# article: If you're using your car for work, make sure your insurance knows



## JeanOcelot0 (Dec 30, 2020)

If you're using your car for work, make sure your insurance knows


Claims for incidents that happened on the job can be denied as one courier service driver learned the hard way.




www.khou.com


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

"Gee Golly Wilikers I was making money and doing a business and did ot know I needed business insurance..."

Sorry, but anyone with that kind of attitude deseves what they get.


----------



## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

I drove for a year on GrubHub after my agent told me my business rating to work as secondary insurance to Uber/Lyft covered my GrubHub driving. It did not. Nor did it cover any DD orders outside of their insurance, which is 80% of your driving. After i stopped I tried to warn other drivers and was met with "I have good insurance, I'm sure I'll be fine"

So I have stopped warning people, they are on their own. But GH does a terrible disservice by not making this knows, to keep driving for them I would have needed a commercial policy costing $2,500/year.


----------



## JeanOcelot0 (Dec 30, 2020)

Darrell Green Fan said:


> I drove for a year on GrubHub after my agent told me my business rating to work as secondary insurance to Uber/Lyft covered my GrubHub driving. It did not. Nor did it cover any DD orders outside of their insurance, which is 80% of your driving. After i stopped I tried to warn other drivers and was met with "I have good insurance, I'm sure I'll be fine"
> 
> So I have stopped warning people, they are on their own. But GH does a terrible disservice by not making this knows, to keep driving for them I would have needed a commercial policy costing $2,500/year.


If ants had to properly pay insurance, the rideshare business model - especially for delivery - would collapse.


----------



## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

JeanOcelot0 said:


> If ants had to properly pay insurance, the rideshare business model - especially for delivery - would collapse.


It's pretty crappy that these companies do not let the drivers know and they drive around totally uninsured. I tried to warn a few when I returned to ride share driving, I get the "oh I'm sure I'll be OK" response. So **** 'em, I tried.


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

Darrell Green Fan said:


> It's pretty crappy that these companies do not let the drivers know and they drive around totally uninsured. I tried to warn a few when I returned to ride share driving, I get the "oh I'm sure I'll be OK" response. So **** 'em, I tried.


It is pretty crappy when drivers don't bother to take the time to READ and UNDERSTAND THEIR PERSONAL AUTO INSURNACE POLICY.

Quit passing the buck onto some one else and take personal responsibility.


----------



## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

BigJohn said:


> It is pretty crappy when drivers don't bother to take the time to READ and UNDERSTAND THEIR PERSONAL AUTO INSURNACE POLICY.
> 
> Quit passing the buck onto some one else and take personal responsibility.


I'm not passing the buck. Grubhub etc should tell riders they are not offering insurance. They don't do that and most drivers, myself included after I got bad info from my insurance agent, assume our business rating for rideshare covered Grubhub and DD. It did not I learned later.


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

Darrell Green Fan said:


> I'm not passing the buck. Grubhub etc should tell riders they are not offering insurance. They don't do that and most drivers, myself included after I got bad info from my insurance agent, assume our business rating for rideshare covered Grubhub and DD. It did not I learned later.


Yet you continue to attempt to pass the buck. You are blaming Grubhub and your insurance agent. 

DID YOU BOTHER TO FULLY READ AND UNDERSTAND YOUR ENTIRE INSURANCE POLICY?

It is a simple yes or no question.


----------



## NGOwner (Nov 15, 2016)

For the most part, people get into trouble with Comprehensive and Collision coverage.

Liability coverage (which wouldn't have covered Terrina Sheppard because she was at fault and wanted her own insurance to cover the damage) is handled by Uber and Lyft in all phases (but only to the state minimums in Phase 1). Turn the app on, it toggles on Uber's and Lyft's liability coverage, and toggles off your own liability coverage. Turn the app off, it toggles Uber's and Lyft's liability coverage off, and your liability coverage back on. If all you have is liability coverage, make sure that you show, and the injured party submits the claim to, the correct insurance company: Uber/Lyft if the app is on, your own private insurance company if the app is off.

If you still have Comprehensive and Collision coverage on your car, you MUST have the rideshare Insurance rider, as the article suggests.

