SF Gate has a good piece on the app-based car services such as Lyft, Sidecar and Uber, which is being sued in the death of a six year-old hit by one of its drivers. The latter – once anxious for the extra cash it could bring in – are discovering that they are in an “insurance limbo.”
It wasn’t a car accident that caused Adrian Anzaldua to quit driving for Lyft – it was the fear of one.
The 27-year-old started driving full time for the app-based car service in October but quit in December after hearing anecdotes that raised questions about his insurance policy.
“I looked into this whole situation more closely because it seemed too good to be true,” said Anzaldua, who lives in San Francisco’s Mission District. “I read a couple accounts online of people who had gotten into accidents while driving for Lyft. They had their coverage denied, so they were stuck with a totaled car. I said, ‘I’m not driving until I figure out the insurance situation.’ ”
Anzaldua discovered what more and more drivers and insurance providers are finding: Those who work for companies like Uber, Sidecar and Lyft, which link drivers with customers through apps, are stuck in an insurance limbo that could leave them saddled with major costs after an accident.READ MORE HERE
It was the need for expensive insurance that also put the private jitneys out of business.
I looked into this service and checked with my personal insurance carrier and they told me if I was driving for one of the TNC’s they would cancel my policy. I called many other large companies and they stated the same in a candid conversation about the “ride sharing” services. I did find one company from a google search that insures this type of activity their link is:
http://abiweb.com/?gclid=CKDB9cHduLwCFc2TfgodbHsAeg
However, the cost is approx. 650.00 a month for full coverage insurance. This means a 21.00 a day cost for insurance! By the time I did the math I figured I would make 5-7 hr before taxes after expenses with their 35.00 hr. claim! No wonder people go under the radar. The math does not lie! Even if they cover the accident with their 1 million policy, once the personal policy finds out you were driving for a TNC they will deny the claim and cancel your insurance. That leaves you on the hook for your vehicle repairs, and another vehicle repairs if you hit someone else.
The problem is litigation and we need tort reform yesterday. Problems like these go away if there are prudent limits to court awards. Health insurance and healthcare gets way cheaper too.