Every day, people in Tennessee rely on rideshare services like Uber and Lyft for convenient transportation. Although most rides end safely, serious rideshare accidents continue to occur. Victims may face complex insurance and liability issues when seeking compensation for their injuries.
When you are hurt in a crash involving an Uber or Lyft, the insurance that applies depends on exactly what the driver was doing at the moment of the collision. That single fact can change the available coverage from a modest policy to a million dollars.
Fox and Farmer represents passengers, other drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians injured in rideshare crashes in Johnson City and across Washington County and the Tri-Cities. Our lawyer can explain how rideshare insurance works in Tennessee and help identify the responsible party so the injured person can reach the right coverage.
A crash involving a rideshare vehicle looks like an ordinary collision, but the insurance and liability questions behind it are distinctive. Uber and Lyft drivers are independent contractors, not employees, and the companies have structured their operations and insurance around that arrangement. The result is a layered system in which the coverage that applies turns on the driver's status in the app at the moment of the crash.
This structure means that two crashes that look identical on the road can have very different insurance behind them. A crash caused by a rideshare driver who was carrying a passenger is covered by a large commercial policy, while the same driver causing the same crash with the app off is covered only by their personal auto insurance.
For an injured person, understanding which phase applies is essential because it determines whether substantial coverage is available or whether the recovery is limited to a minimum personal policy. Sorting out the driver's status and the coverage it triggers is what makes a rideshare case different from an ordinary crash.
The defining feature of rideshare insurance is that coverage changes in phases based on what the driver was doing, and knowing the phases is key to understanding a claim. These coverage tiers come from Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-12-141, which sets a $50,000/$100,000/$25,000 minimum while the driver is logged on and waiting, and $1 million once a ride is accepted.
When the app is off and the driver is using the car for personal purposes, only the driver's own personal auto insurance applies, just as it would for any private driver. The rideshare company's coverage does not apply at all during this phase.
The picture changes once the driver logs into the app. When the driver is available and waiting for a ride request, with the app on but no passenger assigned, the rideshare companies provide limited liability coverage. This is larger than a minimum personal policy but smaller than the coverage that applies once a ride is underway.
The highest level of coverage applies once the driver accepts a ride request and while traveling to pick up the passenger or transporting the passenger. Once the driver accepts a ride request and until the ride ends, Tennessee law requires primary liability coverage of $1 million. This coverage may be provided by the transportation network company, the driver, or both, so long as the statutory requirements are met.
Because coverage changes throughout the driver's workday, the driver's status at the exact moment of the collision can significantly affect which insurance policy applies and the amount of compensation available to an injured person. App records and trip data are important evidence in determining the applicable coverage phase.
Yes, depending on the driver's insurance policy and what the driver was doing at the time of the collision. Tennessee law allows personal auto insurers to exclude coverage for transportation network company activities when the policy contains an approved exclusion. As a result, a driver's personal insurer may deny coverage if the vehicle was being used for ridesharing services at the time of the crash.
Rideshare crashes injure people across several categories, and available coverage can vary depending on who was hurt.
Passengers in the rideshare vehicle are the most straightforward case: a passenger is virtually never at fault for a crash, and because they are in the vehicle during the ride, the company's full commercial coverage is in effect. A passenger injured in a rideshare crash is in a strong position to recover, whether the rideshare driver or another driver caused the collision.
Others hurt in these crashes face their own analysis. The occupants of another vehicle struck by a rideshare driver, as well as cyclists and pedestrians hit by one, can recover from coverage applied based on the rideshare driver's phase at the time.
When the rideshare driver is not at fault, the injured person looks to the at-fault driver's coverage. The rideshare driver and their passengers become victims rather than responsible parties.
Sorting out who was hurt, who was at fault, and what coverage applied to each driver involved is the work of untangling a rideshare crash. It determines where each injured person's recovery will come from.
Rideshare use has grown throughout the Johnson City area, and the patterns of that use shape where crashes happen. The presence of East Tennessee State University means a significant population of students and visitors relies on rideshare. Rideshare trips are common at night and on weekends, moving between campus, housing, downtown, and entertainment.
