Rideshare Insurance California
Did you know that if you drive for rideshare companies such as Uber and Lyft, your personal auto insurance policy might not cover you while you’re on the clock?
If you’re one of thousands of California citizens who started driving for Uber or Lyft during the pandemic and you haven’t updated your own insurance policy yet, you may be driving illegally.
Confused?
Freaked out?
Not to fear.
As your personal insurance provider, we’re here to clear up the confusion about Uber and Lyft commercial policies.
We are one of a small handful of California insurance companies that offer rideshare insurance. Contact our office at +714 841 3177 to find out how you can add a rideshare endorsement to your personal auto insurance policy for as little as $6 / month!
Do I Need Rideshare Insurance?
Whether you’re driving full-time or part-time, California law requires all Uber and Lyft drivers to carry auto insurance coverage, whether you have the rideshare app on or off.
If you’re new to driving for a rideshare company (sometimes called a transportation network company, or TNC), you need to know there is a gray area that you can fall into if you don’t have the proper rideshare insurance coverage in place.
And not having the correct limits in place can potentially set you back thousands of dollars.
While rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft offer a commercial insurance rideshare policy to cover drivers, you’ll quickly find that their coverage limits vary depending on exactly how you’re using your vehicle.
(More on that in a minute!)
What are the Insurance Requirements for Rideshare Drivers?
California law requires rideshare drivers to meet the following minimum limits with their personal policy:
- $15,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per person
- $30,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per accident
- $5,000 in property damage liability coverage per accident
Not sure if you have enough coverage in place? If your personal insurance limits only cover the bare minimum (as listed above), there’s a good chance you are due for an insurance review. >>> Contact us today to compare rideshare insurance for free.
What Does My Rideshare Insurance Policy Cover?
As soon as the rideshare app is turned on, this is where the gray area comes into play…
As mentioned, your personal auto insurance policy typically does not cover “business use” of your vehicle, which may include the times when you’re en route to pick up a passenger or already have a passenger in your vehicle.
But what happens when you’re available for hire but you haven’t accepted a ride request…and then you’re involved in an accident?
What then?
It depends.
Since personal car insurance generally excludes all business use, you may not be covered by either policy.
*Good News: At SoCal Insurance & Financial Services, we carry one of the top rideshare insurance companies in the nation.
Our affordable ride-hailing insurance endorsement can be added to your existing personal car insurance policy to help fill in some of the coverage gaps with your TNC policy.
When Uber and Lyft drivers are waiting for their assignment, personal auto insurance policies may have exclusions; however, our rideshare endorsement can help protect you.
What Do We Offer?
Uber and Lyft insurance isn’t its own policy; rather, it’s an extension of your personal insurance policy.
The extra protection offered by this endorsement may help fill gaps between the TNC’s rideshare coverage and your personal auto insurance policy.
However, in order to reap the benefits of this affordable endorsement, you will need to purchase a car insurance policy from us, that is, unless you’re already insured with us.
There are many limits available that we can customize to suit your individual needs, some of which include:
- Comprehensive and Collision Coverage helps cover the cost of repairs or the replacement of your vehicle
- Liability Insurance can help protect you if you’re found at fault for bodily injury or property damage of another person and / or vehicle
- Medical Bills can help cover doctor visits, X-rays, EMT & ambulance fees, surgery, and more as the result of an auto accident.
- Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist can help cover the cost of your medical and / or property damage bills in the event the other driver does not carry insurance or does not carry adequate limits.
“I called the office when my husband first started driving for Lyft, and Kari and Jason were incredibly helpful in explaining how rideshare insurance coverage works and why we should add it to our personal auto insurance policy.
In December 2020, my husband had an accident while a passenger was in his car. Fortunately, we added the endorsement to our personal auto policy prior to the accident, otherwise we would have had to pay $2,500 out of pocket to meet Lyft’s deductible requirement!”
— Cathy Hummer (current client)