Guide · Injury · Illinois

Uber and Lyft Crashes in Illinois: Why Coverage Depends on What the App Was Doing

The difference between $50,000 of coverage and $1,000,000 can come down to a single fact: which “period” the driver was in at the instant of the crash.

By Lincoln Square Law · 8-minute read

In an ordinary crash, the first question is who was at fault. In a crash involving an Uber, Lyft, or other rideshare vehicle, a second question can matter just as much: what was the driver’s app doing at that moment? Illinois ties the required insurance to the driver’s status on the platform, so the same collision can be backed by very different amounts of coverage depending on whether the driver was offline, waiting for a request, or carrying a passenger. Proving that status is often the first real task in a rideshare case.

The insurance periods

The Transportation Network Providers Act sets minimum insurance for rideshare drivers and companies in Illinois (625 ILCS 57/10). The requirements change with the driver’s activity, which is why lawyers and insurers talk about periods.

App off. When the driver is not logged in to the platform, the car is a personal vehicle. Only the driver’s personal auto policy applies, subject to the ordinary Illinois minimums of $25,000 per person, $50,000 per crash, and $20,000 for property damage (625 ILCS 5/7-203).

Logged in, waiting for a request. From the moment a driver logs on until the driver accepts a ride, and again after a ride ends until the next acceptance or log-off, the Act requires liability coverage of at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and personal injury, and $25,000 for property damage (625 ILCS 57/10(b)(1)). If the driver’s own policy excludes rideshare use or falls short, the company must maintain contingent coverage in those amounts (625 ILCS 57/10(b)(2)).

Ride accepted through drop-off. From the moment the driver accepts a ride request until the ride is complete, the Act requires primary liability coverage of $1,000,000 for death, personal injury, and property damage (625 ILCS 57/10(c)(1)). During the part of the trip when a passenger is in the vehicle, the coverage must also include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage of $50,000 (625 ILCS 57/10(c)(2)).

The gap between those tiers is dramatic. A crash a few seconds before a driver accepts a ride may be backed by $50,000 of coverage per person. The same crash a few seconds after acceptance may be backed by $1,000,000. That is why the exact time of acceptance, and the driver’s status at the moment of impact, deserve careful proof.

The driver’s personal policy

Many personal auto policies exclude coverage while a car is being used to carry passengers for pay or while the driver is logged in to a rideshare platform. The Act anticipates that problem. When a driver’s own insurance has lapsed or does not exist, the company must provide the required coverage beginning with the first dollar of a claim (625 ILCS 57/10(d)). The statute also makes clear that the required coverage does not cap the company’s liability in an action where it is otherwise responsible above those amounts (625 ILCS 57/10(e)). In practice, several insurers may each point to another as primary. Having the policies and the trip data in hand is what resolves that argument.

Proving the period

The driver’s app status is recorded by the platform, not by anyone’s memory. The data typically shows when the driver logged on, when a request was offered and accepted, the route and timing of the trip, when the passenger was picked up and dropped off, and GPS location. That record usually decides which period applies. It should be requested and preserved early, together with the police report, photographs, and witness information. A preservation letter to the company, sent promptly, reduces the risk that relevant data is not retained.

Screenshots help too. Passengers can save the trip receipt and in-app details. Other drivers and pedestrians can photograph the rideshare decal or signage and note whether a passenger was in the car.

Who can make a claim

Rideshare crashes involve several kinds of injured people, and their claims can look different:

• Passengers are usually covered by the $1,000,000 liability tier if the rideshare driver was at fault, and by the $50,000 uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage if another driver caused the crash and lacks adequate insurance.
• Other drivers and their passengers injured by a rideshare driver look to the tier that matched the driver’s status at the time.
• Pedestrians and cyclists are in the same position, and may also have claims under their own household auto policies, including uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage (215 ILCS 5/143a and 5/143a-2).
• Rideshare drivers themselves, when hit by another motorist, may have claims against that driver and against their own coverage, and should review both their personal policy and the company’s coverage terms.

Fault still matters

The insurance period decides how much coverage exists. It does not decide who pays. Illinois’ modified comparative fault rule still applies: an injured person more than 50 percent at fault recovers nothing, and otherwise damages are reduced by that person’s share (735 ILCS 5/2-1116). A rideshare driver’s liability also depends on the ordinary evidence of any crash: speed, attention, signals, phone use, and the positions of the vehicles. In some cases, the question of whether the company itself bears responsibility beyond the insurance requirements will be contested, and should be evaluated on the facts.

Damages and the limits of coverage

Insurance minimums describe what must be available, not what a claim is worth. In a serious injury, medical expenses, lost earnings, and the human losses of pain and disability can exceed even the $1,000,000 tier, and they can far exceed the $50,000 per person required while a driver is waiting for a request. When the coverage in the applicable period is too small, the other layers matter: the injured person’s own underinsured motorist coverage, a household member’s policy, and any other party whose conduct contributed to the crash. Finding those layers before settling with the first insurer is what keeps the recovery from being capped by the lowest policy in the picture.

Terms of service and arbitration

Riders and drivers agree to the platform’s terms of service when they use the app, and those terms often include arbitration provisions and other procedural requirements. Whether those terms apply to a particular claim, and to which parties, depends on the claim and on who is bringing it. A pedestrian or another motorist who never used the app is in a different position from a passenger who accepted the terms. The question should be reviewed before a claim is filed, because it can affect where and how the case proceeds.

Deadlines

A personal injury claim in Illinois generally must be filed within two years of the injury (735 ILCS 5/13-202). If a public entity is involved, for example because a road condition or a public vehicle contributed to the crash, the period may be one year (745 ILCS 10/8-101(a)). Insurers may also require prompt notice under their policies, including for uninsured and underinsured motorist claims. Note as well that section 10 of the Transportation Network Providers Act is currently scheduled to be repealed on September 1, 2028, so the rules above should be confirmed against the statute in effect on the date of any crash.

What to do after a rideshare crash

• Get medical care and call police so the crash is documented.
• Record the rideshare driver’s name, plate, insurance information, and the platform, and save the trip receipt or screenshots if you were a passenger.
• Photograph the vehicles, the scene, and any rideshare markings.
• Notify your own insurer of the crash, but decline recorded statements to other insurers until the coverage picture is clear.
• Have a lawyer request and preserve the trip data and identify every layer of coverage before any release is signed.

In a rideshare case, the right answer to the insurance question can change the entire value of the claim. It is worth getting that answer from the data rather than accepting the first insurer’s assumption.