# I Got in an Accident Driving for Lyft and Entered Eternal Insurance Hell



## Cold Fusion (Aug 28, 2019)

THE PERSON: Melissa Schultz
AGE AT THE TIME: 45
PROFESSION: Lyft driver and self-employed marketing professional
THE BILL: $3,000 
THE RUB: Melissa was hit by another car at a busy intersection while driving for Lyft. For more than two years, she has been dealing with bills, collection agencies, and multiple insurance companies.
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/...g-for-lyft-and-entered-eternal-insurance-hell
"_When I got back home to Long Beach, I contacted my insurance agent at State Farm right away. Of course, State Farm shut down [my claim]. Lyft said my insurance would cover me, but State Farm insisted that I needed additional [coverage] because I was transporting passengers for pay.

But when I reported the accident, Lyft shut down my account and said I couldn't drive my car. The company said my car wasn't drivable, full stop. Once Lyft figured out that I had had an accident, it was as if they viewed me completely different. I just got the feeling that Lyft wanted to move away from it as fast as possible, even though it was just a fender bender"_


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## IR12 (Nov 11, 2017)

Cold Fusion said:


> THE PERSON: Melissa Schultz
> AGE AT THE TIME: 45
> PROFESSION: Lyft driver and self-employed marketing professional
> THE BILL: $3,000
> ...


Lyft is scum but insurance companies are despicable on steroids. Good luck.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Meh. Sounds like Melissa was at fault.

"All the other driver had to do was brake to avoid hitting me", lol. And just why would the driver have needed to brake to avoid a crash.....


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## UbaaDrivaa (Sep 7, 2016)

The Gift of Fish said:


> Meh. Sounds like Melissa was at fault.
> 
> "All the other driver had to do was brake to avoid hitting me", lol. And just why would the driver have needed to brake to avoid a crash.....


You sounded like one dump truck. You wouldn't try to "brake" to avoid hitting ... another car ? Or anything ?


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## UberAdrian (May 26, 2018)

Do bad drivers think they are good? One of my buddies boasted about what a good driver he is. I went out with him and gave him 3 chances to stop making laugh. I am universally known in my peer group as an elite/expert driver with 0 incidents in 20 years and millions of km. This guys driving was such an abomination I literally revoked his man card on the spot, told him he drives like a crippled poodle that can’t see over the steering wheel and continued to lambaste him mercilessly for hours until he stopped back talking me and accepted my criticism. Driving is not a game, there are way too many idiots that shouldn’t have licenses on the road. If you suck at driving don’t spend more than $1000 on a car.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

UbaaDrivaa said:


> You sounded like one dump truck. You wouldn't try to "brake" to avoid hitting ... another car ? Or anything ?


Dump truck, huh? A novel insult, if nothing else.

Anyway, Melissa said the other car was next to her at a traffic light. Both cars were waiting to turn left. To simplify it for you, each car was in its own lane waiting to turn left. With both cars turning in left, each in its own lane, the other car would not need to brake to avoid hitting Melissa..... unless Melissa had strayed into the other car's lane. In fact, Melissa admits that the other driver accused her of veering into his lane.

Is it clear now? :rollseyes:


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## IthurstwhenIP (Jan 12, 2018)

Melissa is like a stupid tax on all our insurance rates...every time they payout for stupid or throw money at the woke crowd for protection it hits the back of my ass in cash.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Yeah, this is a pointless article. Melissa says she got reinstated promptly by Lyft. So nothing to complain about there. From what she says, it looks like the accident was her fault. She hasn't been sued by the other driver and it looks like she won't be. 

She had no dashcam, did not stop at the accident, did not take photos or video of the accident scene. She did not have rideshare insurance so the damage to her car is going to be up to her to fix.

There's nothing to see here, just another dumb rideshare noob who doesn't know what she is doing. Nobody's fault but hers.


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## Cold Fusion (Aug 28, 2019)

The Gift of Fish said:


> Yeah, this is a *pointless article.*


3 posts for a "pointless article"
U sir are a passionate individual &#129318;‍♂


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## peteyvavs (Nov 18, 2015)

Melissa needs to take a defensive driving course, or move to Florida where all the as shole drivers go.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Cold Fusion said:


> 3 posts for a "pointless article"
> U sir are a passionate individual &#129318;‍♂


Don't get all butthurt - you _should_ post articles like these so we can shoot them down in flames.


