By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.
Hurt in an Uber or Lyft crash in Washington?
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Two facts decide who pays
Every Uber or Lyft injury claim in Washington turns on two facts: what the driver’s app showed at the moment of impact, and who caused the crash. The app status tells you which policy is in play and how much it must hold. Fault tells you whose policy owes you.
The insurance rules are in RCW 46.72B.180. The 2022 rideshare law, ESHB 2076 (Laws of 2022, chapter 281), moved them there from RCW 48.177.010. The time periods come from RCW 48.177.005: a “prearranged ride” starts when the driver accepts a request and ends when the passenger leaves the car.
| What the app showed | Liability coverage | Other coverage the policy must carry | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off | Driver’s personal policy. State minimum: $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident, $10,000 property | Only what the driver bought | RCW 46.29.090 |
| On, waiting for a request | $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident, $30,000 property | UIM and PIP to the extent RCW 48.22 requires | RCW 46.72B.180(1)(b)(i) |
| Ride accepted, driving to the pickup | $1 million combined single limit | PIP to the extent RCW 48.22 requires | RCW 46.72B.180(1)(b)(ii) |
| Passenger in the car | $1 million combined single limit | PIP, plus UIM of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident | RCW 46.72B.180(1)(b)(ii)-(iii) |
Texas uses different numbers and a different fault rule. If your crash happened there, see who pays after an Uber or Lyft accident in Texas.
If you were a passenger
You were inside a prearranged ride, so the $1 million commercial policy answers for the rideshare driver’s fault. If another driver caused the crash, you claim against that driver’s liability insurer. If that driver had no insurance or too little, the rideshare policy’s UIM coverage of $100,000 per person applies from the moment you got in until you got out. Washington’s UIM statute treats a vehicle with no liability insurance at all as underinsured (RCW 48.22.030(1)).
The commercial policy must also carry personal injury protection (PIP) to the extent RCW 48.22.085 and RCW 48.22.095 require. Those sections make PIP an offered coverage with minimum benefits, including $10,000 for medical and hospital bills and $10,000 in income continuation at up to $200 a week, and they let the named insured reject it in writing. Ask the rideshare insurer in writing whether PIP is on the policy. A policy in your own household may also cover you, since the named insured and resident relatives are insureds under RCW 48.22.005.
If you were in another car
When the rideshare driver hit you, the app status sets how much money is there. With the app off, the driver may carry only $25,000 per person. Logged in and waiting, the minimum is $50,000 per person. After a ride is accepted, it is $1 million.
If the at-fault limits fall short of your losses, your own UIM coverage can pay the difference. Washington requires UIM on every auto policy in the same amount as the liability coverage unless a named insured or spouse rejected it in writing (RCW 48.22.030(3)-(4)). Your own PIP, if you kept it, can help with medical bills and lost income while fault is sorted out.
If you were walking or on a bike
The same app-status limits apply when a rideshare car hits someone outside a vehicle. For PIP, RCW 48.22.005 counts a pedestrian accidentally struck by the insured automobile as an insured, and it defines a pedestrian as any person not occupying a motor vehicle, which includes a person on a bicycle. Whether the rideshare policy’s PIP reaches you depends first on whether that policy includes PIP at all, so ask its insurer in writing. PIP on a policy in your own household can apply as well. Our Washington pedestrian accident lawyer page covers the right-of-way rules that often decide fault.
If you were the Uber or Lyft driver
ESHB 2076 gave rideshare drivers workers’ compensation through the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) starting January 1, 2023. The company has an employer’s rights and duties under the industrial insurance law, and the driver has a worker’s, only during “dispatch platform time” and “passenger platform time” (RCW 51.08.070(2), RCW 51.08.180(2), RCW 51.16.250). RCW 49.46.300 defines those terms: dispatch time is the drive from where you accepted the trip to the pickup, and passenger time is while you carry riders. Waiting for a request is not covered for injuries.
A 2024 law added death benefits for a driver killed while logged in and available, inside or near the vehicle, and not otherwise covered (RCW 51.32.053). According to L&I, benefits include medical care and partial wage replacement but not vehicle repairs.
Workers’ compensation does not end your claim against a careless driver. You may also seek damages from a third party who caused the injury (RCW 51.24.030), and L&I is repaid for benefits it paid out of that recovery under the formula in RCW 51.24.060.
Your own car insurance may not help. Insurers may exclude all coverage under a personal policy, including liability, PIP, UIM and collision, while you are logged in or giving a ride (RCW 46.72B.180(6)). Ask for a copy of the rideshare policy and check whether its PIP and UIM terms cover you as the driver.
When the insurers point at each other
Rideshare claims often stall while two insurers argue over whose turn it is. RCW 46.72B.180 settles several of those arguments:
- If the driver’s own rideshare policy lapsed or never existed, the company must provide the required coverage from the first dollar of the claim (subsection 2(b)).
