Covid changed our world, that goes without saying. Before covid, there were delivery services, sure. But not nearly as many delivery drivers. People who drive their own vehicle for places like Door Dash, Grub Hub, Uber Eats, etc have increased and are in higher demand than they were before covid. Because of this, insurance regulations had to also be adjusted as to where these driver's vehicles would be covered. If you supplement your income by becoming one of these delivery drivers, do you know if you're covered in the event of an accident?
Scary thought, huh? Nothing worse then ending up with a bill you didn't think you'd have to pay. Here are a few tips to think about before you start that delivery service. Make sure it's worth the risk before you jump right in.
Do not ever assume your personal auto insurance automatically provides coverage. Though there are some carriers that do permit delivery of food but it's usually only if they are employed by one eatery. But most carriers exclude coverage if you are using your personal car for any type of delivery service - food, person(s) or property (flowers for example) for which the driver is paid.
Call Your Insurance Agent! I can not express this enough. If you've read any of my other blogs, you should see this trend from me. I'm always encouraging you to call your agent before you assume you are covered. A delivery service might be able to be added to your policy, but it is not an automatic coverage. You have to let us know.
Check with your delivery app company. Find out what insurance requirements are before signing up. See if they offer coverage. But be careful here. Some delivery apps provide coverage if you have the food, product, ect. in your car but not the drive or from the restaurant. Also, in the event you do have a loss, some delivery companies will only "pay in excess". That means your own insurance policy will have to respond to a claim before their coverage kicks in.
Inquire about a commercial auto policy. Ask us about this as well. We might have to write a commercial policy to get the coverage you need.
So, before you start signing up and making deliveries, make sure you check in with your agent to see if you have any coverage. Don't get stick with a high out of pocket expense that you could possibly avoided. As always... Call Your Agent! We love talking to you anyway, so call us up!