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## UberBastid (Oct 1, 2016)

Every state is different, but ....
I got hit by someone on the freeway, a side-swipe that did about $4k damage. It was other drivers fault, and was actually witnessed by an off duty federal officer. He wrote a report and gave me a copy. I argued with Geico for about six months and said 'enough'.
I filed in small claims court for the max in Cali, claiming the actual damages plus pain and suffering and compensatory damages.
Short story? I won. I won $6500.
You have to sue the driver of the other car, not the insurance company. But the insurance company paid off very quickly after I got the judgement.

If it's a claim under $10k I don't play around much. I show them what the judge is gonna see ... I wait a reasonable amount of time, I provide additional documentation, I ask for my money, then I give 30 days to pay, then I sue. 
Let the judge decide.

After I filed for the $10k, the adjuster called with an offer of $3500. "Ya know, six months ago I'd of taken that ... but now ... I want the $10k." He laughed and said I won't get that much. "I bet I get more than $3500 though. I guess we'll find out, eh?"


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

UberBastid said:


> Every state is different, but ....
> I got hit by someone on the freeway, a side-swipe that did about $4k damage. It was other drivers fault, and was actually witnessed by an off duty federal officer. He wrote a report and gave me a copy. I argued with Geico for about six months and said 'enough'.
> I filed in small claims court for the max in Cali, claiming the actual damages plus pain and suffering and compensatory damages.
> Short story? I won. I won $6500.
> ...


I am in the same boat. Special damages in my case are $5k, giving a claim value of $10k - $15k. Progressive will only offer $3,750. I'll be issuing my final demand next week and give them 30 days to pay. If they don't then I sue their policyholder.

Sucks for him, because the court judgment would be against his name, not Progressive's, and it would F up his credit for about 7 years.


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## UberAdrian (May 26, 2018)

The Gift of Fish said:


> I am in the same boat. Special damages in my case are $5k, giving a claim value of $10k - $15k. Progressive will only offer $3,750. I'll be issuing my final demand next week and give them 30 days to pay. If they don't then I sue their policyholder.
> 
> Sucks for him, because the court judgment would be against his name, not Progressive's, and it would F up his credit for about 7 years.


The way to leverage an insurance company is to be in league with a shop that will charge them out the ass for every little thing, every day they don't pay. Basically hold the car until they pay and make their daily expenses to not pay as high as possible with storage fees, rental fees, airport improvement fee etc. Automatically decline every offer whilst making outlandishly excessive demands. In a week or two they will crumble and beg you to take the money.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

Finger pointing is common in the insurance business. As soon as you learn that there is other insurance, you point the finger immediately. Insurance companies love to collect premium. They do not like to do the job for which the insured is paying those premiums. Ask me how I know this.

I do wonder if the driver had a TNC endorsement.


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## Cold Fusion (Aug 28, 2019)

The Gift of Fish said:


> Don't get all butthurt -


Not at all.
You're the one who posted 5 (FIVE) times re. an issue U perceived
as frivolous and inconsequential

Khosrowshahi ❤ loves drivers like U✔


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## LyftUberFuwabolewa (Feb 7, 2019)

UbaaDrivaa said:


> You sounded like one dump truck. You wouldn't try to "brake" to avoid hitting ... another car ? Or anything ?


Didn't say they wouldn't "brake" to avoid hitting another car. We're talking about fault here. Sounds like a clear case of "failure to yield" as well as "a failure to communicate".


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## UberAdrian (May 26, 2018)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> Didn't say they wouldn't "brake" to avoid hitting another car. We're talking about fault here. Sounds like a clear case of "failure to yield" as well as "a failure to communicate".


And a clear case of failure to train. I've taught dozens of people how to drive and I ways drill into them to take the inside lane precisely to avoid the countless potato heads that dont understand lane mechanics yet somehow have a license to operate a lethal machine. For some reason almost everybody prefers the outside lane. I'll frequently enter a scenario like this with stack of 14 cars on the outside and just me on the inside. Why do they do it? Obviously bad training but then their own brain also leads them astray - why?

