One label, several very different situations
"Rideshare" now covers a lot of ground, and the companies do not all handle claims the same way. What they have in common is a tiered insurance structure tied to app status, and a strong institutional interest in placing your crash in the cheapest tier.
- Uber — passenger, other driver, pedestrian or cyclist
- Lyft — the same phased coverage, a different claims process
- DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub and Instacart couriers, who are usually driving their own vehicles
- Amazon Flex and Delivery Service Partner drivers, which raise their own contractor questions
How Massachusetts regulates these companies
Transportation network companies operate under M.G.L. c. 159A½, which sets minimum coverage by period. Once a driver has accepted a ride and until the passenger is dropped off, a $1 million commercial liability policy applies. A driver who is merely logged in and waiting carries much lower contingent limits. A driver with the app closed is on their personal policy alone.
Food delivery is murkier. Many couriers drive personal vehicles under policies that exclude commercial use, which can leave a coverage gap the platform's own policy may or may not fill. Sorting out which policies actually respond is most of the work in these cases.
What to preserve, whichever app it was
- Your trip receipt, order confirmation or ride history screenshot
- The driver's name, vehicle, plate and the platform they were working for
- The police report number and responding department
- Photographs of both vehicles, the scene and your injuries
- Names and numbers for any witnesses or other passengers
Massachusetts no-fault still comes first
Whichever policy ultimately pays, PIP under M.G.L. c. 90, § 34M covers your first $8,000 in medical bills and lost wages, and you still have to clear the $2,000 tort threshold in M.G.L. c. 231, § 6D before claiming pain and suffering. A rideshare case is an ordinary Massachusetts injury claim sitting on top of an unusual insurance stack.
Frequently asked questions
Uber and Lyft have $1 million policies. Does that mean my case is worth that?
No — that is the ceiling of available coverage, not the value of your claim. Value depends on your injuries, treatment, time out of work and the fault split. What the large policy does mean is that serious injuries are less likely to run into a coverage limit.
The driver was delivering food, not carrying passengers. Is that covered?
It depends on the platform and the driver's own policy. Many personal auto policies exclude delivery work, and platform coverage varies. We identify every policy in play, including your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which often matters more in delivery cases.
I was a passenger. Do I have to figure out who was at fault?
No. Passengers are almost never at fault, and you do not need to work out whether your driver or another motorist caused it. We pursue whichever policies cover you.
Should I read the dedicated Uber or Lyft page instead?
If you know which company was involved, yes — those pages go into how each one's trip data and claims process works. This page is the right starting point if you are not sure, or if it was a delivery driver.