How Collisions That Involve Food Delivery Business Vehicles Work
Collision When Operating A Personal Vehicle For Work Food delivery automobile drivers can establish their work plan, plus they do not need to handle passengers entering their personal cars and have fast payment turnaround time. This is why businesses such as GrubHub, PostMates, Uber Eats, and DoorDash appear as attractive employer options to drivers. These potential benefits apply to food distribution vehicle operators, just as they do in the case of ride-sharing businesses.
Between 2014 and 2016, orders and delivery through digital platforms increased 300% faster as compared to in-restaurant footfall. Furthermore, the internet-based food delivery sector is expected to be worth $200 billion in five years from 2020. A couple of years ago, 35% of American internet consumers who were aged below 35 years ordered food items from restaurants often.
The quick growth of food distribution businesses is a good thing with regard to customer convenience. Anyhow, with an increase in the food distribution vehicle count in the city of Los Angeles, comes the possibility of more collisions.
A driver who works for businesses such as DoorDash and PostMates requires a commercial automobile policy since food delivery involves using a vehicle for business purposes, not a personal one. Unfortunately, almost every company lets drivers start working by presenting only their personal insurance, yet fail to tell drivers that they would not be legally responsible for compensation should a collision occur.
The best-known food distribution service providers in LA are DoorDash, Postmates, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Insurance policies available for their drivers vary by the coverage amounts set aside in the policies for damages occurring due to delivery vehicle collisions.
Food delivery automobile operators are paid on a per-delivery basis and they are deemed independent contractors, so they are likely to:
- Speed
- Disregard legislation concerning rights of way
- Change lanes carelessly
- Try to deliver products when they are jaded
- Operate the vehicle when distracted
Our team of lawyer will now look at the various options which food delivery businesses provide for vehicle operators in the case of accidents.
A statement on the PostMates site reads thus: “Property damage sustained to your property in an accident is [the driver’s] responsibility and should be addressed by your personal insurance carrier.” PostMates has excess liability coverage of $1 million for third-party accident claims, which would be used only when their driver’s personal automobile insurance coverage becomes exhausted. The Occupational Accident Insurance that PostMates introduced lately will pay for lost income and medical bills as far as the limits in the policy.
The company would bear just the damages in the case the accident occurred when their vehicle operator was actively delivering food. This means when it happens with the driver not signed into PostMates’ application or not accepted a request for delivery, their automobile policy would come into force.
The company necessitates their vehicle operators “to maintain [their] own insurance, in the amounts and of types required by law which includes, but is not limited to, an auto insurance policy. If [they] fail to maintain [their] own insurance, DoorDash’s coverage may not apply.” Excess automobile insurance is available for them, but just for body-related injuries or property damage of third-parties involved in the collision. Should a crash occur, the vehicle operator’s automobile policy would act in the form of the main coverage.
That contingent liability insurance policy would apply only in the case the vehicle operator was holding the item that the customer ordered. This means it would not apply should they were heading to the US restaurant to collect the food item. Every American DoorDash driver has been entitled to have the occupational accident coverage for free since June 2019.
GrubHub
The company lacks any liability insurance for their vehicle operators. Therefore, should you collide with another vehicle when serving as GrubHub’s delivery driver, you would be fully responsible for the resulting damages under any circumstance. It is one of the reasons why having proper coverage matters for you, particularly when delivering food items for the company.
This company’s vehicle operators are protected from payment liability from the time they accept a delivery plea to when they finish it. If they enter a collision when Uber Eats’ application is enabled and they are about to collect or distribute food, the following would come into force.
- $50,000 per person
- $100,000 for each accident
- $25,000 for the accident-induced property damage
In the commercial automobile insurance policy of Uber, there is a provision to provide $1 million as liability coverage for each collision. The coverage that Uber Eats gives would pay for damages, should an accident happen when drivers are actively delivering food.
It is easy for both property damages and injury-related losses to occur as a consequence of food delivery automobile accidents. Therefore, food delivery auto drivers must confirm that they are insured correctly against possible collisions. Not having proper insurance is likely to burden them with the responsibility of paying compensation for both property damage and injuries.
Food delivery collision claims could just be complex, particularly if these involve drivers categorized as not workers but independent contractors. In these situations, drivers would not be responsible for negligence.
When you are hurt because of another person’s negligent action, you are likely to have the legal right to monetary compensation for those losses that you incurred. The concerned court determines damages to aid in compensating the plaintiff for whatever injuries or losses they suffer due to somebody else’s negligence. There are two forms of damages: ‘non-monetary’ and ‘monetary’.
Non-monetary damages are meant to pay for the losses regarded as subjective. Also referred to as ‘pain and suffering’, these damages cannot be measured in quantifiable terms. Monetary damages are designed for compensating the party for their losses, plus these are calculable and quantifiable. In other words, the damages can be expressed as an amount, which is calculable by finding what the plaintiff has or is likely to have as losses, due to their injuries. There are also exemplary damages, granted in just those cases where the behavior of defendants is particularly harmful.
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Have you been through a collision with any food delivery business vehicle? If yes, contact us today! Our expert food delivery lawyers will help you get the maximum financial compensation for economic and non-economic losses you incurred for your injury, which includes the cost of medical bills, lost wages, and property damage.
Call us at (310) 598-8485 or email us at info@ridesharesaccidents.com and schedule a free consultation with our experienced legal team.
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