Also why do people veer in the opposite direction and into the next lane to make a turn? It's so stupid! WHY? There's already so much wiggle room...


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

Another Uber Driver said:


> Finger pointing is common in the insurance business. As soon as you learn that there is other insurance, you point the finger immediately. Insurance companies love to collect premium. They do not like to do the job for which the insured is paying those premiums. Ask me how I know this.
> 
> I do wonder if the driver had a TNC endorsement.


State Farm denied her claim because she didn't have an endorsement.


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## LyftUberFuwabolewa (Feb 7, 2019)

Well it also sounds like she KNEW the intersection was tricky and didn't maintain awareness of other vehicles around her and take appropriate actions.

When in a turn where multiple lanes turn together I watch the cars to my side and adjust accordingly.

You can drive according to the rules in such a way that if anybody else doesn't follow the rules even slightly you have an accident. You'll be in the right, and you can tell yourself you were in the right, but you ended up having an accident. At the end of the day was it worth it?

Just because a sign or traffic control device says that you "can " go doesn't mean you "should" go.

I have avoided a number of accidents by watching the body language of other vehicles around me. Usually a bad driver will have a number of tells that let you see they are either a sloppy driver or they are unaware or unsure of what to do. Reading those tells can be hugely useful.

Where there are multiple parallel lanes going the same direction whenever possible I try not to drive right along side somebody or in their blind spot.


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## UberAdrian (May 26, 2018)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> Well it also sounds like she KNEW the intersection was tricky and didn't maintain awareness of other vehicles around her and take appropriate actions.
> 
> When in a turn where multiple lanes turn together I watch the cars to my side and adjust accordingly.
> 
> ...


Only try? It's super easy to adjust your speed so as to stagger your car with those beside you and preclude all possible accidents.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Cold Fusion said:


> Not at all.
> You're the one who posted 5 (FIVE) times re. an issue U perceived
> as frivolous and inconsequential
> 
> Khosrowshahi ❤ loves drivers like U✔


*Reading comprehension. At no point did I say that the issue of clueless drivers going out without proper insurance or driving skills causing crashes is frivolous or inconsequential.

What is pointless is media "sources" such as this one printing yet another erroneous article on rideshare, in this particular case trying to suggest that the mess this woman created was the insurance's fault, or the other driver's fault, or Lyft's fault... when it was her own.

According to you, commenting on pointless articles is pointless. By that logic, commenting on misguided articles would be misguided, commenting on sad articles would be sad, commenting on erroneous articles would be erroneous. That's just silly and shows a child's level of reasoning.

This is not a difficult concept but it is one which may be difficult for you to understand, and indeed it does seem that way. If you _still_ don't get it then please ask another member to explain it to you. Thanks.

As for the little insult / pot shot at the end of your post, I feel that it speaks volumes of you. No further comment required!


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> Didn't say they wouldn't "brake" to avoid hitting another car. We're talking about fault here. Sounds like a clear case of "failure to yield" as well as "a failure to communicate".


Yeah, lol, from what I wrote this genius "deduced" that I do not use the brake when driving. It's not hard to see why Uber drivers have a reputation for being dense.


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## UberBastid (Oct 1, 2016)

I say ... pay fifty bucks to sue in small claims court and LET THE JUDGE DECIDE.
Easy, peasy.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

observer said:


> State Farm denied her claim because she didn't have an endorsement.


I missed that, but, thank you for pointing out this. That will do it every time.

Lyft's carrier will argue that since the driver did not have the endorsement, she really did not have collision coverage while logged onto the application, either, thus they are absolved from paying. Uber and Lyft tell drivers specifically that the collision coverage responds ONLY if you have collision on your own policy. Her doing TNC work without the endorsement invalidates the policy, therefore, there was no coverage, therefore Lyft's carrier is out.

I have been down this road more than once on the insurer's side of it.

What most drivers who have full coverage do in a no-fault collision is subrogate the whole business to their carrier, which most insuring agreements for full coverage allow.


