Did the driver’s Missouri policy lapse, or was it only too low?
Missouri answers those two facts with two different rules. Section 379.1702.4 states both. They are not the same sentence.
If insurance the driver maintained under subsection 2 or 3 has lapsed, or does not provide the required coverage, the transportation network company’s insurance provides the coverage the section requires. It starts with the first dollar of a claim. It has the duty to defend that claim.
If the driver’s insurance does not exclude a loss while the driver is logged on, or while the driver provides a prearranged ride, but the limits are below subsection 2 or 3, the company maintains excess coverage. That excess sits beyond the driver’s limits, up to the limits the applicable subsection requires.
A policy that excludes the trip is the first sentence. A policy that covers the trip and is only short is the second sentence.
Subsection 5 is a separate point. Coverage under a policy the company maintains shall not depend on a personal insurer denying the claim first. A personal policy shall not be required to deny the claim first. That sentence does not turn the excess layer into primary coverage when the driver’s policy covers the use and is merely too low.
A separate brief, A St. Louis Lyft Driver Was Killed After a Ride Request. His Mother’s Case Can Go Forward., is not a reading of these limits.
Missouri & the Midwest
Which sentence in section 379.1702.4 applies?
| What is true of the driver’s insurance | What the company must maintain |
|---|---|
| It has lapsed, or it does not provide the coverage subsection 2 or 3 requires. | The coverage section 379.1702 requires, beginning with the first dollar of the claim, plus the duty to defend. |
| It does not exclude logged-on use or a prearranged ride, but the limits are below subsection 2 or 3. | Excess coverage beyond the driver’s policy limits, up to the limits in the applicable subsection. |
The first-dollar duty fills the statutory requirement. It does not raise uninsured-motorist coverage to $1 million. Section 379.1702 does not require the company to carry comprehensive or collision.
What coverage counts as “the required coverage”?
A prearranged ride begins when the driver accepts a request through the digital network. It continues while the driver transports a requesting rider. It ends when the last requesting rider departs from the personal vehicle. Section 379.1700. The drive to the pickup is already inside that period.
| When | Liability | Uninsured motorist |
|---|---|---|
| Logged on and available, not in a prearranged ride | Primary liability of at least $50,000 for death and bodily injury per person, $100,000 for death and bodily injury per incident, and $25,000 for property damage. Section 379.1702.2. The statute’s word for the $100,000 limit is “per incident.” | Not less than the limits in section 379.203. |
| From acceptance until the last requesting rider departs | Primary liability of at least $1 million for death, bodily injury, and property damage. Section 379.1702.3. The passenger does not have to be in the car for this liability amount to apply. | The same cross-reference. Acceptance does not raise it. |
Section 379.203 requires uninsured-motorist coverage for bodily injury or death in not less than the limits in section 303.030. Section 303.030.5, effective July 1, 2019, sets those bodily-injury limits at $25,000 because of bodily injury to or death of one person in any one accident and, subject to that limit, $50,000 because of bodily injury to or death of two or more persons in any one accident. The cross-reference picks up those bodily-injury limits. It does not pick up the $25,000 property-damage liability figure, and it does not become $1 million when liability does.
Section 379.1702 says “uninsured motorist.” It does not require underinsured-motorist coverage. Either period’s requirement may be met by the driver, by the company, or by a combination. Sections 379.1702.2(3) and 379.1702.3(3).
What does Uber’s current Missouri certificate print?
Farmers Insurance Exchange, NAIC 21652, issued the certificate for Rasier LLC and related Rasier entities. Each page is dated March 1, 2026. The policies run March 1, 2026 through March 1, 2027. Uber Missouri certificate.
- Certificate MO-UBER-RASIER-PERIOD1, policy 606715846, applies while the driver is logged into the Uber partner application, available to receive requests, and has not recorded acceptance. It prints $50,000 bodily injury per person, $100,000 bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 property damage. The form’s word is “per accident.” The statute’s word for that $100,000 liability limit is “per incident.”
- The same page says uninsured motorist / underinsured motorist coverage is included at $25,000 for death and bodily injury per person and $50,000 for death and bodily injury per accident.
- Certificate MO-UBER-RASIER-PERIOD2/3, policy 606715847, prints a $1,000,000 combined single limit. It applies after the driver has logged and recorded acceptance and is en route to the pickup or traveling to the final destination. The UM/UIM amount on that form stays $25,000 / $50,000.
- Certificate MO-UBER-RASIER-PD, policy 606715847PD, prints comprehensive and collision deductibles of $2,500. The limit is the lesser of actual cash value and the cost of repair. The remarks say that coverage applies only if, at the time of loss, the auto was insured for collision under a personal auto policy that includes the driver as an insured or the auto as a covered auto.
The printed label “UM / UIM” is what the certificate says. It is not a decision that the benefit is underinsured-motorist coverage, and it is not $1 million of uninsured-motorist coverage. A certificate is evidence of insurance. It is not the policy.
What does Lyft’s current Missouri certificate print?
Mobilitas Insurance Company, NAIC 16392, issued certificate SEA-004219087-07. The certificate is dated August 14, 2026. The policies run October 1, 2026 through October 1, 2027. The form says “Evidence of Insurance Only for the State of MO.” Lyft Missouri certificate. The certificate does not define Period 1, Period 2, or Period 3.
- Period 1, policy MOBA1T6624548270, prints bodily injury of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident, property damage of $25,000, and UM/UIM of $25,000 / $50,000.
- Period 2, policy MOBA2T6624548270, prints a $1,000,000 combined single limit. It is the only row that prints a $1 million liability limit.
- Period 3, policy MOBA3T6624548270, prints “APD Deductible: 2,500.” It does not print a liability dollar amount.
The remarks say policies for Period 2 and Period 3 include UM/UIM of $25,000 / $50,000. They say auto physical damage under those two periods is actual cash value or the cost of repair, whichever is less, less the $2,500 deductible. Those remarks do not say the physical damage is contingent on a personal collision policy.
The blank liability cell on Period 3 does not erase section 379.1702.3. The statute still requires at least $1 million for death, bodily injury, and property damage from acceptance until the last requesting rider departs. The current Period 3 row does not print that number. The policy, not this certificate summary, has to answer what Period 3’s liability limit is.
What decides lapse versus shortfall?
- The acceptance time. That is when the $1 million liability period begins, even if the rider is not yet in the car.
- The time the last requesting rider departed. That is when the statutory prearranged ride ends.
- Whether the driver’s policy had lapsed.
- Whether it excluded the loss while the driver was logged on or providing a prearranged ride. Exclusion is the first sentence of section 379.1702.4, not the excess sentence.
- If the policy covered that use, whether its limits were below subsection 2 or 3. That is the excess sentence.
- The certificate and the policy in force on the accident date. Uber’s form says it is information only. Lyft’s form says it is evidence of insurance only.
RideClaim.co is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
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A lapse and a shortfall are not the same coverage.
The first question is whether the driver’s policy had lapsed or failed to provide the required coverage, or whether it covered the trip and was only too low. A free review can line the app record up with the policy that was in force.