UPDATE ON RIDESHARING INSURANCE

In my previous post on rideshare coverage I briefly mentioned how I've had quite a few clients that have been told that they are indeed covered by their current policy, even though there is no actual endorsement or any clause that specifically states they are covered. After reaching out to The Rideshare Guy I received some valuable information for any ridesharers out there that might have also been told this same thing. 

In a recent memo sent out to State Farm agents the issue of ridesharing was addressed. In the memo the company stated, "that as long as livery wasn't the main use of the vehicle", there would be no grounds for cancellation or termination of your policy. Awesome news right? Not so fast. Yes this means if you drive less than 50% of your miles for ridesharing purposes you won't be dropped/ But this does nothing for you in terms of coverage. Just because the company has said no you will not be dropped, that doesn't translate into yes you are covered in an accident. While not being dropped is a great thing, not being covered in period 1 is still not any good news at all. The whole point of the ridesharing coverage is to insure you for period 1, the time when you are most vulnerable as a driver because there isn't a responsibility for any company to cover your loss.

Then there is the second issue. Driving less than 50% of your miles for ridesharing could be quite difficult. If you are doing ridesharing part time or even just doing it on the side you could easily surpass 50% of your miles driven for rideshare purposes. Lets say you drive 3 days out of the week for a good amount of time. Those drives could contain a fair amount of miles driven. If you compare it to your everyday commute to work the other 3 days a week, you might find you don't put on too many miles for work, or "pleasure" commutes. Maybe your work is only a couple miles away from your home, meaning you only average about 30 miles to and from work a week. Those miles could be matched quickly while ridesharing. And forget about staying under 50% if you drive rideshare as a primary job. This could leave you in a situation where you could be dropped and even worse, find yourself uninsured in period 1. Taking all of the responsibility and risk yourself. 

Everyone who is ridesharing needs to be aware of what is explicitly stated in each of their policies and know the exact coverage in every situation. I don't want any driver out there to think they are covered because their agent said they were, when in reality the agent didn't disclose the while story to the customer. Please make sure to review your policy and feel free to reach out to me with any questions you might have regarding ridesharing policies. Drive safe everyone!