Insurance questions for ride-hailing drivers: Who is responsible?

Being a ride-hailing driver may seem simple. You pick up people and drop them off at their destination. Things become more complex when you suffer an injury while driving for a ride-hailing company. Insurance should cover the damages, but which insurance is responsible?

There are three different answers depending on what you are doing at the time of the collision.

If you have the app off

When you turn the app off, you are essentially signaling that you are not working as a ride-hailing driver. Since you are not at work, your personal automobile insurance covers you. Companies generally require that drivers carry at least the state’s minimum requirements for liability insurance.

If you have the app on

If you have the app on, it means that you are working, and the ride-hailing company’s insurance should cover you if your own insurance does not apply. This is true even though you do not currently have a passenger, but you are waiting for one to contact you. The ride-hailing company usually has third-party liability insurance just for situations like this.

If you have passengers

When you have passengers and the app is on, the ride-hailing company’s third-party insurance covers both you and your passengers. This assumes that you do not have commercial insurance of your own, and your personal insurance does not apply.

Driving for a ride-hailing company can be a fun and profitable business, but you need to know who is responsible if you suffer an injury in an accident.