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## LyftUberFuwabolewa (Feb 7, 2019)

The Gift of Fish said:


> Yeah, lol, from what I wrote this genius "deduced" that I do not use the brake when driving. It's not hard to see why Uber drivers have a reputation for being dense.


Care to point out where I said that? You seem quite combative on this forum.



UberAdrian said:


> Only try? It's super easy to adjust your speed so as to stagger your car with those beside you and preclude all possible accidents.


So you can always maintained a staggered position with other cars?

In the world I drive in, other cars around me often change speed and change lanes. Other cars in my lane change speeds limiting my options.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> Care to point out where I said that? You seem quite combative on this forum.


Not every post is a repetition of what someone else said.

No, I'm not combative. However, when people attack what I say with nonsense then they get very short shrift from me in return!


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## LyftUberFuwabolewa (Feb 7, 2019)

The Gift of Fish said:


> Not every post is a repetition of what someone else said.
> 
> No, I'm not combative. However, when people attack what I say with nonsense then they get very short shrift from me in return!


Not the short shrift! Nooooooooooo! I like my shrift long! Long and hard!


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> Not the short shrift! Nooooooooooo! I like my shrift long! Long and hard!


No judgments here - whatever floats your boat! :roflmao:


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Another Uber Driver said:


> I missed that, but, thank you for pointing out this. That will do it every time.
> 
> Lyft's carrier will argue that since the driver did not have the endorsement, she really did not have collision coverage while logged onto the application, either, thus they are absolved from paying. Uber and Lyft tell drivers specifically that the collision coverage responds ONLY if you have collision on your own policy. Her doing TNC work without the endorsement invalidates the policy, therefore, there was no coverage, therefore Lyft's carrier is out.
> 
> ...


That's not correct.

Uber/Lyft simply require collision on a drivers personal insurance before it pays. No idea why since Uber and Lyft's insurance very well know that most drivers don't have rideshare insurance and that their personal insurance will not cover accidents but they require it anyhow.

The fact that you state that Uber/Lyft won't pay on a claim goes against most states requirements for TNC carriers to provide 3rd party commercial insurance for trips.

The story that originates in the original post in this thread is likely a fake story since the poster does everything in their power to leave out just exactly who the insurance company is that Lyft was using at the time of the accident among many other ridiculous holes in the story such as how a collection agency can come after them without a judgment since the supposed person had no contract and no debt with them and the laughable notion that a company gets paid to simply "harrass" people.

The problem with Lyft is the ridiculous $2500 deductible unless you are using Distress Drive which has only a $1000 dedictible.

Also what are the odds this person just happens to have another accident ? With all that other bs associated with it ?

Nothing but a bs story posted by tomatopaste

James River may suck but they aren't going to just completely ignore an accident.

James River no longer is in the rideshare insurance business btw.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

uberdriverfornow said:


> That's not correct.
> 
> The fact that you state that Uber/Lyft won't pay on a claim goes against most states requirements for TNC carriers to provide 3rd party commercial insurance for trips.


What is under discussion is the coverage on her vehicle due to a no-fault collision. The driver is trying to have her insurer or Lyft's handle her claim against the adverse driver. People who carry full coverage often have their insurer handle the claim in a no fault collision. It is called "subrogation". There are no TNC regulations or laws that cover this.



uberdriverfornow said:


> The problem with Lyft is the ridiculous $2500 deductible unless you are using Distress Drive which has only a $1000 dedictible


That comes into play in an at-fault collision..



uberdriverfornow said:


> James River may suck but they aren't going to just completely ignore an accident.


^^^^^^^^^^^^These two statements conflict\/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/


uberdriverfornow said:


> James River no longer is in the rideshare insurance business btw.





uberdriverfornow said:


> James River may suck but they aren't going to just completely ignore an accident.


Insurance companies will do anything to attempt to get out of paying. Delay, putting up hoops and obfuscating are all old tactics that they have used for years. In many cases, they know that the odds are that eventually they will have to pay, they simply make it more difficult for the claimant. Ask me how I know this.


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## njn (Jan 23, 2016)

so neither party got a police report?