[NG]Owner


----------



## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

BigJohn said:


> Yet you continue to attempt to pass the buck. You are blaming Grubhub and your insurance agent.
> 
> DID YOU BOTHER TO FULLY READ AND UNDERSTAND YOUR ENTIRE INSURANCE POLICY?
> 
> It is a simple yes or no question.


Just stop. I asked my agent, he gave me bad advice as I clearly stated. That's his job, to give me the correct advice. I took that step, 90% of drivers never even know to check. 

So you see nothing wrong with GrubHub not even warning drivers that they offer no insurance while knowing their personal coverage will not cover them? Well I do.


----------



## Seamus (Jun 21, 2018)

DD is essentially nothing as well. Doordash only offers to consider excess Liability claims (no collision/comprehensive) ONLY AFTER YOU GO THRU YOUR OWN INSURANCE COMPANY FIRST AND HAVE BEEN DENIED. For most drivers this is the same as no insurance because you'll be dropped by your insurance company if you only have a personal use policy. Think about it, if you had the proper insurance you wouldn't try to use DD insurance.

GH as stated, nothing.

It's very simple. The only way to be covered delivering food is Commercial Insurance which very few have. Most drivers plan is to ditch the evidence and not tell anyone they were delivering food when the accident happened.


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

Darrell Green Fan said:


> Just stop. I asked my agent, he gave me bad advice as I clearly stated. That's his job, to give me the correct advice. I took that step, 90% of drivers never even know to check.
> 
> So you see nothing wrong with GrubHub not even warning drivers that they offer no insurance while knowing their personal coverage will not cover them? Well I do.


The undeniable fact that you refuse to answer the question as to whether or not you bothered to fully read and understand YOUR personal auto insurance policy speaks volumes.

It is NOT Grubhub or DoorDash or Uber or anyone else's responsibility to EDUCATE YOU ON LEGAL DOCUMENTS YOU HAVE SIGNED.

*IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY!*

Done.


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

Seamus said:


> It's very simple. The only way to be covered delivering food is Commercial Insurance which very few have. Most drivers plan is to ditch the evidence and not tell anyone they were delivering food when the accident happened.


Yes, it is very simple. Most choose to gamble by playing Russian Roulet.


----------



## Ignatowski (Mar 23, 2019)

Darrell Green Fan said:


> I drove for a year on GrubHub after my agent told me my business rating to work as secondary insurance to Uber/Lyft covered my GrubHub driving. It did not.


I have been trying to get info on this. I deliver in a $19k Chevy Bolt, and it's our family's only car, so insurance is important.
Progressive has a web page : Rideshare Insurance Coverage
...it says the usual stuff about Progressive covering you in Period 1, and Uber/Lyft covering you in Period 2 & 3, then says


> In most states, Progressive rideshare insurance covers drivers who operate on delivery service platforms like Uber Eats or Door Dash. The exact coverages that apply between your personal auto policy with rideshare insurance and any insurance provided through the delivery company may vary by state. Call 1-855-347-3939 for more information.


...so I guess what they do for DoorDash/GrubHub varies by state?

Somebody on /r/doordash was insisting that Progressive was covering them while they delivered. I called Progressive and asked if my Progressive "rideshare addon" covered me while delivering, and the rep first said that "yes, I was covered" (I should have recorded that and hung up!). I asked them to read their web page, and tell me if I was covered juts in P1 or also P2 & P3. They went and found help, and then said that my Progressive coverage "paused as soon as I launched the app." They obviously didn't know what they were talking about, because even on Uber, that's Period 1, which is literally the only thing the rideshare add-on _does_ cover with uber/lyft. I asked for more detail, and they kicked me to Claims, who I would actually file a claim with. But Claims sent me back to the Coverage reps, who know nothing.

If anybody has a link to state-by-state info for Progressive, or some kind of Progressive+Doordash/Grubhub document, that would be really helpful. The Progressive people on the phone are pretty useless. They haven't even read the rideshare page on their own website.


