Know Your Rideshare Company

We’ve written about the insurance coverage TNCs like Uber and Lyft offer in Massachusetts. Those large companies that connect passengers with drivers are required to carry liability insurance under Massachusetts law. But other companies or independent drivers who may provide services very similar to TNCs may not have to follow the same rules.

That coverage may be important. One study published in 2024 showed that ⅓ of rideshare drivers surveyed said they’d been involved in at least one traffic crash while on the. Exact data varies by source, but there are on average more than 100 rideshare accident deaths each year, and one study concluded that the increase in rideshare drivers on the road played a role in nearly 1,000 traffic fatalities/year.

So, it’s important to know what to expect if your driver is at fault in a collision.

TNC Insurance Requirements

Under Massachusetts law, the insurance requirements for TNC drivers vary depending on the “period” the driver is in. Period 1 is when the driver is logged in to the app but has not yet been matched with a passenger–they’re just driving around waiting for an opportunity. The insurance coverage the TNC must provide is significantly more than the state minimum for vehicle owners: $50,000 per person and $100,000 per occurrence for bodily injury and $30,000 for property damage liability. However, those limits are quite a bit lower than during Periods 2 and 3.

In Period 2 (when the driver has been matched with a passenger and is en route to pick them up) and Period 3 (when there is a rideshare passenger in the vehicle), the combined minimum bodily injury liability and property damage liability minimum is $1,000,000. If the rideshare driver is at fault in an accident, that coverage may pay damages to the rideshare passenger, anyone in another vehicle involved in the collision who was injured, and people outside the vehicle who were injured, such as pedestrians and bicyclists. The insurance may also cover damage to other vehicles, as well as objects like road signs and even buildings the vehicle hit.

Not-Quite-Rideshare Companies

One similar alternative to Massachusetts TNCs are apps that connect passengers with taxi cabs and other licensed commercial drivers. One prominent example in Massachusetts is Curb. Curb works a lot like Uber or Lyft on the passenger’s end, but there are some big differences. One advertised distinction is that Curb only works with drivers who are licensed under local requirements.

In one way, that’s an obvious benefit. One of the frequent complaints about rideshare services is that the drivers aren’t as carefully vetted or thoroughly regulated as licensed taxi drivers. There’s even data that suggests that motor vehicle accident rates increase when rideshare companies come to town. But there’s a trade-off.

Curb says the company verifies that each driver they connect riders with has the required commercial insurance for their licensing. But those insurance requirements are typically much lower than the coverage Massachusetts requires for companies like Uber and Lyft. That means a greater likelihood that insurance coverage will be insufficient to cover a passenger’s injuries or injuries to someone outside the vehicle.

Get Help after a Massachusetts Rideshare Accident

When you’ve been injured in an accident while you were paying for a ride–whether you’re a rideshare passenger, using a service like Curb to connect you to licensed commercial drivers, or you flagged down a cab on your own–you should speak with an experienced Massachusetts car accident lawyer right away. There may be more than one insurance company involved, and liability may be more complicated than in a regular car accident case. The sooner you hire a Lowell injury attorney, the better opportunity your attorney will have to investigate and build the strongest case possible for you.

To learn more about how an experienced Lowell personal injury lawyer can protect your right to compensation, call The Broderick Law Firm now by calling 978-459-3085 or fill out our contact form.