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## DriverMark (Jan 22, 2018)

UberBastid said:


> I say ... pay fifty bucks to sue in small claims court and LET THE JUDGE DECIDE.
> Easy, peasy.


I would put my money on the other guy winning that case going off the article......



njn said:


> so neither party got a police report?


Nope. The article stated "I was in a hurry to drop off my passenger so left......"

Which, most states if there is $X and you leave the scene is a crime of some level. This "person" (they are transgender, so is it a woman, man, in-between, all very confusing) left the scene. No ride share endorsement. No police report. No dash cam. Just a story on how this funky intersection has weirdness going on. To stressed to answer calls and mail (I bet she-man tried to just ignore it for a long time). Yea. And it's everyone's fault but "the person" in the article.

Bad decisions lead to bad results .


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## BogusServiceAnimal (Oct 28, 2019)

If she didn't have rideshare insurance, that is her own fault.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Another Uber Driver said:


> What is under discussion is the coverage on her vehicle due to a no-fault collision. The driver is trying to have her insurer or Lyft's handle her claim against the adverse driver. People who carry full coverage often have their insurer handle the claim in a no fault collision. It is called "subrogation". There are no TNC regulations or laws that cover this.
> 
> That comes into play in an at-fault collision..
> 
> ...


Subrogation is when you allow your own insurance to act on your behalf for the claim against the other party's insurance. When you go through your own insurance they subrogate the claim against the other party.

In this case the other party's insurance isn't accepting responsibility whereas if they did, you could go through them and not have to worry about the deductible.

Now, the Lyft driver has no contract with either the other driver or their insurance. As such, there is no debt unless they file a lawsuit and get a judgment which they didn't do.



> It said right on one of the letters from the agency that Progressive had hired, Credit Collection Services, that if I was insured at the time to let them know, and they'd pursue that. But the collection agency said that Lyft wouldn't be covering it. I told them to review the contract, because it states that if I'm driving for Lyft that they're liable. Progressive just seemed to ignore that.


Whichever insurance Lyft was using at the time of the accident is 100% liable for all damage to the other party's car if their insured(Lyft driver) was at fault. Lyft's insurance may not have to pay for the drivers car since the damage is less than their ridiculous $2500 deductible but they are responsible for the other party's damage. They are required to defend the Lyft driver.

The article states that supposedly the Lyft drivers Lyft insurance is doing nothing. This is just not possible. Even though James River is normally slow to act, they always wind up taking care of the claims. I have seen no exceptions.


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## UberBastid (Oct 1, 2016)

DriverMark said:


> > UberBastid said:
> > I say ... pay fifty bucks to sue in small claims court and LET THE JUDGE DECIDE.
> > Easy, peasy.
> 
> ...


Yea, but ... wtf ... for fifty bucks you wouldn't roll the dice on a multi thousand dollar pay off? I seen judges do some stupid shit. Seriously.


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## getawaycar (Jul 10, 2017)

observer said:


> State Farm denied her claim because she didn't have an endorsement.


But Lyft accepted her as a driver without checking her insurance.
It seems to me Lyft is responsible for hiring a driver that doesn't have proper insurance coverage.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

getawaycar said:


> But Lyft accepted her as a driver knowing she had no endorsement.
> It seems to me Lyft is responsible for hiring a driver that doesn't have proper insurance coverage.


Totally agree.

It should be up to the TNCs to make sure drivers have proper coverage.

Including coverage needed for drivers own benefit.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

getawaycar said:


> But Lyft accepted her as a driver without checking her insurance.
> It seems to me Lyft is responsible for hiring a driver that doesn't have proper insurance coverage.


She allegedly had State Farm. Just because State Farm doesn't cover rideshare use is irrelevant since Lyft has commercial insurance that covers rides.



observer said:


> Totally agree.
> 
> It should be up to the TNCs to make sure drivers have proper coverage.
> 
> Including coverage needed for drivers own benefit.


It's really strange that the media doesn't report on the fact that Uber and Lyft's rideshare commercial insurance covers everyone but the driver.

I'm not sure what it's even allowed to begin with to only have 3rd party insurance that for some strange reason covers everyone but the driver.


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