Will my car insurance be affected if I drive for Uber Eats or Postmates?
On-demand food delivery services are becoming more and more popular every day. This growth has led to increased demand for delivery drivers. Some of the companies providing these services include Postmates, UberEats, Amazon Flex, DoorDash, Deliv, and InstaCart. New drivers are now signing for jobs in these companies to cover the supply gap in the market. However, before you sign up for any job here, get to understand vehicle and insurance requirements. In this blog, you will get to know about drive for Uber eats.
Remember that you will be working as an independent contractor instead of an employee of UberEats or Postmates. Most cities, including California, are also allowing bicycle food deliveries. Vehicle requirements are a little bit easier to understand and fulfill as compared to accidents and incidents coverage.
When it comes to Postmates, the main qualifications include any type of car, personal auto insurance cover, and luckily for you, no need for vehicle inspection. As for UberEats, you will need A car of the year 1999 going forward (2 or 4 doors is okay). If you feel like you qualify for any of these delivery companies, start your application today on their official websites.
Insurance Requirements
If you work for Uber as a rideshare driver and you are interested in UberEats delivery services, you would need to apply for the delivery services as well. Your food delivery accident lawyer will tell you that your rideshare insurance policy will not provide any coverage when working as a food delivery driver. The question now is, who is offering insurance coverage for UberEats or Postmates delivery drivers? According to West Coast Trial Lawyers, most drivers are diving into these jobs without acquiring information on insurance coverage for their services.
First of all, your personal insurance policy will not cover you in case of an accident as long as you are logged as available, or you are on your way to pick or make a delivery. This may sound unfair, but that’s how it is. You have a responsibility to understand the details of your insurance policy because they may never reveal these things unless you ask with specifications. Check for exclusions section of the insurance policy, and you will see that commercial, livery, or delivery services are not covered.
Apparently, the on-demand delivery companies do not provide coverage for you either, and if they do, it is limited. Items covered and the extent of coverage depends on the company you are working for and the state you are living in.
For instance, with Postmates:
• Your car is not covered
• Your injuries are not covered
• Coverage is available for other people’s injuries or property damage (for an accident you caused)
However, this coverage is only available when you have accepted delivery, but NOT when logged in as available.
If you are working for UberEats,
• You are covered with a $1,000 deductible
• You are entitled to liability coverage only when you are driving to take food or on delivery
It is evident that working as a delivery driver for on-demand delivery companies is a bit risky considering the possibility of an accident. You all know that accidents are unpredictable, and if you are not adequately insured, then you are up for a terrible shock on your finances.
You need to make sure that you are adequately covered before you start or continue driving as an UberEats or Postamates delivery driver. This includes other companies, as well. If an accident happens and you do not have any viable insurance cover, here are some things that might happen to you.
• You will need to fix your car from your pockets
• If you have any auto loan, you still need to pay for it even if your car gets totaled
• In case you caused injuries or property damages to another person, they will probably hire a personal injury lawyer and file claims against you.
• If you cannot settle the claims, your savings or personal properties could be used to cover them. You may be set on a payment plan as well or require you to declare yourself bankrupt.
Do you realize how serious this is? Maybe you do not. Some drivers will try to use their personal insurance policy by lying that they were not logged onto the delivery app. This may work if there is no indication that you could have been delivering food. The problem is that indicators are usually there — delivery bags, food in the car, or accident happening right outside a restaurant. If you get caught, you will face insurance fraud charges. You will be burdening your personal injury lawyer with issues that could have been avoided.
The only way you will get it right and be on the safe side as an UberEats or Postmates driver is by getting the correct insurance coverage.
Which is the right insurance for UberEats and Postmates delivery companies?
Once you discover that your personal auto insurance or the food delivery company does not cover you, or the coverage provided is too shallow, get the right insurance. If you are not sure how to check for these details, ask your insurance agent to shed some light on the insurance policies available for you. At this point, you either change your insurance policy (check for commercial options) or quit driving as a delivery driver.
Some insurance companies will offer you commercial options under your personal auto insurance. You will need to pay extra premiums per month to cover the additional policy. Ensure that the commercial options include delivery work, and now you can start or continue working as an UberEats driver without fear. The availability of these options depends a lot on the state you live in.
• If you are working as Ubereats driver, you are entitled to these insurance covers:
• A commercial policy that covers $1 million of liability in each accident
• Liability to other people is only covered once you accept a request to deliver or when you are on your way to deliver
• If you have a personal comprehensive and collision cover, it should cover the physical damage of your car with a $1,000 deductible
Do not confuse insurance coverage for Uber rideshare drivers and UberEats drivers. The former is entitled to more coverage than the later. For UberEats, you are only covered when you are on active delivery not just logged in to the app. However, Uber extends liability to the period you are waiting for a request on the rideshare app.
With Postmates delivery services, you can consider adding the commercial option (delivery) on your personal auto insurance to ensure coverage. With this, Postmates offers a $1 million in excess liability to cover third parties involved in an accident.
Those who deliver on bicycles or foot are also provided with a $1 million general liability coverage for injuries and property destruction for third parties. This means that you are you or your vehicle and bicycle are not covered under Postmates insurance. It is only your commercial insurance policy that can cover your interests in case of an accident.
So, will your car insurance be affected if you drive for UberEats or Postmates?
You are the only one who can make this decision. The first thing you need to do is to disclose to your personal auto insurer about your occupation as a delivery driver. You do not want to start hiring a food delivery accident lawyer only to find that you are in a bigger mess apart from incurring an accident. You might find yourself facing an insurance fraud lawsuit, and this is not a joke.
According to West Coast Trial Lawyers, adding a commercial insurance option on your personal cover would be the best option to operate as a delivery driver. After all, your personal auto insurance will not be liable for anything as long as you were logged in as a delivery driver.