# WHY BOTHER TO GET RIDE SHARE INSURANCE? HERE'S WHY:



## JanuaryStone (Oct 29, 2016)

Hi all,
I have been driving for about 7 month*s *in the Phoenix area. While setting up as a driver I came to discover that in order to be in *FULL COMPLIANCE*with your private vehicle insurer while operating as a Ride Share Driver, you must carry what is called a *"Ride Share Endorsement"* on your vehicle policy. In Arizona where I drive, currently, only TWO companies provide this: Farmers and Mercury. Your state may have more options, and this will change in the future as the market demand for it increases.
*What is a Ride Share Endorsement OR R.S.E?*
This is additional coverage that is added onto your collision insurance coverage that is an addendum/rider which provides additional coverage to your personal vehicle while you are logged into a Ride Share APP as a driver. It basically ensures that should you be at fault for any damage to your own vehicle while operating as an Uber/Lyft/whatever Driver, your insurance company will either cover the damage or work with Uber's insurer to cover the damage because you have officially informed them that you are earning money driving your vehicle. Of course there will be deductibles etc. depending on your coverage choices.
*Why is a RSE necessary?*
I came to discover that though having a Ride Share Endorsement *isn't REQUIRED by UBER or LYFT*, HOWEVER, should a driver be at fault in an accident or for any reason damage their own vehicle while logged into a Driver app, WITHOUT a R.S.E, your insurer will refuse coverage and likely cancel your policy altogether. Additionally, because you didn't officially inform your carrier that you would be working as a Ride Share Driver (By having a R.S.E on your policy), UBER'S insurance will *NOT COVER ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR VEHICLE EITHER*. WHY? Because when you signed up for your insurance you likely agreed in the fine print that you WOULD NOT BE USING YOUR PERSONAL VEHICLE FOR "LIVERY PURPOSES", that is to say, to make money driving. This is why you got that great rate. Uber and Lyft clearly state in their insurance documents, which you agreed to when you signed up, that they will only repair damage to a driver's vehicle IF THE DRIVER HAS A RIDE SHARE ENDORSEMENT WITH THEIR INSURER OR THAT THE INSURER IS AT LEAST OFFICIALLY AWARE THAT THE VEHICLE IN QUESTION IS A RIDE SHARE CAR. Otherwise Uber and Lyft will deny coverage.
MOST insurers currently do not offer RSE's. Here in AZ Farmers and Mercury do. I know that Progressive, Liberty Mutual, All State (They are considering it) Cooperators and many others do not. As iIstated earlier, this varies by state so you would need to check.
*WHAT DOES IT COST?*
I had to switch both of my vehicles and my house insurance to Farmers in order to get a reasonable rate on everything. My Ride Share Endorsement policy for one vehical costs $195.00 every six months.
*BUT UBER/LYFT'S INSURANCE COVERS EVERYTHING!*
Not true. Their insurance cover mainly *PASSENGERS AND THIRD PARTIES. *That is to say *EVERYONE BUT THE DRIVER AND THEIR CAR. *They will also cover your car, but only if you are on the up and up with your insurer about being a Ride Share Driver.
If you choose to drive without informing your insurer and/or getting a R.S.E (which is your right) and something happens and your car is damaged, you will be in for a rude awakening should you be at fault when you try to get either UBER's insurer or your own to cover the damage on your car.
*"IF SOMETHING HAPPENS I CAN ALWAYS JUST LIE TO MY INSURER AND SAY I WASN'T RIDE SHARE DRIVING."*
Wrong. Think about it: any insurance adjuster with half a brain is going to properly vet your Driver's License number, your vehicle's VIN as well as your plate number etc. should you make a claim for damages. Remember all that info you uploaded to Uber/Lyft by taking photos of your documents and the numbers you provided to get your background check? Insurers have direct access to ALL of that information. It's basically one of the first things they check; many people Ride Share drive these days; of course they check. Once they discover (and they WILL) that you are a Ride Share driver, they will ask Uber/Lyft to provide them with your logged-in hours on their apps for the day the damage occurred to your vehicle. If you were logged in as a driver when the damage occurred, they will know. You could try to lie and say the damage happened when you were not logged in ( "I was going to Safeway for hot dog buns when it happened honest!") but that would only work if there was no other driver/vehicle/person involved. However, if you hadn't informed your insurer that you are a Ride Share Driver in the first place to avoid paying for extra coverage (Like a RSE) this is a moot point because they are going to find out and then deny you coverage and likely cancel your policy altogether for being dishonest about your vehicular usage, whether you were logged in at the time or not.
*DON'T BELIEVE ME? CALL YOUR INSURER TODAY AND ASK THEM WHAT COVERAGE YOU WOULD HAVE IF YOU DAMAGE YOUR CAR WHILE OPERATING YOUR VEHICLE AS A RIDE SHARE DRIVER WITHOUT A VALID R.S.E. YOU'LL SEE. LOOK UP THE DETAILS OF UBER/LYFT COVERAGE TOO. IT'S ALL THERE.*
Now, of course none of this seemed important when you signed up as a driver. Uber and Lyft also purposely don't draw any major attention to Ride Share insurance because it would turn many would-be drivers away from signing up to begin with. The more drivers on the road, the more money they make. Rest assured, all Ride Share companies have squarely covered their butts and are covering yours a little as possible.
My advice to any drivers out there is to do your due diligence when it comes to insurance policies and Ride Share Driving. You may be at risk to facing thousands of dollars in repairs to your vehicle if you get in, even a minor, wreck.