----------



## Disgusted Driver (Jan 9, 2015)

BigJohn said:


> The undeniable fact that you refuse to answer the question as to whether or not you bothered to fully read and understand YOUR personal auto insurance policy speaks volumes.
> 
> It is NOT Grubhub or DoorDash or Uber or anyone else's responsibility to EDUCATE YOU ON LEGAL DOCUMENTS YOU HAVE SIGNED.
> 
> ...


While it is your responsibility to understand what you sign and read, it is also reasonable to rely on the promises of an authorized agent of the company. If your agent tells you something is covered (and you can prove that) then you have a valid claim. The language is not always clear in these things given that they are written for attorneys so it's reasonable to ask a representative of the company for clarification and to rely on that.


----------



## Ignatowski (Mar 23, 2019)

BigJohn said:


> DID YOU BOTHER TO FULLY READ AND UNDERSTAND YOUR ENTIRE INSURANCE POLICY?


You make it sound like insurers actually print the policy, and all exclusions, and send you a copy. Like it's 1978 or something.
Unless you insure with Dairyland or another tiny insurer, I highly doubt that you have a copy of your own policy with exclusions.

OP: considering that the insurer never sent you a policy document, if you had a recording of a call with (say) a Geico or Progressive agent telling you that you are covered, then a court may side with you. Usually the onus is on the larger company. Unfortunately, without the recording or an email, you're probably out of luck.

This reminds of a job I had 20 years ago. I had heard that some employer-sponsored health insurance policies were excluding health costs due to motorcycle. I rode a motorcycle to work every day, and wanted to know if my work health insurance would factor-in. I asked our HR/Benefits dept. They sent me to their Blue Cross/Blue Shield rep. The rep said there _is_ no policy printed anywhere, nor a PDF, nor a way to make a PDF. There were just a bunch of check-boxes in database records. I could ask them anything I wanted about coverage, and they would tell me if the policy covered that _at that moment_ (subject to change). But they were unable to provide a document. I was even working for a CA company and there is a CA law requiring the insurer to provide written documentation on request, but unless I was going to hire an attorney, I was not getting a printed copy.


----------



## Ignatowski (Mar 23, 2019)

Seamus said:


> The only way to be covered delivering food is Commercial Insurance


I believe Amazon Flex (not food) offers "contingent collision & comprehensive" (like Uber); and UberEats _may_ also. I have never read anything saying that "if you accept a ping for UE, there is no Contingent C&C".

I have also read occasional reports here of insurers that cover all three periods (P1, P2, P3), with your normal deductible, and then they subrogate (file a claim against Uber/Lyft). I think State Farm is the name I've heard most. It would be interesting to hear whether State Farm's P1/P2/P3 policy extended to DoorDash. On one hand, if it covers all periods for Uber, why not DoorDash? On the other hand, if they can't subrogate, maybe they would want to charge more.


----------



## BigJohn (Jan 27, 2016)

Ignatowski said:


> You make it sound like insurers actually print the policy, and all exclusions, and send you a copy. Like it's 1978 or something.
> Unless you insure with Dairyland or another tiny insurer, I highly doubt that you have a copy of your own policy with exclusions.


Oh, but I do. As well as my home owners insurance policy.

Health insurance policy is a bit different, as if they put it all into a document, it would be several hundred pages long, as there are numerous catagories and individual items. I would imagine a health insurance policy could easily be several hundred pages long, if made into a document.


----------



## Muzzled101 (Nov 8, 2021)

BigJohn said:


> "Gee Golly Wilikers I was making money and doing a business and did ot know I needed business insurance..."
> 
> In New York State Uber does have insurance for its drivers however it only covers when you are on your way to picking up a rider and when you have a passenger in your vehicle. If you have the app on an hour searching for riders you are not covered by any insurance unless you have gap coverage. It would be advantageous to have gap insurance to cover this lapse in insurance. If you don’t have gap insurance you should probably turn the app off while you’re driving. Pull over in a safe place then turn the app on to begin search for riders. You are covered if you are in a accident that is not your fault. The other drivers insurance will cover you so long as it’s not your fault at all
> 
> Sorry, but anyone with that kind of attitude deseves what they get.


----------

