By Adam W. Pittman on August 31, 2021
When you use ridesharing services like Uber or Lyft in Tennessee you may think those companies will provide protection if you are involved in a car wreck. However, there have been recent changes in their auto coverages for passengers that might make you think again.
To be clear: If your Uber or Lyft driver is at fault for a car wreck, both ridesharing services provide up to $1M in insurance coverage to cover you for things like
- Medical bills
- Pain and suffering
- Lost wages
- Property damages
- Any other types of damages that their drivers caused
On the other hand, if an uninsured driver – or a driver who does not have adequate insurance coverage limits – collides with or wrecks into your Uber or Lyft vehicle, you get a very different set of coverages.
Before 2020, both companies provided up to $1 million in insurance coverage to their riders in Tennessee to cover medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other damages that riders may have sustained in a wreck where their Uber or Lyft driver wasn’t at fault, and the harm is caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver.
Both companies have recently changed those coverages. Now, Uber provides only $25,000 in uninsured/underinsured insurance coverage to each rider, and a mere $50,000 in total coverage for all riders injured in an auto accident while occupying an Uber vehicle when the Uber driver is not at fault. Lyft now only guarantees $15,000 in coverage for medical bills to its riders injured in an auto collision if the Lyft driver is not at fault.
So what should Uber and Lyft riders do to make sure they are adequately protected in Tennessee?
You should check with your auto insurance provider to be sure you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage on your automobile policy—even if you just use services like Uber or Lyft on the weekends and special occasions.
You may not realize it, but it is your own uninsured/underinsured automobile coverage that protects you if you are involved in an automobile collision where you are not at fault and the at-fault party is either uninsured or has inadequate coverage.
For a free legal consultation, call 877-562-0000
No one really wants to think about being involved in a car wreck where they might need surgery or more intensive medical treatment, but if the person at fault does not have coverage—or only has, say, $25,000 in coverage—then you may be responsible for covering bills for expensive medical treatment.
Even if you don’t own a vehicle, if you live in the same household as someone who does own a vehicle then talk to them about whether you are named and covered under their policy, especially if you ever share an Uber or Lyft with them.
It is important to be aware that insurance companies in Tennessee cannot raise insurance rates or cancel coverage if their customers use uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. After all, it is a coverage that you have paid for every time you paid your insurance premium.
You can also consider a Non-Owner Insurance Policy if you do not own a vehicle or live with someone who does. Non-Owner Insurance Policies are auto insurance policies for people who only occasionally drive vehicles owned by people they do not live with, and they are typically much cheaper than auto insurance policies for people who own their own vehicles.
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