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## Jim54729 (Sep 9, 2016)

Wow, I was just wondering about this. Now it does not make sense to keep driving. After ubers fee, and then putting aside 30% for taxes after that, I am profiting about a $1 a mile. Set aside .50 cents a mile to put toward your vehicle and now making around 50 cents a mile profit. use that 50 cents to buy insurance? I have a feeling my math is way off, or Uber Drivers are not aware of the cost of driving.


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## steveK2016 (Jul 31, 2016)

Jim54729 said:


> Wow, I was just wondering about this. Now it does not make sense to keep driving. After ubers fee, and then putting aside 30% for taxes after that, I am profiting about a $1 a mile. Set aside .50 cents a mile to put toward your vehicle and now making around 50 cents a mile profit. use that 50 cents to buy insurance? I have a feeling my math is way off, or Uber Drivers are not aware of the cost of driving.


If you are tracking all your online hours and have a regular 9 to 5 job, you may actually be reducing your tax liabilities through mileage deductions. If this is your only source of income, you may owe some tax but it shouldn't be a straight 30% of your income with the mileage deductible.

Surprisingly, my rate actually went down when I added RSE. I was probably getting gouged before but glad I switched. I also have far more coverage than minimum requirements with a $500 deductible. It's been a while since I've had a good emergency fund (negeorgia says that's a good thing ) in my bank account, thanks to Uber. Car payments and insurance, i was already paying for before doing Uber. If the math doesn't look good to you, then you should reconsider. I've done the math on my earnings and will continue to Uber as usual..


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## sUBERu2u (Jun 18, 2015)

JanuaryStone said:


> Think about it: any insurance adjuster with half a brain is going to properly vet your Driver's License number, your vehicle's VIN as well as your plate number etc. should you make a claim for damages. Remember all that info you uploaded to Uber/Lyft by taking photos of your documents and the numbers you provided to get your background check? *Insurers have direct access to ALL of that information. It's basically one of the first things they check;*


 (Bold mine)

This is incorrect. They do not have access to that info and they do not check.

FYI RSE's are not available from any California insurers that I have contacted.

The general advice you are giving is good. Get an RSE if you can. But it's not as black and white as you say. My personal insurer handed me a $1200+ check for damages just today that may or may not have happened while I was ride share driving. No one will ever know.


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## negeorgia (Feb 1, 2015)

Self insurance of my Uber car, was one of my priorities when I started this 26 months ago. I would never recommend doing this with a car payment, without an emergency fund or in a car you actually need. Those were my thoughts then and nothing has happened to change my mind yet. Unexpected things happen, driver beware.


