With every passing year, ridesharing becomes more popular. It’s incredibly convenient to have the option of paying someone to take you wherever you want to go rather than driving yourself. But what happens when your driver gets into an accident with another car? Who pays for the damage to the cars and the medical costs of the passengers and drivers? Is it the rideshare driver, since they own the car? Is it the ridesharing company? Or is it you, since you hired the driver to drive you around?
Insurance coverage for rideshare drivers
After a crash, a court will determine which party was at fault. If the other driver was the one who caused the crash, then their insurance company will be the ones to pay for the damage to both cars and any injuries resulting from the crash.
The two largest rideshare services are Uber and Lyft. Both of these companies have insurance policies that cover their drivers in most situations. This means that, if it was your rideshare driver that caused the accident, and if they work for one of these two companies, their rideshare company’s insurance policy should cover the costs of the accident.
What if Uber or Lyft does not cover an accident?
If you suffer injuries, and Uber or Lyft’s insurance policy does not cover them, you might have to seek compensation from your driver or the other driver, depending on who was responsible.
Rideshare drivers are independent contractors of their companies, rather than employees. The drivers use their own car rather than a company car, and determine their own routes and schedules. This means that you won’t be successful if you try to sue Uber or Lyft for your injuries.
If your driver was the one responsible for the crash, then your only recourse might be to sue them individually. Uber and Lyft require their drivers to maintain their own insurance policies in addition to the rideshare insurance policy.
Ridesharing is an exciting innovation, but it also raises questions in the minds of passengers as to where to turn for compensation if they are injured in an accident. You can rest assured knowing that you have options for seeking compensation for your medical costs if you do suffer a ridesharing accident.