Uber and Lyft drivers move through three insurance “periods” depending on what the driver was doing at the moment of the accident:
The driver was not logged into the app. Only the driver’s personal auto policy applies. Most personal auto policies in New York carry the state minimum of $25,000 per person.
The driver was logged in, waiting for a ride, but had not yet accepted a passenger. Uber and Lyft each provide contingent coverage during this period — typically $50,000 per person / $100,000 per accident in bodily injury, plus $25,000 in property damage.
This is the high-coverage period. From the moment the driver accepts a ride request through the end of the trip, Uber and Lyft each provide $1.25 million in liability coverage, plus uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
The single most important fact in your case may be which period the driver was in at the moment of impact. We get the driver’s app data subpoenaed early.
The policy doesn’t always volunteer itself. You have to know to ask, and you have to know how to push back when adjusters point you toward the driver’s personal policy instead.
The defendants typically include:
Uber and Lyft themselves are generally insulated from direct vicarious liability under their independent contractor classification — but the insurance coverage they’re contractually required to provide is what matters for recovery.
Same New York personal injury damages categories: medical (past and future), lost wages and lost earning capacity, pain and suffering (subject to the serious injury threshold under NY Insurance Law §5102(d)), loss of consortium, wrongful death where applicable.
For passenger cases especially, the $1M Uber/Lyft policy is often the largest pool of available coverage — and the case can be substantial even when the driver’s personal coverage is minimal.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Screenshot your trip record before anything else. The app shows your trip status at the time of the crash — pickup, en route, dropoff. That status determines which coverage layer applies under New York’s rideshare law. The trip history is preserved in your app but the immediate screenshot avoids any later dispute about timing.
Yes — when the app is on and you’re in one of the covered states. Coverage tiers under NY law: App on, awaiting request: lower liability minimums ($75K/$150K injury, $25K property). En route to pickup or on a trip: full $1.25M commercial coverage in liability and uninsured/underinsured. The trip-state at the moment of the crash governs.
Same tier rules apply based on whether the app was on and the driver was on a trip. If the app was off, only the driver’s personal auto policy applies — and many personal policies exclude commercial use. The TLC for-hire vehicle rules and the rideshare commercial policy structure govern.
For passengers, the arbitration clause typically applies to disputes with the company itself — not to third-party personal injury claims against the driver. For drivers, the analysis is more complex and depends on which agreement you signed and when. Don’t assume the clause forecloses your case — most do not.
Hit-and-run by a covered driver typically falls under the company’s uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage during the trip. The driver’s flight does not eliminate the company’s coverage obligation. The crash itself, your trip status, and your injury matter; the driver’s post-crash conduct affects criminal proceedings but not your civil recovery.
