Hit by an Uber Driver Waiting for a Ride Request Near Raymond James Stadium: Which Policy Pays?

Game days and concerts around Raymond James Stadium put plenty of rideshare drivers on Dale Mabry Highway with their apps open, circling and waiting for a ping. If one of them hits you before accepting a ride, the usual assumption that Uber’s big policy applies may not hold.

Three Phases, Three Levels of Coverage

Florida’s transportation network company law, section 627.748, Florida Statutes, sets different insurance requirements depending on what the driver was doing:

• App off: The driver’s personal auto policy and its terms apply, as they would for any motorist.
• Logged on, no ride accepted: The driver or the company must maintain primary liability coverage of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and bodily injury, plus $25,000 for property damage. Personal injury protection and uninsured and underinsured coverage are also required.
• Ride accepted through the passenger pickup and drop-off: The statute requires primary liability coverage of at least $1 million for death, bodily injury, and property damage.

A “prearranged ride” starts when the driver accepts a request through the digital network. A driver who is simply waiting for one is on the middle tier. The gap between those tiers is what surprises many injured people.

Who Carries the Middle Tier

The statute allows that coverage to be maintained by the driver, the vehicle owner, the company, or a combination of them. A driver’s personal policy may also exclude coverage while the app is on. If the driver’s own insurance has lapsed or is insufficient, the statute says the company’s coverage must respond beginning with the first dollar of a claim and must provide a defense. Which policy actually pays can depend on how the driver’s insurance was set up.

What Third-Party Victims Should Know

Passengers have a clear path in the $1 million tier, but a pedestrian, cyclist, or another driver struck between rides is in a different spot. Evidence about the app’s status can become critical: trip logs, timestamps, and what the driver was doing at the moment of impact. Your own coverage, including PIP and any uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, may also come into play. Keep in mind that the middle tier’s $100,000 per-incident limit can stretch quickly when several people are hurt, and it is far lower than the $1 million figure that applies once a ride has been accepted.

Can a Tampa Uber Accident Attorney Help Me?

Do not assume the full rideshare policy applies, and do not assume it does not. The status of the app at the moment of the crash is the fact the statute turns on. Records showing that status may be held by the rideshare company rather than the driver, which is one reason to raise the question early.

If a rideshare driver hit you before picking anyone up, the Tampa Uber accident lawyers at Anderson & Anderson can help sort out which coverage may apply. Contact us at 813-251-0072 and we will go through what happened and what comes next.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0600-0699/0627/Sections/0627.748.html