Tri-Cities Regional Airport, which serves the broader area, generates steady rideshare traffic carrying travelers to and from Johnson City and the surrounding communities. The downtown district, the commercial corridors, and the routes connecting them see rideshare vehicles throughout the day and night.
These vehicles travel the same busy and sometimes hazardous roads as everyone else. A rideshare car on State of Franklin Road or North Roan Street faces the heavy turning and crossing traffic of the commercial corridors, while one traveling the I-26 corridor or the routes to the airport faces highway-speed risks.
Late-night rideshare trips, common around the university and entertainment districts, can put rideshare vehicles on the road at the same hours when impaired and fatigued drivers are most prevalent.
Rideshare crashes can occur in the same traffic environments as other vehicle accidents, reflecting the city's overall traffic patterns. Identifying where and how a specific crash occurred is the first step in evaluating the personal injury claim and determining liability.
The underlying fault analysis in a rideshare crash follows the same Tennessee law that governs any collision. The modified comparative fault rule applies, meaning an injured person can recover only if found less than 50 percent at fault, with compensation reduced by their share of the blame, under the standard from McIntyre v. Balentine, 833 S.W.2d 52 (Tenn. 1992).
Whoever caused the crash, whether the rideshare driver or another motorist, is responsible under ordinary negligence principles. The rideshare element affects insurance coverage more than the basic question of fault.
What the rideshare context adds is the layer of determining which driver was at fault and what coverage their status triggered. If the rideshare driver caused the crash, the applicable phase determines whether the company's coverage or only the driver's personal policy responds.
If another driver caused it, that driver's coverage is the primary source of coverage. The rideshare company's uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage may apply to the rideshare driver and passengers if the at-fault driver was inadequately insured.
Some rideshare drivers use multiple platforms at the same time, a practice often called "multi-apping." A driver may be logged into both Uber and Lyft while waiting for ride requests and then accept a trip through only one platform.
Determining which app the driver was using at the time can affect which insurance policy applies. App records, trip logs, and electronic data may be needed to establish whether the driver accepted a ride and which company's coverage was in effect at the time of the collision.
Rideshare crashes produce the same range of injuries as any vehicle collision, from minor harm to catastrophic trauma, and the medical response is part of the claim. A serious rideshare crash in the Johnson City area brings the injured to Johnson City Medical Center, the region's only Level I trauma center.
The most severe injuries from across Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia are commonly treated by the hospital’s trauma surgeons available around the clock. A seriously injured rideshare passenger or other victim can be treated at the region's most advanced trauma facility. The medical record generated through that care becomes central evidence.
A clear account tracing the injury from the scene through emergency care and follow-up treatment establishes its severity and its connection to the crash. This timeline matters because insurers, including the rideshare companies' insurers, scrutinize medical records for any basis to argue that the injury was minor or unrelated.
Following through on recommended care and keeping the medical story complete protects both recovery and the value of the claim. For more serious injuries, projecting future medical needs and lost earning capacity becomes part of valuing the case. Thorough documentation from a Level I trauma center supports that projection.
Tennessee allows a person injured in a rideshare crash to recover both economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages cover the measurable losses: emergency and ongoing medical care, future treatment, lost wages during recovery, and reduced earning capacity if the injury limits future work. These are proven through records and, for lasting injuries, a professional assessment of future needs.
The available coverage, which can be applied to rideshare companies' large commercial policies when the appropriate phase is in effect, means more insurance is available to pay these losses than in an ordinary car crash.
Non-economic damages compensate for pain, suffering, and the loss of the ability to live as one did before the crash. Tennessee caps non-economic damages at $750,000, or $1 million in catastrophic cases, under Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-39-102. The cap does not apply to economic losses and is removed in limited circumstances, such as when an intoxicated at-fault driver is involved.
The key to recovering the full value of a rideshare claim is reaching the right coverage, which depends on correctly establishing the driver's phase and identifying every applicable policy. A claim that fails to establish the commercial coverage when it applies may settle for far less than the harm warrants, while one that correctly reaches the available coverage can recover the full extent of the loss.
The steps taken after a rideshare crash can help protect the claim. The first priorities are the same as any crash: get to safety, call 911 if anyone is hurt, and seek medical care, since some injuries surface over the following days. A police report documenting the collision is valuable, as it records the circumstances and the parties involved.
