The insurance industry and Uber/Lyft/airbnb, etc. have begun evolving their practices and policies to address your needs when you use these services to enhance your income. HOWEVER, these companies are not as quick to the game as some might assume. The real innovation in protection of clients, drivers, and hosts is yet to come: insurance coverage for those sneaky gaps. We have been hearing a buzz among some of our insurance companies; They are starting to talk about policies for coverage gaps the sharing economy has yet to fill. Stay tuned for more…
In the meantime, KNOW what is and is not covered. Every insurance company is different. If you have an incident, some companies will pay a claim and then cancel you. Some will not pay anything. Some will only pay something.
Uber offers $1,000,000 of liability limits in the State of Washington. Let’s say a serious accident occurs while you are driving and you are sued personally- your personal insurance will not cover business use. And what is “business use” exactly? “Business use” is one of most terms that were created by insurance companies in a non-sharing world. This term currently resides in a gray area, meaning in this situation the devil is in the details. You are at the mercy of how your insurance company is willing to stretch the bounds of the definition within your policy.
If you know what your potential exposure is, you can make a good “business” decision about whether or not to Uber, airbnb, or Homeaway your car or property into the sharing economy.
Don’t learn the hard way!
Call us! We can help you determine if you are willing to take a risk, and how much risk “it” really is.
Knowledge is power.