If an Uber or Lyft vehicle hit you while you were driving, walking, or biking in California, the rideshare company’s insurance can cover your injuries once the driver is logged into the app: at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident (plus $200,000 excess) while the driver waits for a ride request, and at least $1,000,000 from the moment a ride is accepted until it is complete (Public Utilities Code section 5433). A person hurt by a rideshare driver usually has two years to file suit (Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1). Our office is open 24/7 and calls are answered at (619) 525-7007.
This page is for people outside the rideshare car: other motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, and their families. If you were the rideshare passenger or the driver, see our Uber passenger and driver injury page, which covers passenger coverage and Proposition 22 driver benefits.
California law explained: Which Insurance Pays After an Uber or Lyft Crash?
- App off: the TNC tiers do not apply; the driver’s personal auto insurance is the starting point, and California’s minimum financial responsibility rules apply (Vehicle Code section 16020).
- App on, no ride accepted: primary liability coverage of at least $50,000 for death and injury per person, $100,000 per incident, and $30,000 for property damage, plus at least $200,000 per occurrence in excess liability coverage (Public Utilities Code section 5433).
- From the moment a trip is accepted until the rider gets out: if you were outside the car, the TNC policy must provide at least $1,000,000 that pays first (Public Utilities Code section 5433).
- No denial required first: TNC coverage does not depend on the driver’s personal insurer first denying the claim (Public Utilities Code section 5433).
- Proposition 22 keeps the liability rule: the network company must maintain the liability insurance required by the TNC article of the Public Utilities Code (Business and Professions Code section 7455, subd. (f)).
- Fault: the rideshare driver is responsible for harm caused by a lack of ordinary care (Civil Code section 1714); a traffic law violation that causes the kind of harm the law was meant to prevent creates a rebuttable presumption of negligence (Evidence Code section 669).
- Pedestrians and cyclists: drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and use due care (Vehicle Code section 21950); see our San Diego pedestrian accident page for the full right-of-way rules.
Legislative history: who must insure people outside the car
The TNC insurance article, including Public Utilities Code section 5433, was added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 389; its latest amendment came through Senate Bill 371 (Stats. 2025, Ch. 314), effective January 1, 2026. Proposition 22, approved November 3, 2020 and effective December 16, 2020, added Business and Professions Code section 7455, which made carrying the Public Utilities Code liability coverage part of the network company’s obligations. Sources: leginfo section history notes and bill status.
CPUC rideshare accident data
- The CPUC requires TNCs to file annual reports under Decisions D.13-09-045 and D.16-04-041 (CPUC TNC data portal).
- Under D.24-08-010, annual reports are due January 30 for the prior calendar year, and the report templates include an “Accident & Incidents” report (CPUC required reports page).
- Decision D.25-08-035, issued September 4, 2025, required TNCs to file public versions of their annual reports with redactions; D.25-10-062 later suspended the public 2021 through 2024 reports, and public reports for 2014 through 2020 were due March 31, 2026 (CPUC TNC data portal).
- The CPUC licenses and regulates TNCs in California (CPUC transportation network company page). Because public data access has changed, a claim usually relies on the crash report, the app trip record, and insurer records rather than published CPUC totals.
Proving the driver’s app status
The tier that applies depends on whether the driver was offline, online and waiting, or on an accepted trip. Ask for the police report, note any rideshare stickers on the car, photograph the driver’s phone mount if visible, and get witness names. In a lawsuit, trip and app records can be requested in discovery.
Common Rideshare Accident Injuries
People hit by a rideshare vehicle while walking or biking often have more severe injuries than people inside a vehicle. The general rules are on our brain injury page.
Causes of Rideshare Accidents
Rideshare crashes have the same causes as other crashes, with one added factor: drivers work from a phone app while driving.
- Phone and app use: drivers may not hold and operate a phone while driving; only hands-free, voice-operated use, or a single tap or swipe on a mounted device, is allowed (Vehicle Code section 23123.5). NHTSA treats any activity that diverts attention from driving as distraction (NHTSA distracted driving page).
- Right-of-way errors: drivers must yield to a vehicle already in an intersection, and at all-way stops the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right (Vehicle Code section 21800).
- Pickups and drop-offs: sudden stops, double parking, and U-turns to reach a rider can put cyclists and pedestrians at risk. Drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks (Vehicle Code section 21950).
- Fatigue and long shifts: app-based drivers may drive many hours; trip logs can show how long a driver had been online.
Recovering Compensation for Your Rideshare Accident Injuries
Whether the driver was logged in, waiting for a request, or carrying a passenger changes which insurance policy pays damages. More than one party can share responsibility. our explainer on economic and non-economic damages has the full background.
After a Lyft or Uber crash: what to do and what to report
If a rideshare vehicle hit you, note the Uber or Lyft trade dress, the plate, and whether a passenger was in the car. Read California’s stop, exchange, and report rules after a collision for the shared California law.
Rideshare Accident Damages
Whether the driver was logged in, waiting for a request, or carrying a passenger changes which insurance policy pays damages. The general rules are on how California measures injury damages.
Settlement offers, negotiation, and trial
Settlement talks in rideshare cases often wait on confirming the driver’s app status at the time of the crash. For the statewide rules, see how CCP 998 offers and fee agreements work.
When Can I File a Rideshare Accident Lawsuit?
A rideshare claim follows the two-year rule even when the insurer is still sorting out the driver’s app status, so that dispute does not pause the clock. California injury claim deadlines has the full background.
Related injury pages
See our Uber passenger and driver injury page, San Diego pedestrian accident page, San Diego car accident page, catastrophic injury page, wrongful death page.
Rideshare accident questions and answers
Who pays if an Uber or Lyft driver hits my car?
If the driver was on an accepted trip, the TNC’s $1,000,000 primary coverage applies; if the app was on with no ride accepted, $50,000/$100,000/$30,000 plus $200,000 excess applies (Public Utilities Code section 5433).
What if the rideshare driver was not logged in?
Then the TNC tiers do not apply, and the driver’s personal auto insurance is the starting point (Vehicle Code section 16020).
Can a pedestrian hit by a rideshare car use the same coverage?
Yes. The TNC liability tiers cover death and personal injury to others, including pedestrians and cyclists (Public Utilities Code section 5433).
Does the CPUC publish rideshare accident data?
TNCs file annual reports with an accident and incident template, but public release of 2021 through 2024 reports was suspended by D.25-10-062 (CPUC TNC data portal).
How long do I have to sue after being hit by a rideshare vehicle?
Generally two years (Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1).
What if the driver who hit me was uninsured and not working for a rideshare app?
Then the TNC tiers do not apply. Your own auto policy’s uninsured motorist coverage may apply, depending on its terms.
Can I sue the rideshare company directly?
The TNC must carry the insurance in Public Utilities Code section 5433, which pays claims arising from the driver’s covered periods. Whether the company itself is a defendant depends on the facts of the case.
How do attorney fees work?
No attorney fee unless we recover. If there is no recovery, you owe no attorney fees and no case costs, as stated in your fee agreement.
How do I reach Injury Trial Lawyers?
Injury Trial Lawyers is open 24/7, and calls are answered at (619) 525-7007.
This page is general information about California law, not legal advice.