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Adding rideshare coverage to your personal car insurance is important for Uber and Lyft drivers.
Full Coverage Averages
• Annual Premium: $1,697
• Monthly Premium: $141
Pros + Cons
✓ Rideshare coverage available in all 50 states
✓ Reimbursement for high TNC deductibles
X Cost to add rideshare coverage higher than other companies
Read our State Farm review.
Full Coverage Averages
• Annual Premium: $2,639
• Monthly Premium: $220
Pros + Cons
✓ Add rideshare coverage for as low as $5 monthly
✓ User friendly online tools
X Base rates for full coverage are higher than average
Read our Allstate Review.
Full Coverage Averages
• Annual Premium: $1,891
• Monthly Premium: $158
Pros + Cons
✓ Covers food delivery like DoorDash
✓ Offers a variety of discounts
X Rideshare coverage not available in all states
Read our Progressive review.
Adding rideshare coverage to your personal car insurance is important for Uber and Lyft drivers.
If you plan on driving for Lyft or Uber, your insurance company will most likely require you to purchase rideshare coverage. To understand why, let’s take a look at how the main “periods” of rideshare work:
Uber, Lyft, and similar services do offer some coverage, but it’s limited, especially during Period 1. Because you are technically working during Period 1, your personal auto policy will not apply, leaving you with a gap in your insurance coverage. Furthermore, Uber and Lyft’s liability limits for Period 1 are lower than what most auto insurance experts recommend.
How do you fill the gaps between personal auto insurance and the coverage provided by the rideshare companies? The answer is simple: a rideshare endorsement to your personal policy.
Lacking rideshare insurance can expose you to serious financial risks in the event of an accident, especially one that occurs while you’re waiting to match with a rider. Additionally, if your insurer finds out you were driving for a rideshare service without the appropriate coverage, it may cancel your policy.
Despite the risks, according to a market study by the rideshare assistant app Gridwise, over half of all rideshare drivers do not carry rideshare insurance.
We’re here to guide you through your rideshare coverage options to ensure you’re fully protected on the road.
Did you know TNC stands for Transportation Network Company? These are companies that connect drivers to passengers, like Uber and Lyft. The insurance they offer usually comes with a high deductible. Adding rideshare insurance to your plan may, in some cases, help you cover that cost.
Insurance company | What it’s best for | Periods covered | Deductible reimbursement | States where rideshare insurance is offered | Average Annual Cost for Full Coverage |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
State Farm | Wide availability | All | Yes | All | $1,697 |
Allstate | Affordability | All | Yes | All except NY | $2,639 |
Progressive | Food delivery | Period 1, with roadside assistance and rental reimbursement for Periods 2 & 3 | Yes | All except AK, CA, CT, DE, HI, KS, NV, NJ, NY, OR, VT | $1,891 |
Bristol West | High-risk drivers | Period 1 | No | AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, DC, DE, GA, FL, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, MD, MI, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, NJ, NM, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI, WV | $2,910 |
American Family | Accident forgiveness | Period 1 | No | AZ, CO, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, NV, ND, OH, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI | $1,785 |
Best Rideshare Auto Insurance for Wide Availability: State Farm
Best for Affordability: Allstate
Best for Food Delivery: Progressive
Best for High-Risk Drivers: Bristol West
Best for Accident Forgiveness: American Family
The most popular auto insurance provider in the country, State Farm has expanded its rideshare coverage across the country. With affordable rates and strong customer service, it’s a great choice for rideshare drivers.
With any auto insurance company, available coverages vary by state. For example, a provider might sell policies in a state but not offer specific coverages, such as rideshare coverage.
According to our research, State Farm offers rideshare insurance in every state, making it one of the most widely available options for drivers. Typically, adding rideshare coverage to your State Farm policy will increase your premiums by 15 to 20 percent.
Purchasing rideshare coverage extends the protections of your personal policy, including the limits and deductibles, to times when the app is on. Once you’ve matched with a rider, all coverages apply, except liability to others.
Coverage | App is on | Matched with rider | Transporting passenger |
---|---|---|---|
Bodily injury and property damage liability | State Farm | Rideshare company | Rideshare company |
Collision, comprehensive, rental reimbursement, and emergency road service | State Farm | State Farm | State Farm |
Medical payments coverage | State Farm | State Farm | State Farm |
The extra liability coverage in the first period is important. Uber and Lyft’s first-period limits are $50,000 in bodily injury per person, $100,000 in bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 in property damage per accident, which are lower than most auto insurance experts’ recommendations of $100,000, $300,000, and $100,000, respectively. Once you’ve matched with a rider, Uber and Lyft’s liability limits go up to $1 million total. With State Farm, you can increase your liability limits, or lessen your financial responsibilities after a collision.
If you carry comprehensive and collision coverage, Uber and Lyft maintain that coverage on your behalf once you’ve matched with a passenger. In the event of a covered incident, they will pay for damages up to your car’s actual cash value. However, Uber and Lyft have higher deductibles than most personal auto insurance policies.
