploded in recent years. This surge has placed immense pressure on the logistics industry, and the consequences are showing up on our roads. For people who are hurt in a food delivery accident, the risks are tied directly to the rapid growth of services like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Instacart.
In fact, the pressure to meet demanding quotas encourages unsafe driving behaviors like speeding, distracted driving, and skipping mandatory rest breaks. This has contributed to making parcel delivery one of the more dangerous industries in the U.S. by injury rate.
The Insurance Maze
After an accident, you may find yourself caught in a frustrating runaround between multiple insurance policies. This may include the driver’s personal auto insurance, the delivery company’s commercial policy, and sometimes even a third-party logistics provider’s insurance.
The driver’s personal policy will likely deny the claim because the driver was engaged in commercial activity at the time of the crash. The company’s policy may have high deductibles or specific exclusions designed to limit what they have to pay. This back-and-forth leaves you feeling like no one is willing to take responsibility while your medical bills continue to pile up.
Who Is Held Liable? Unpacking the Layers of Responsibility
Even if a driver is classified as an independent contractor, the delivery company is not automatically off the hook. The law allows us to look beyond job titles and contracts to determine who is truly responsible. Our investigation focuses on proving either the company's control over the driver or its own direct negligence.
Path 1: Proving an Employer-Employee Relationship (Vicarious Liability)
The law cares more about the reality of a working relationship than the label a company assigns to it. We look past the "independent contractor" title to examine the level of control the company exercises over the driver. If a company dictates the details of the work, it may be treated as an employer for liability purposes.
We ask specific questions to establish this control:
- Does the company require the driver to wear a uniform or use a branded vehicle? This suggests the driver is a representative of the company brand.
- Does the company set the driver's schedule, route, or delivery quotas? These are hallmarks of an employer-employee relationship.
- Does the company control how the driver performs their work through a mobile app? If an app dictates every turn and every stop, the driver has little independence.
If the answers point to significant company control, we argue that the driver is, for all practical purposes, an employee. This would make the company responsible for the driver’s negligence under the legal doctrine of vicarious liability.
Path 2: Proving the Company’s Own Negligence
In some cases, the delivery company itself was careless, and that carelessness directly led to your injuries. This is a separate issue from the driver's actions and focuses on the company's own failures.
- Negligent Hiring and Retention: The company hired a driver with a documented history of poor driving, such as past DUIs, multiple speeding tickets, or a suspended license. They knew, or should have known, that the driver posed a risk to the public.
- Negligent Training and Supervision: The company failed to provide adequate safety training or implemented dangerous policies, like unrealistic delivery quotas that encourage reckless driving to avoid being penalized.
- Improper Vehicle Maintenance: The company owned the delivery vehicle and failed to keep it in safe working condition, which is a violation of standards set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR). This includes issues like worn-out brakes, bald tires, or broken headlights.
How Illinois Law Applies
In Illinois, commercial vehicle standards and liability are primarily governed by the Illinois Vehicle Code and the Illinois Commercial Transportation Law.
What Does It Take to Prove the Delivery Company Was Negligent?
In any personal injury claim, the responsibility falls on you, the injured party (known as the plaintiff), to prove that the other party was negligent. Negligence is a legal concept that simply means someone failed to act with reasonable care, and that failure was the cause of your harm.
Gathering the Evidence to Build a Strong Case
Building a successful claim against a large delivery corporation requires much more than just the police report from the accident scene. These companies are prepared for legal challenges and will not voluntarily hand over evidence that exposes their liability. We conduct a thorough investigation to uncover the information they may not want you to see.
Some of the key evidence we pursue includes:
- Driver’s Records: We formally request the driver's complete employment file, their driving history (including any past violations), and any internal records of complaints or disciplinary actions.
- Company Policies: We obtain the company’s official training manuals, safety protocols, and internal documents related to delivery quotas and performance metrics that might reveal pressure on drivers.
- Vehicle Information: We secure maintenance logs, pre-trip inspection reports, and data from the vehicle’s "black box" or Electronic Logging Device (ELD), which provides information about the vehicle's condition and operation.
- Electronic Data: We seek access to GPS data, dispatch records, and information from the driver's delivery app. This data shows how fast the driver was going, whether they were using their phone, and the route they took.
