We all know that driving for Uber is a very risky business. Probably at the top of the risk list is the insurance risk. If we’re involved in an accident we have to report it first to our personal insurance carrier. However, they will not cover you if you’re working for Uber. In fact, they’ll probably cancel your policy immediately. Then Uber’s insurance is supposed to kick in. However, you can’t drive for Uber without personal insurance! So if your personal coverage is cancelled, you’re not only out of insurance, you’re out of work. Oh, and it gets worse. Once you report your activities to your insurance company, it will make it nearly impossible to get personal coverage from any other company. And without insurance, you’re in violation of your state laws that require you to have insurance. Even if you don’t drive your car, you’re still required to have insurance. So all this means that if you’re involved in an accident while driving for Uber, you’re pretty much looking at having to sell your car and go car-less!skd255208sdcThen there are the risks that nobody foresees. For instance, on June 14th, I bought a new car. The last thing I was expecting were mechanical problems. But in less than two months, on August 13th, my car broke down. It simply wouldn’t start. I had to have it towed to the dealership. And after a few days the dealership told me they had no idea what was wrong with it or how to fix it! To make a very long story short, I’ll sum it up by saying, they had it for 31 days before they got it fixed. That meant I went 31 days with no Uber income. And it was totally unexpected. If Uber had been my sole source of income I would have been in BIG trouble!
Which brings up a good point that my friend Harry Campbell at The RideShare Guy has been making for a while now. Don’t rely on Uber as your sole source of income. You absolutely cannot do that. It’s a terribly risky move. There are just too many things that can go wrong, from getting into an accident to having a brand new car break down and out of service for over a month. If you’re the breadwinner for yourself or your family, you absolutely must have other sources of income.
Having a breakdown is just one of the many risks. There are others. Like the always present risk that Uber will again lower rates or that they’ll take on too many drivers resulting in a much lower income for you. So, please take my and Harry’s advice and make sure you have other sources of income.