FYI
Uber and Lyft have $2,500 deductibles before the collision and comprehensive coverage kicks in for covered incidents.2
With State Farm’s rideshare coverage, in the event of a claim, you will pay your State Farm deductible rather than the costlier rideshare company deductible. When you add rideshare coverage to your policy, any deductibles you have for collision and comprehensive coverage will not increase.
Some auto insurance companies offer rideshare insurance through a partner company rather than underwriting the policies themselves. State Farm keeps rideshare coverage in-house. If you have to file a claim for a rideshare-related incident, you will work with State Farm directly rather than with a partner company.
State Farm is known for strong customer service and backs up its reputation with above-average customer satisfaction ratings from J.D. Power.3 Additionally, State Farm holds an A++ financial strength rating from AM Best, so you can count on its ability to pay for a claim.
Allstate offers rideshare coverage through its Ride for Hire endorsement. While Allstate’s overall rates aren’t the lowest, it’s typically only $5 to $10 monthly to add rideshare coverage to your policy.
Allstate’s rideshare coverage, known as Ride for Hire, extends the protections of your personal policy so that you are fully covered during all three periods by either your Allstate plan or your TNC policy. For example, if you are in an accident during Period 1 (when you are waiting for a passenger assignment), your personal auto policy may have exclusions, and your TNC’s policy may only offer limited coverage. Ride for Hire can help protect you by offering coverage not provided by your TNC policy or your existing Allstate auto policy.
Note that to purchase rideshare coverage from Allstate, you must carry collision and comprehensive coverages. You can speak with an Allstate agent to add rideshare coverage to your existing auto insurance policy. Ride for Hire is available in all states except New York.
Like State Farm, Allstate’s rideshare coverage also helps pay for the TNC deductible. If your car sustains damage while you’re driving for a rideshare company, Allstate will cover the difference between your deductible and the rideshare company’s deductible, up to $2,500. You’ll pay the lowest deductible between your personal policy and the rideshare insurance policy, and Allstate will take care of the rest. That way, you’re not on the hook for steep TNC insurance deductibles.
For drivers who want to manage their policies via a mobile app, Allstate is a solid choice. The company was one of the first to sell policies online and maintains a good reputation for digital tools.
Allstate’s mobile app holds a 3.9-star rating in the Google Play store and a 4.8-star rating in the App Store. You can use it to manage most of your policy needs, including these tasks:
With over 27 million policies in force, Progressive is the second-largest auto insurer in the U.S.4 It’s a good choice for rideshare drivers, in particular those who want to do food delivery in addition to rideshare driving.
Over half of rideshare drivers also work for delivery services like Instacart, Grubhub, and DoorDash.5 Perhaps you feel safer driving without passengers or you enjoy the solitude. However, even if you’re alone in your car, having the app on means you’re on the job, and this requires insurance coverage that extends beyond your personal auto policy.
With the exception of special promotions, food delivery apps don’t penalize you for declining orders, so it is fine to work with multiple apps on. That said, once you accept an order on an app, it’s wise to pause the other apps while you complete that order. If not you may find yourself juggling more orders than you can deliver on time.
Progressive allows you to customize your plan, depending on whether you expect to drive solely for delivery services or for both delivery and rideshare. If rideshare coverage isn’t available in your state, Progressive also offers for-livery hire insurance, which offers similar benefits (though at a slightly higher cost than rideshare coverage).
Like Allstate and State Farm, Progressive will reimburse you for the difference between the deductible on your personal policy and the rideshare company’s deductible. For example, if the rideshare company has a $2,500 deductible and you have a $500 deductible, Progressive will pay you $2,000. That way, you don’t have to worry about a big, unexpected expense at an already stressful time.
Over 60 percent of rideshare drivers regularly put in more than 35 hours behind the wheel each week, and three-quarters of drivers keep close track of their earnings and financial goals. If you’re working toward a savings goal, you want to ensure that every dollar you spend is worth it.
Progressive offers a substantial number of discounts that can help you keep insurance costs low, including the following:
Discount | Average savings |
---|---|
Bundle multiple policies | 5% |
Add multiple vehicles to the same policy | 4% |
Be insured continuously | Varies |
Track safe driving | $146 |
Have homeowners insurance (even if you don’t insure your home with Progressive) | 10% |
Get an online quote | 7% |
Sign up online | 9% |
Use a preferred payment method (pay in full, automatic, paperless) | Varies |
A subsidiary of Farmers, Bristol West specializes in selling insurance (including rideshare insurance) to high-risk drivers whom other insurers might turn away. It covers the first period, when the app is on and you’re waiting to match with a passenger.
