I was hurt in an Uber or Lyft crash. Whose insurance pays?

Which insurance applies depends on what the app was doing

Texas regulates rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft as transportation network companies, and the Insurance Code ties the required coverage to the driver’s status in the app at the moment of the crash.

During a ride — from the time the driver accepts a trip request until the passenger gets out — the coverage must be at least $1,000,000 for death, bodily injury and property damage per incident. When the driver is logged in and waiting for a request, the minimum is $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for injuries, and $25,000 for property damage. When the app is off, the rideshare coverage does not apply at all, and the driver’s own personal policy is what pays — if it covers the situation.

That is why the first question in any rideshare case is what the app showed at the exact moment of impact. The trip receipt, the app history and the company’s own records answer it.

If you were the passenger

A passenger is almost never at fault. If your rideshare driver caused the crash, the driver’s rideshare coverage applies. If another driver caused it, that driver’s insurance is the first source, and the rideshare policy may still matter if the other driver had too little coverage. If both drivers share fault, you can claim against both. Your own auto policy’s personal injury protection may also help with medical bills even though you were riding in someone else’s car.

If a rideshare driver hit you

If you were in another car, on foot or on a bike and a driver working for Uber or Lyft hit you, the same question controls: was the driver on a trip, waiting for one, or off the app? A driver who was between rides has far less coverage than one carrying a passenger, and a driver who had the app off may have a personal policy that excludes rideshare use entirely.

What makes these cases different

Rideshare drivers are treated as independent contractors, so the companies generally do not accept responsibility as employers. In practice, the claim runs through the required insurance. The companies’ terms of service for riders also include an arbitration agreement, which the company may try to use to move a claim out of court. Whether it applies depends on the facts and the version of the terms, and it is something to look at early rather than after a deadline has passed.

Keep the trip receipt and take screenshots of the ride in the app, including the driver’s name, the car and the route. That is the first proof of which coverage applies.

Food and package delivery apps are different

The Texas rideshare insurance rules above apply to drivers carrying passengers. Drivers who deliver food or packages through apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, Instacart or Amazon Flex fall outside those rules. Those companies set their own insurance programs, which often apply only while the driver is actively on a delivery and may pay only after the driver’s personal policy. Many personal auto policies exclude delivery driving altogether. When a delivery driver hits you, the app records showing whether the driver was mid-delivery are what decide which coverage is in play, and they need to be requested before they are purged.

Authority: Tex. Ins. Code ch. 1954 (insurance for TNC drivers) · Tex. Occ. Code ch. 2402 (transportation network companies)