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## steveK2016 (Jul 31, 2016)

sUBERu2u said:


> (Bold mine)
> 
> This is incorrect. They do not have access to that info and they do not check.
> 
> ...


They don't necessarily do a whole lot of due diligence for a small $1200 payout. Now if they had come close to maxing out your coverage, between multiple vehicle damage, multiple injuries... trust me, they'll look for any reason not to pay out and if it's that you were doing Rideshare when you didn't have insurance that covered it, breaching your contract that you stipulated that you would not be using the vehicle for commercial purposes, be assured they will take advantage of that and deny your coverage...


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## Older Chauffeur (Oct 16, 2014)

sUBERu2u said:


> (Bold mine)
> 
> This is incorrect. They do not have access to that info and they do not check.
> 
> ...


Under CA law covering TNCs, those companies are required to cooperate and share information with insurance companies. They will check if the claim is going to cost them money.

There are several companies offering rideshare coverage in CA, including Farmers, Statefarm and Mercury.


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## sUBERu2u (Jun 18, 2015)

Older Chauffeur said:


> Under CA law covering TNCs, those companies are required to cooperate and share information with insurance companies. They will check if the claim is going to cost them money.


So every single claim gets crosschecked with Uber and Lyft records? That's absolute rubbish. As is evidenced by my experience getting a payout from my personal insurance no questions asked this week. If they had access to those records they would just drop those drivers instantly.



Older Chauffeur said:


> There are several companies offering rideshare coverage in CA, including Farmers, Statefarm and Mercury.


There wasn't when I started driving or the last time I checked but that might have been a year ago now. Seems many have recently begun offering it. Links to The Rideshare Guy's page aren't allowed but he's got a pretty good page with info of those offering rideshare insurance.


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## Older Chauffeur (Oct 16, 2014)

sUBERu2u said:


> So every single claim gets crosschecked with Uber and Lyft records? That's absolute rubbish. As is evidenced by my experience getting a payout from my personal insurance no questions asked this week. If they had access to those records they would just drop those drivers instantly.
> 
> There wasn't when I started driving or the last time I checked but that might have been a year ago now. Seems many have recently begun offering it. Links to The Rideshare Guy's page aren't allowed but he's got a pretty good page with info of those offering rideshare insurance.


I think Farmers and Metro Mile were among the first to offer TNC coverage, but once the rideshare law was announced, others got on the bandwagon.

So no one from your insurance company ask you if you drive for rideshare, or exactly what you were doing at the time of your accident? Who is your insurer?

My daughter's car was recently rear ended, and the claims rep from USAA recorded a conversation with her about the circumstances. I had a similar experience three years ago- the purpose of my trip, where was I going, etc.

For the last couple of renewals, beginning last year, my insurer has included very specific language about excluding from coverage TNC driving, along with any other driving for hire activities. They also make clear that lying to them about such use of the vehicle, including by "omission" of facts, constitutes fraud. You might want to read your policy carefully for similar wording.

I didn't say every single claim, but by "cost them money" I meant any substantial claim. I should have been clearer. Different companies may have varying thresholds for investigating. After all, they have to justify the time their investigators devote to claims.


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## agtg (Jun 8, 2016)

Not every state even has insurance companies willing to offer an economical option such as an RSE. This leaves drivers in a very tough position having to now put forth upwards of $300 a month towards business insurance coverage.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

sUBERu2u said:


> So every single claim gets crosschecked with Uber and Lyft records? That's absolute rubbish. As is evidenced by my experience getting a payout from my personal insurance no questions asked this week. If they had access to those records they would just drop those drivers instantly.
> 
> There wasn't when I started driving or the last time I checked but that might have been a year ago now. Seems many have recently begun offering it. Links to The Rideshare Guy's page aren't allowed but he's got a pretty good page with info of those offering rideshare insurance.


California insurers are listed on this thread.

https://uberpeople.net/threads/metromile.66916/page-2


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