Bristol West sells insurance to high-risk drivers. Note that Uber, Lyft, and similar platforms conduct a background check when you apply and annually thereafter. Some high-risk designations may disqualify you. For example, Uber and Lyft have the following requirements for drivers:
At the same time, being “high-risk” doesn’t mean you’re a bad driver or automatically disqualified from driving for a rideshare company. You might have trouble finding insurance if:
Bristol West offers rideshare coverage to high-risk drivers, including for delivery services such as Uber Eats. The following coverages are available:
High-risk auto insurance tends to cost more than regular auto insurance, and some high-risk insurers skimp when it comes to discounts. However, Bristol West offers you several ways to save. You’ll earn discounts for:
A company’s financial strength can affect its ability to pay for a claim and how long it takes to get your payment. Sometimes, smaller providers like Bristol West lack the financial strength of big companies. However, because Farmers owns and operates Bristol West, it benefits from the financial power of a larger company. As of June 2023, Bristol West has an A rating from AM Best, so you can depend on this insurer to pay for a claim, which is especially important if your car provides your main source of income.
Founded in 1927, American Family Insurance (or AmFam) offers an array of insurance offerings, including rideshare coverage. The company holds an above-average customer satisfaction rating from J.D. Power and stands out for its accident forgiveness coverage.
Accidents happen to anyone, even the most experienced drivers, and extra miles on the road can increase your risk.
DID YOU KNOW?
Research suggests that the rise of rideshare apps is associated with a 2 to 3 percent increase in traffic accidents.6
Typically, your insurance rates will rise by 40 to 50 percent after an at-fault accident. However, if you purchase accident forgiveness, your premiums won’t go up — and you won’t lose your good driving discount, either.
American Family offers two options for accident forgiveness:
If you purchased accident forgiveness and hit five years without a claim, American Family will swap purchased for earned coverage so you no longer pay for it.
American Family offers rideshare insurance coverage that protects you from the time you turn on the app until you match with a customer. The coverage extends the protections that you purchase on your personal policy, including the following:
Nearly one in five rideshare drivers lease their vehicles, and more than half of drivers purchased their vehicles because they wanted to start rideshare driving. If you recently bought your vehicle for rideshare purposes, you might still have a significant portion of your loan to pay off and even be “underwater” (owe more on the car than it’s worth).
In general, it’s a good idea to consider gap coverage if you leased your vehicle, put less than 20 percent down when you bought it, or financed it for five years or longer. Sometimes, your lender may even require you purchase the coverage. Without gap insurance, if you experience a total loss, you could be on the hook for more money than the car is worth.
It’s more expensive to purchase gap coverage from the dealership, but not all insurance companies offer it. American Family offers gap coverage, and typically, it adds only a few dollars to your monthly premiums. In the event of a total loss, if you owe more on your vehicle than it’s worth, American Family will pay the difference.
To identify the top insurance providers for rideshare drivers, we focused on companies that offer affordable rates, accept all types of drivers (including those considered high-risk), provide discounts, and maintain high-quality coverage.
We evaluated insurers across four key categories—pricing, claims handling, customer experience, and coverage options. Here’s a breakdown of how each category was assessed:
By evaluating and weighing these key areas according to their importance for rideshare drivers, we aimed to provide a comprehensive analysis of the best auto insurance options to protect those working in the gig economy.
Allstate, Progressive, and Mercury offer some of the cheapest rideshare insurance.
Commercial auto insurance is a type of insurance policy that covers vehicles used for business purposes. If rideshare insurance is unavailable or difficult to find in your state, you can purchase a commercial policy instead. However, commercial auto insurance tends to cost more than rideshare coverage.
Legally, you do not need to purchase rideshare coverage — but you should buy it anyway. If your insurance provider discovers that you have been driving rideshare without disclosing it, it may drop your coverage or increase your rates. Additionally, if you’re involved in an accident, you may be on the hook for a lot of money due to limited coverage from Lyft and Uber.
The following companies offer rideshare insurance:
Availability of coverage varies by state.
Rideshare Insurance. Progressive Commercial. (2024).
https://www.progressivecommercial.com/commercial-auto-insurance/livery-insurance/rideshare-insurance/
Insurance coverage while driving with Lyft. Lyft. (2022).
https://help.lyft.com/hc/en-us/all/articles/115013080548-Insurance-coverage-while-driving-with-Lyft
Usage-Based Auto Insurance Takes Center Stage as Satisfaction Flatlines, J.D. Power Finds. J.D Power. (2022, June 13).
https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2022-us-auto-insurance-study
About Us. Progressive. (2022).
https://www.progressive.com/about/
Who are rideshare drivers: A demographic breakdown of rideshare drivers in the U.S.. Gridwise. (2020, Aug 19).
https://gridwise.io/blog/b2b/who-are-rideshare-drivers-a-demographic-breakdown-of-rideshare-drivers-in-the-u-s/
The Cost of Convenience: Ridesharing and Traffic Fatalities. Chicago Booth. (2018, Oct).
https://research.chicagobooth.edu/-/media/research/stigler/pdfs/workingpapers/27thecostofconvenience.pdf