If you’re a delivery driver, you need to have insurance while you’re out on the road. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it may not be as simple as you think. Keep reading to learn what type of insurance does and doesn’t apply to delivery driving.
Personal Car Insurance
If you’re relying on your car insurance, it will probably only cover you from your house to the restaurant and from the restaurant back home again. That’s because personal car insurance generally covers commuting plus your activities. It usually does not include any business activity.
Delivery driving is a business activity, whether you’re an employee for a restaurant or an independent contractor through an app that serves multiple restaurants. If you get in an accident while doing this excluded activity, your insurance company won’t pay your claims. In addition, some insurance companies include in their contract that they will automatically cancel your policy if you’re engaged in any business activity using your car even if you haven’t gotten in an accident yet.
Personal Car Insurance with a Rider
After a lot of Uber and Lyft drivers ran into trouble not being insured for accidents or having their policies canceled, some insurance companies started offering new options. When you buy their car insurance coverage, you can add on an option that can cover your delivery driving or other gig economy activities. This option comes at an additional cost but can help make sure you’re insured at all times.
You do need to check the fine print on these options. They are often limited to side gigs and may place limits on how much you can work or what kinds of jobs are covered.
Employer’s Hired and Non-Owned Policy
Some employers carry hired and non-owned coverage on cars they rent (hire) or don’t own (owned and driven by the people working for them). The coverage will typically apply to both the employer and the driver, but it’s really designed to protect the employer. That means it will often have very good liability coverage to guard against lawsuits, but it won’t cover repairing or replacing your car if you cause an accident, have a no-fault incident, or can’t recover from the at-fault driver.
Supplemental Insurance
Some companies offer supplemental insurance coverage directly to their drivers. This is common with apps like Uber Eats. The coverage typically covers both liability and damage to your car at times your insurance would not apply. However, there can still be gaps in coverage where neither the supplemental insurance nor your car insurance would apply. For example, your supplemental coverage might only apply when you have orders in your car but your insurance might still exclude time between orders.
How to Know if You Have Coverage at All Times?
To know if you’re covered while you’re delivery driving, you need to carefully read the fine print of any insurance policy that may apply. Your insurance agent can help you check for gaps and get the coverage you need to eliminate them. To get started, contact Henricks Wilging Insurance today.