- Only the insurers on the rideshare coverage have the duty to defend a liability claim from a crash during commercial transportation services (subsection 3).
- If the driver was logged in to two apps, the company that matched the ride covers it. With no match, the rideshare policies split the liability equally (subsection 10).
- A personal insurer may not deny a claim from purely personal driving just because the car is used for rideshare at other times (subsection 13).
Fault and deadlines
Washington uses pure comparative fault. Your share of fault lowers your award by that percentage but does not bar recovery (RCW 4.22.005).
| Rule | Time limit or effect | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Injury lawsuit | 3 years | RCW 4.16.080(2) |
| L&I claim by a rideshare driver | 1 year from the injury | RCW 51.28.050 |
| PIP medical and hospital benefits | Expenses incurred within 3 years of the crash | RCW 48.22.005(7) |
| UIM claim for a car that caused the crash without touching you (phantom vehicle) | Report to police within 72 hours; facts corroborated by evidence beyond the insured’s word | RCW 48.22.030(8) |
| Your own share of fault | Reduces the award by that percentage but does not bar it | RCW 4.22.005 |
What this means for your case
The person who was hurt and the app status together point to the right insurer. These steps help pin both down:
- Lock in the app status. Save the ride receipt and trip screens. At the scene, ask the driver whether the app was on and whether a ride was accepted.
- Ask every insurer in writing for its limits and whether PIP or UIM is on the policy or was rejected in writing.
- If you drive for Uber or Lyft, tell your doctor the injury happened at work and file with L&I within one year.
- If a car caused the crash without touching you and drove off, report it to police within 72 hours.
- Put the three-year lawsuit deadline on your calendar.
Read more on our Washington Uber and Lyft accident lawyer page, or call Beverly Law at (310) 552-6959 for a free review in English or Spanish. You owe no fees or costs unless we win.
Common questions
Does the $1 million policy cover me if the driver was still on the way to pick someone up?
Yes. A prearranged ride begins when the driver accepts the request, so the $1 million liability coverage applies during the drive to the pickup. The $100,000 passenger UIM coverage starts only when a passenger gets in.
Who pays if an Uber driver with the app off hits me?
The driver’s personal auto policy, which may carry only the state minimum of $25,000 per person. Your own UIM coverage may pay the difference if your losses are higher and you did not reject UIM in writing.
Is an Uber or Lyft driver covered by L&I if hurt while waiting for a ride request?
Not for injuries. L&I coverage applies only during dispatch platform time and passenger platform time. Since 2024, death benefits extend to a driver who dies while logged in and available, in or near the car, if no other coverage applies.
Can a rideshare driver get L&I benefits and also sue the driver who caused the crash?
Yes. RCW 51.24.030 lets an injured worker seek damages from a third party. L&I is repaid from that recovery for benefits it paid, under RCW 51.24.060.
What if I was partly at fault for the crash?
Washington uses pure comparative fault under RCW 4.22.005. Your share of fault lowers your award by that percentage but does not bar recovery.
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Related pages
Washington Uber and Lyft accident lawyer · Who pays if you are hurt in an Uber or Lyft accident in Texas? · Rideshare driver between rides: whose insurance applies? · Washington uninsured motorist lawyer · Comparative fault in California, Texas and Washington · Washington car accident statute of limitations
Sources
- RCW 46.72B.180, insurance for commercial transportation services (formerly RCW 48.177.010)
- RCW 48.177.005, definitions of commercial transportation services and prearranged ride
- RCW 46.29.090, minimum liability limits
- RCW 48.22.030, underinsured motorist coverage, written rejection, phantom vehicles
- RCW 48.22.085, PIP must be offered; written rejection
- RCW 48.22.095, minimum PIP benefits
- RCW 48.22.005, PIP definitions (insured, pedestrian, medical benefits)
- RCW 49.46.300, transportation network company drivers: dispatch and passenger platform time
- RCW 51.08.070, transportation network company as employer for workers’ compensation
- RCW 51.08.180, rideshare driver as worker for workers’ compensation
- RCW 51.16.250, workers’ compensation premiums for transportation network companies
- RCW 51.32.053, death benefits for rideshare drivers
- RCW 51.28.050, one-year deadline to file a workers’ compensation claim
- RCW 51.24.030, injured worker’s claim against a third party
- RCW 51.24.060, distribution of third-party recovery and L&I reimbursement
- RCW 4.22.005, effect of contributory fault
- RCW 4.16.080, three-year limitation period
- Washington L&I, workers’ compensation for transportation network company drivers
- Washington Legislature, final bill report on ESHB 2076 (2022)
Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Last reviewed: November 11, 2026.