Texas Uber & Lyft Rideshare Accident Law: Insurance Code Chapter 1954 & Period 1–3 Coverage

Overview of Texas Law & Liability Framework

Rideshare collisions involving Uber and Lyft in Texas are governed by Texas Insurance Code Chapter 1954 and Texas Occupations Code Chapter 2402, which create a three-tiered commercial insurance framework ($50k/$100k/$25k vs. $1,000,000) based on the driver's exact app status at the second of impact.

Key Texas Statutory Rules & Liability Standards

• Period 0 (App Off): When a rideshare driver is offline, only their personal Texas auto policy (minimum 30/60/25 under Transp. Code § 601.072) applies.
• Period 1 (App On, Waiting for a Ride Request — Tex. Ins. Code § 1954.052): Once the driver logs into the digital network but has not yet accepted a ride, Chapter 1954 mandates primary liability coverage of at least $50,000 per person for bodily injury, $100,000 per incident for bodily injury, and $25,000 for property damage, plus statutory Texas PIP and UM/UIM unless rejected in writing.
• Periods 2 & 3 (Ride Accepted / En Route to Pickup OR Passenger in Vehicle — Tex. Ins. Code § 1954.053): From the moment a driver accepts a ride request through the moment the passenger exits the vehicle, Chapter 1954 mandates at least $1,000,000 in combined single-limit primary liability coverage for death, bodily injury, and property damage.
• Independent Contractor Shield (Tex. Occ. Code § 2402.114): Under Texas Occupations Code § 2402.114, a TNC driver is statutorily deemed an independent contractor—not an employee of Uber or Lyft—if the TNC does not prescribe specific work hours, does not prohibit working for other TNCs, and complies with statutory requirements, making the $1,000,000 § 1954.053 policy the primary target in most crashes.

Texas Court Procedure, Crash Reporting & Evidentiary Deadlines

Because personal auto insurers are expressly authorized by Tex. Ins. Code § 1954.101 to exclude coverage whenever a driver is logged into a TNC app, obtaining the TNC's server-side GPS and session-state logs showing whether the driver was in Period 1, Period 2, or Period 3 is the decisive threshold step.

Compensatory & Exemplary Damages Available Under Texas Law

Up to $1,000,000 in primary commercial liability coverage during Periods 2 and 3 (or $50k/$100k/$25k in Period 1) for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, impairment, and disfigurement.