Generally, when two vehicles are involved in a car accident, insurance policies exist to cover the injuries suffered by the parties. Either the car accident victim’s own insurance policy will cover the incident, if the other motorist is uninsured or underinsured, or the insurance policy of the driver who caused the accident will provide coverage. But as ride sharing becomes more and more common in Ohio as well as the rest of the country, the question that arises is this: Who is liable when one is in an accident with a rideshare driver?
When an accident takes place involving a rideshare driver, two situations can arise. The first is if the accident takes place while the rideshare driver was on his way to pick up a passenger (when the driver accepts a ride through one of the apps) or when there is a passenger in the car. In these instances, the rideshare driver is insured through the company for up to $1 million. That means this insurance applied only until the transaction is complete. What happens if the damages exceed this limit? It may not be possible to sue the company because of various classifications of the drivers and rules applying to them.
The second instance is if the accident takes place while the rideshare driver is waiting for a call. If this happens, the companies offer around $100,000 maximum as compensation for injuries. Though suing the rideshare driver could be one possibility to get compensation for catastrophic injuries, many insurance companies may not provide coverage to drivers if they are involved in commercial transactions.
Getting into an accident is traumatic enough; determining whether the other driver was completing a rideshare transaction or not is a headache accident victims do not want or need. Since the legalities surrounding the issue are complex, it may be beneficial for accident victims to consult an attorney to discuss options for compensation when it comes to car crashes.
