We get a lot of questions about insurance options when you are driving for a transportation network company (Uber, Lyft, etc.).

• Does my Massachusetts or Rhode Island personal insurance policy cover me when I’m driving for Uber?
• We know Uber offers some insurance to their drivers, what kind of coverage does it provide?

Check out this video or read the transcript below to learn a how we can protect you or an Uber/Lyft driver you know.

If you would like to submit your own question, you can send an email to me at jlapointe@lapointeins.com, on our Facebook Page, or contact us through the website.

Bill: “John what are we discussing today?”

John: “Today we’re talking about transportation network companies, you know some of the big ones, Uber, Lyft. We get a lot of questions when you’re a driver for Uber of Lyft. What are you covered for what aren’t you covered for? We know that Uber offers some limited coverage.”

Bill: “Actually, Uber provides really good coverage, as far as I know up to a million dollars liability insurance and some collision coverage for your car. The problem is it only provides it at certain times during the Uber transaction.”

John: “So what we end up with is you’re not covered for some things. We’re going to break that down here. So, when you’re an Uber driver, there are four instances when you’re driving your vehicle. There’s personal use, that’s when you’re getting groceries driving to work”

Bill: “Really, it’s anytime you’re not on the Transportation Network System. You’re not on Uber, not on Lyft, you’re just using your car.”

John: “So, then there’s these three instances when you’re driving for Uber, it’s when you’re waiting for a rider, you’re iPhone is turned on your waiting for someone to request a ride. You’re picking someone up/ on the way to pick someone up, and then when you have passengers in your car, you’re actually giving someone a ride.

John: So, on this personal use part here, we have coverage provided from our personal auto policy right.”

Bill: “Correct no exclusions there.”

John: “You’re covered under your personal auto policy here, but not covered for everything else.”

Bill: “There’s actually an exclusion written into the policy for transportation network company drivers which makes the policy stop as soon as you access the device.”

John: “What about the Uber coverage”

Bill: “Uber is really good here once you have passengers in the car and also once your device has picked up a fare, once you’re on your way to get them. These two Uber, Lyft and other transportation network companies work well there. The problem is here; you haven’t been contacted yet and your device is active.”

John: “So, it’s a little fuzzy. Here you have some coverage?”

Bill: “It’s worth saying no coverage, it doesn’t cover collision. We know that the million dollars does not apply here so that’s a serious gap.”

John: “We’ve got a gap, but we have a solution to this.”

Bill: “The solution is to just add an endorsement policy change. So, once you’ve been certified as a transportation network driver, an Uber driver, call us, we change this policy (personal policy) to cover you while you’re waiting for a fare.”

John: “So essentially we extend this personal auto policy to cover you while you’re waiting to pick up a ride.”

Bill: “And this is great because we know Uber ends here, your coverage extends, and we’ve filled in the gap. Just contact us once you’re a certified driver and we’ll square it up with you.”

John: “Thank you very much”

 

This video is part of an ongoing series dedicated to helping local individuals with their risk management needs.

At Lapointe Insurance, we have a long history of working with all varieties of people and families.  That history gives us the unique experience and expertise to strategically manage your risks. We are diligent to stay on top of new trends in the insurance world, Uber and Lyft being one of them. We want to make sure you are covered, while protecting your bottom line as well.

If you would like to speak with our MA or RI insurance specialists, please call us at (508) 678-8341 or click here to begin the process by email.

Thank You,
John Lapointe
Account Executive