Allstate has announced that, by the end of the year, it will be offering an optional “ride for hire” endorsement for qualifying transportation network company (“TNC”) drivers to provide coverage during the time they are logged into the TNC app looking for a new fare.
The company said that its endorsement would benefit customers who use their personal vehicles to drive for qualifying TNCs. Allstate said that it expects that, on average, an Allstate customer will pay roughly $15 to $20 each year for the added protection.
“The ride-hailing economy continues to grow and our products evolve with our customers' potential needs,” said Allstate Product Vice President Dave Border. “We want to help ensure our customers can more confidently participate as TNC drivers.”
Allstate said that this is how the new endorsement will work:
- Helps fill some of the gaps in coverage between Allstate's personal auto policy and the TNC's commercial coverage.
Some TNCs may provide their drivers liability coverage when they are logged into the app but have not been assigned a ride. Allstate's endorsement can help fill the gap that arises when a customer's personal auto policy liability coverage limits are greater than what's provided by the TNC. During this period, the endorsement also can help fill gaps that might arise under certain other coverages, such as collision, comprehensive, and uninsured/underinsured motorist.
The deductible associated with collision/comprehensive coverages provided by the TNC when drivers have a ride assigned to them or have a TNC passenger in the car is higher than what many customers carry on their personal auto policies (the TNC deductible generally starts at $1,000). Allstate's endorsement can help protect customers against these higher deductible costs when the TNC coverage deductible is higher than the driver's personal auto policy deductible.
- Allstate said that it initially plans to make the endorsement available in Colorado, Illinois, Texas, and Virginia, and that it will enter additional “major TNC markets” in 2016.
“We wanted to offer an innovative solution for our customers who drive for a TNC and we wanted to do it at the most competitive price possible,” Mr. Border said. “Our goal is to protect our customers and help them best use their hard-earned money to protect what matters most.”
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].