Ride-Sharing Startup Lyft Gets New Insurance After One Of Its Drivers Hit A Pedestrian

Flickr/lizasperling(No one in this picture has been involved in an accident.)

Ride-sharing startup Lyft recently rolled out a new set of insurance policies for its drivers amid concerns about safety.

Lyft is now extending its collision coverage for drivers who already have it on their personal policies, and adds coverage for injuries to drivers and passengers who get hit by uninsured or under-insured motorists.

Here's what the excess coverage includes:

• Collision ($2,500 deductible and $50,000 maximum applicable to drivers who have purchased collision coverage on their personal policy)
• Uninsured motorists ($1 million limit covering drivers if they are hit by an uninsured motorist that is at fault)
• Underinsured motorists ($1 million limit covering drivers if they are hit by an underinsured motorist that is at fault)

The peer-to-peer ride-sharing industry has faced increased scrutiny lately. Part of that is because both Lyft and Uber drivers have recently been involved in accidents.

On New Year's Eve, an Uber driver was involved in a traffic fatality. Uber says the driver didn't have a passenger in the car at the time and was not logged into the Uber system.

Also last month, a Lyft driver hit a pedestrian while a passenger was in the car. Lyft deactivated the driver from its system and is investigating the incident.

In addition to updating its insurance policies, Lyft also joined the Peer-to-Peer Rideshare Insurance Coalition with the California Public Utilities Commission and insurance companies to further explore the best practices for ride-sharing.