Connecting the Evidence to Your Injuries
This evidence helps us build a clear narrative showing how the company’s decisions and policies directly contributed to the accident. We connect the dots for the insurance company and, if necessary, a jury.
For example, if delivery logs reveal that a driver was assigned an impossible schedule with no time for breaks, we argue that the company's quota system created the conditions that led to the speeding that caused your accident.
Similarly, if maintenance records show that the company repeatedly delayed necessary brake repairs on its van to keep it on the road, we connect that corporate failure to the vehicle's inability to stop in time to avoid hitting you.
Let Us Handle the Investigation
Delivery companies have teams of lawyers dedicated to minimizing their financial exposure. Our role is to build a case so strong and well-documented that they understand the risk of taking the matter to trial. We handle the document requests, legal filings, and negotiations, allowing you to focus on what is most important: your recovery.
What Compensation Is Available?
The purpose of a personal injury claim is to make you "whole" again from a financial standpoint, as if the accident had never occurred. While no amount of money can erase the pain and trauma of an accident, compensation provides the financial resources needed to cover your losses and help you rebuild your life.
Our team will pursue the maximum compensation available under the law for two main categories of damages:
Economic Damages
These are the tangible financial losses that are calculated with a clear dollar amount. They include:
- Medical Bills: All costs associated with your treatment, from the initial emergency room visit and hospital stays to surgery, physical therapy, medication, and any future medical care you may require.
- Lost Wages: The income you lost while you were unable to work during your recovery.
- Loss of Earning Capacity: If your injuries are permanent and prevent you from returning to your previous job or earning the same level of income in the future.
- Property Damage: The cost to repair or replace your vehicle and any other personal property damaged in the accident.
Non-Economic Damages
These are the intangible losses that do not have a specific price tag but are just as real and impactful. They include:
- Pain and Suffering: Compensation for the physical pain and emotional distress caused by the accident and your injuries.
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life: If your injuries prevent you from participating in hobbies, activities, and life experiences you once loved.
Comparative Fault in Illinois
Illinois follows a "modified comparative fault" rule, governed by statute 735 ILCS 5/2-1116. This means you may still recover damages as long as you are not found to be more than 50% at fault for the accident. However, your total compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault. The delivery company’s insurer will conduct its own investigation, looking for any evidence to argue you were partially to blame. Our job is to use the evidence we gather to protect you from any unjust allocation of fault.
Frequently Asked Questions About Delivery Accident Claims
What if I was hit by a DoorDash or Uber Eats driver using their own car?
The legal principles are very similar. Although the driver is using their personal vehicle, these gig-work companies typically carry large commercial insurance policies that may apply in the event of an accident. Accessing these policies is challenging. The key is to determine if the driver was logged into the app and actively engaged in a delivery at the time of the crash.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit in Illinois?
For most personal injury cases in Illinois, you have two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. This deadline is known as the statute of limitations, found in 735 ILCS 5/13-202. If you miss this deadline, you will likely lose your right to pursue fair compensation forever, regardless of how strong your case is.
Should I give a recorded statement to the delivery company’s insurance adjuster?
It is generally not in your best interest to provide a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster without first speaking to an attorney. Adjusters are trained to ask questions in a way that may lead you to unintentionally say something that may be used to diminish or deny your claim later.
The company’s insurance already offered me a settlement. Should I take it?
You should be very cautious of early settlement offers. They are frequently low and are often made before the full extent of your injuries and future medical needs is known. An initial offer may not account for long-term physical therapy, future lost income, or chronic pain. It is always wise to have any offer reviewed by a lawyer who assesses the true value of your claim.
How much does it cost to hire LegalRideshare Injury Lawyers?
We handle personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you pay us nothing up front. We only receive a fee if we successfully recover compensation for you through a settlement or verdict.
Let Us Clear the Path to Accountability
Bryant Greening, Delivery Accident Lawyer in Chicago
When a delivery company's relentless pursuit of profit leads to unsafe practices on the road, they should be the ones to answer for the harm that results. You do not have to take on these large corporations and their legal teams by yourself.
Our practice is focused on cases just like yours. We understand the tactics these companies use to avoid responsibility, and we know how to build a case designed to overcome them.
Your energy should be dedicated to healing, not to fighting with insurance companies. Let us handle the legal work. Call LegalRideshare Injury Lawyers today for a free and confidential consultation about your accident at (312) 767-7950.