For a rideshare passenger, the crash may be disorienting because they were not driving and may be unfamiliar with the area. This makes gathering information especially important.
Beyond the standard steps, rideshare crashes call for capturing details about the ride itself. Screenshots of the trip in the app, showing the driver, the route, and the trip status, document the ride and can help establish the driver's phase at the time of the crash.
The driver's name and information, the vehicle details, and the names and contact information of any witnesses all help. Reporting the crash through the app creates a record with the rideshare company.
Preserving this ride information early is necessary because it supports the phase analysis that determines which coverage applies. The details are easiest to capture in the moment rather than being reconstructed later.
Reaching the coverage that applies to a rideshare crash is rarely automatic because the parties who control that coverage have incentives that do not align with those of the injured person. The rideshare companies and their insurers benefit from characterizing the driver's status in a way that minimizes their exposure.
A personal auto insurer may also deny coverage entirely on the ground that the driver was using the vehicle for commercial rideshare purposes at the time of the crash. An injured person can find themselves caught between insurers, each pointing the finger at the other, while the coverage that should respond remains unpaid.
Resolving this requires establishing the facts independently and understanding how the layered system works. The rideshare company's trip data settles the question of the driver's phase, but it must be requested properly and promptly.
The interplay between the driver's personal policy and the company's coverage must be navigated, particularly during gap periods when coverage shifts. When another driver causes the crash, both the other driver's coverage and the rideshare company's uninsured motorist protection come into play.
Sorting out which policy responds, in what order, and for how much can determine whether an injured person reaches the coverage that may be available or is left with far less than their injuries require.
Rideshare has become a routine part of how people move around Johnson City and the broader Tri-Cities, and that growth has brought a corresponding rise in crashes involving these services.
The convenience of summoning a ride has made rideshare a common choice for students, travelers arriving through Tri-Cities Regional Airport, and residents heading downtown or out for the evening. With more rideshare vehicles on the road, more crashes inevitably involve them, and more injured people face the distinctive insurance questions these cases raise.
The risks reflect the conditions under which rideshare operates. Many trips occur at night and on weekends, when traffic includes more impaired and fatigued drivers, and rideshare drivers themselves may be working long hours or navigating unfamiliar areas while following an app.
The pressure to complete trips efficiently can contribute to distracted or rushed driving. For passengers, the experience of being injured in a vehicle they did not control, often in an unfamiliar place, adds to the difficulty.
As rideshare continues to grow as a part of transportation in the area, understanding how to handle the crashes that result and how to reach the coverage behind them becomes important for injured people across the Tri-Cities.
Because a passenger is in the vehicle during an active ride, Uber's $1 million commercial liability policy is in effect. This can provide substantial coverage regardless of which driver caused the crash.
Yes, significantly. The coverage available depends on the driver's phase: app off means only personal insurance, app on and waiting means limited coverage, and an active ride means the large commercial policy.
Then the at-fault driver's coverage is the primary source, and the rideshare company's uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage may also apply if that driver was inadequately insured.
Since drivers are independent contractors, the rideshare companies provide coverage through their insurance rather than being directly liable as employers. Their insurance is often the key source of recovery.f
You have one year from the crash under Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104. If the at-fault driver faces criminal charges from the same crash, such as DUI, the deadline can extend to two years under § 28-3-104(a)(2).
Fox and Farmer has represented injured people across East Tennessee since 1986. Our legal team knows that a rideshare case is won by reaching the right coverage.
Our lawyers take on rideshare crash cases around the Tri-Cities area, assisting in:
The correct venue depends on where the crash happened. Johnson City spans Washington, Carter, and Sullivan Counties, and a rideshare claim is filed in the county where the collision occurred. For crashes on the Washington County side, the case is filed in Circuit Court in Jonesborough, the county seat.
Our firm handles the tangled insurance questions these cases raise so the injured person can reach the coverage that matches their harm. Which insurance applies after an Uber or Lyft crash depends on the app status at the moment of impact.
That trip data must be requested before the question can be muddied. We know how to secure it. If a rideshare crash near Johnson City resulted in injuries, contact us immediately so we can help preserve the information needed to evaluate coverage options.
There is no charge for the consultation and no fee unless we recover. Call us at 423-390-0000 to speak with our lawyer today.
