Ridesharing insurance leaves many drivers in the lurch Ridesharing companies like Uber insure drivers when theyre picking up fares, and personal policies are supposed to cover moments when those drivers are waiting for customers. However, BuzzFeed News has learned that it doesnt work that way in practice -- and thats potentially a very expensive problem if youve signed up. While Uber says that many personal insurance plans safeguard its drivers in between rides, some of the largest US insurers (Allstate, Geico, Progressive and State Farm) say that these options wont cover ridesharing at any point. They may even cancel your policy if they find out that youre taking paying passengers. Moreover, both Lyft and Uber limit their liability for victims outside the car to $50,000. You could still rack up a huge medical bill if one of these drivers hits you while youre crossing the street. Commercial insurance can address those gaps. Its frequently much more expensive, however, and Uber frequently tells would-be drivers that they only need personal insurance. Its illegal to misrepresent how you use your car, too. You could face prosecution if you knowingly register a car for personal use when youre primarily picking up passengers, and even having commercial insurance on your personal ride could get you in trouble. Californias upcoming ridesharing legislation doesnt appear to address this gap, either, so youd still need a special ridesharing clause to be truly safe and sound. There is a national insurance policy that covers both personal and ridesharing uses (although state policies are hard to find), and its important to note that a few ridesharing services, such as UberBlack, require commercial insurance as a matter of course. All the same, theres a real chance that youre flouting the rules of the road if you enlist. You may not be completely in the clear unless more insurance companies and legislators embrace these tech-driven transportation outfits with open arms. [Image credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images] Filed under: Transportation, Internet Comments Source: BuzzFeed News ift.tt/1CwkAg9
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 18:13:33 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015