To file an Uber claim after a crash, a driver opens the Uber app, taps the blue shield icon on the map to open the Safety Toolkit, and selects “Report a crash.” Passengers and other motorists who were not driving file through Uber’s online portal at inquiries.uber.com. Which coverage pays, and how much, depends on what the driver was doing on the app at the moment of impact.
Filing as an Uber Driver
The fastest route is the driver app itself. Uber’s help pages lay out four steps:
- Tap the blue shield icon in the bottom-left corner of the map to open the Safety Toolkit.
- Select “Report a crash.”
- Describe what happened. Stick to facts: the direction you were traveling, what the other vehicle did, where the impact occurred. Leave out speculation about who was at fault.
- Submit your claim.
Uber’s claims support team then reaches out to confirm everyone is safe and to collect any additional information. They also report the crash to the insurance coverage provider in your state, so you generally do not need to contact your personal auto insurer unless your personal policy has a rideshare endorsement that requires it.
If you prefer not to use the app, you can report through the Help section of the Uber website or call the Safety Incident Reporting Line, accessible under the “Safety” option in your app’s Help menu. Uber asks that you complete the report as soon as it is reasonably possible after the crash.
Filing as a Passenger or Third Party
Passengers and other motorists who were not driving for Uber file through a separate online form at inquiries.uber.com. The portal asks for basic details: the date, approximate time, location, and parties involved. Uber’s own help page directs third parties to that portal and encourages riders and drivers to report through the app when they can.
If you were a passenger during the crash, Uber’s $1,000,000 liability policy covers you as a direct beneficiary. You have the right to choose your own doctors and treatment plan; neither Uber nor its insurer can steer you to specific providers. You also have no obligation to give a recorded statement to the insurance company. Think carefully before agreeing to one without legal advice, since adjusters routinely use those recordings to minimize the value of claims.
What to Collect at the Scene
The information you gather in the first few minutes forms the backbone of your claim. Uber’s guidance sets the priority: make sure everyone is safe, call police and paramedics if there are injuries or damage, and save the police report number.
Take photos of all vehicle damage, the accident location, road conditions, and any relevant traffic signs. Get the name, phone number, and insurance details of every other driver involved. Write down or photograph each vehicle’s license plate, make, and model. If your car has a dashcam, preserve that footage immediately. Adjusters treat dashcam video as some of the strongest evidence available because it shows the moments leading up to impact without relying on anyone’s memory.
Even when local law doesn’t require a report for minor fender-benders, having one on file strengthens your claim. Officers document the scene, note weather and road conditions, and sometimes assign preliminary fault — details an adjuster will rely on. You can usually obtain a copy of the report from the responding department within a few days for a small fee, typically between $5 and $20.
Which Uber Coverage Pays
Uber divides its insurance into three periods tied to the driver’s status on the app. The period you were in when the crash happened determines which policy responds and how much it pays.
- Period 1, app on, no ride request. While the driver is logged in and waiting, Uber provides liability coverage of $50,000 per person for injuries, $100,000 per accident for injuries, and $25,000 for property damage. No collision or comprehensive coverage applies.
- Period 2, en route to a pickup. Once the driver accepts a trip request and starts heading to the rider, Uber’s liability coverage jumps to at least $1,000,000 for injuries and property damage. Contingent comprehensive and collision coverage also kicks in, covering the vehicle up to its actual cash value with a $2,500 deductible.
- Period 3, rider in the vehicle. The $1,000,000 liability and contingent collision coverage from Period 2 remain active through drop-off.
The contingent collision coverage in Periods 2 and 3 only applies if you already carry comprehensive and collision on your personal auto policy. If your personal policy lacks those coverages, Uber’s contingent layer has nothing to sit on top of, and you would be responsible for your own vehicle’s repair costs. This catches more drivers off guard than almost any other part of the process. Before you drive for Uber, confirm your personal policy includes both comprehensive and collision, and consider whether a rideshare endorsement from your personal insurer makes sense for Period 1, where Uber provides no collision protection at all.
The $2,500 deductible applies per incident, not per year. Multiple crashes mean multiple deductibles.
Medical and Injury Coverage
Beyond liability and collision, Uber may carry additional medical coverages depending on state law. In states that require it, Uber maintains Personal Injury Protection that covers medical expenses and lost wages for the driver and riders regardless of fault. In other states, Uber provides Medical Payments coverage that works similarly, paying medical bills without a fault determination.
Some states also require substantial uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage for rideshare trips. New York requires $1.25 million in UM/UIM coverage, and New Jersey requires $1.5 million. A handful of other states and Portland, Oregon mandate $1 million or more.
Uber also offers drivers, in most states, an optional injury protection product underwritten by Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company and purchased through the app. Claims under that optional plan go directly to Atlantic Specialty at 1-844-747-6221, not through the standard Uber claims channel.
After You Submit
Once your claim is in, Uber routes it to the insurance coverage provider operating in your state. You will receive a claim number that becomes your reference for all follow-up communication. An adjuster assigned to your case will contact you to take a more detailed statement, review your documentation, and possibly ask you to bring your vehicle to a specific inspection site so repair estimates can be verified against the actual damage.
Settlement timelines vary. Straightforward property-damage claims with clear fault and good documentation can resolve in a matter of weeks. Claims involving bodily injury, disputed fault, or multiple parties routinely take several months and sometimes stretch past a year. The most common reason for delays is incomplete documentation: a missing police report number, photos that don’t clearly show the damage, or a slow response when the adjuster asks for more information. Check your email regularly after filing and respond to every request quickly.
If Your Claim Is Denied
Denials happen. The most frequent reasons involve disputes over which coverage period applied at the time of the crash, gaps in personal insurance that prevent Uber’s contingent coverage from activating, or late reporting. If your claim is denied:
- Request a written explanation. Ask the insurer to specify the exact policy provision or exclusion they are relying on. A vague letter that says only “coverage does not apply” is not sufficient; most state insurance regulations require specific grounds.
- Review the period classification. If the denial hinges on the driver’s app status, request the GPS and trip data from Uber. That data shows precisely when the driver was online, when a trip was accepted, and when a passenger was in the vehicle. Disputes over which period applied are among the most common grounds for reversal.
- File a complaint with your state insurance department. Every state has a department that investigates unfair claims practices. Filing is free and creates an official record that can pressure the insurer to reconsider.
- Consult an attorney. For significant bodily injury claims, an attorney experienced in rideshare accidents can subpoena app data, challenge period classifications, and pursue bad-faith claims against the insurer if the denial was unreasonable.
The statute of limitations for personal injury claims continues to run while you dispute a denial. In most states, you have two to three years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit, but waiting until the last minute leaves no room for error. Treat a denial as urgent.
Tax Treatment of a Settlement
How the IRS treats your settlement depends on what the money replaces. Damages received on account of personal physical injuries or physical sickness are excluded from gross income under federal tax law. That exclusion covers the full amount, including any portion allocated to lost wages, as long as the underlying claim is for physical injury.
Property damage payouts that simply restore your vehicle to its pre-crash condition are generally not taxable because they reimburse a loss rather than produce a gain. If the insurance payout exceeds your adjusted basis in the vehicle (roughly what you paid minus depreciation), the excess could be taxable.
Punitive damages are almost always taxable. Settlements for emotional distress unrelated to a physical injury are also included in gross income, except to the extent they reimburse medical expenses you actually paid to treat that emotional distress. When a settlement bundles multiple types of damages, the allocation in the written agreement matters. A clearly worded agreement that separates physical-injury compensation from other categories protects the tax exclusion for the physical-injury portion.