Rideshare Insurance in Washington State: What's Required When the App Is Off, On and Mid-Ride

$1,000,000. That's the liability limit Washington law requires from the moment a rideshare driver accepts a trip until the passenger gets out. Back up one step, to the stretch where the app is on and you're waiting for a ping, and the required limits drop to $50,000/$100,000/$30,000. Back up one more step, app off, and you're on your own personal policy like anyone else.

The rules live in RCW 46.72B.180. If you've seen "chapter 48.177 RCW" quoted elsewhere, that's where the law sat until 2022, when the Legislature moved the insurance section into the transportation network company (TNC) chapter. Chapter 48.177 now holds only the definitions, in RCW 48.177.005.

Source: RCW 46.72B.180 and 48.177.005 (app.leg.wa.gov), accessed Oct. 29, 2026; RCW 46.29.090 and 46.30.020.

Coverage by app status

The statute doesn't use the industry's "Period 0, 1, 2, 3" shorthand. It works off two definitions in RCW 48.177.005:

• Commercial transportation services: all the time a driver is logged in to the app, or until the passenger has left the car, whichever is later.
• Prearranged ride: begins when the driver accepts a ride request in the app, continues while the passenger is transported, and ends when the passenger leaves the car.

So the clock that matters isn't "is someone in my back seat." It's "did I accept a request." The drive to the pickup is already part of the prearranged ride. RCW 46.72B.180(1) by phase:

CSL = combined single limit. Source: RCW 46.72B.180 and 48.177.005 (app.leg.wa.gov), accessed Oct. 29, 2026; RCW 46.29.090, 46.30.020, 48.22.030, 48.22.085.

Two things stand out. First, while you're logged in and circling Capitol Hill or Sea-Tac waiting for a ping, the required limits sit only modestly above the personal-auto floor. Second, the underinsured motorist requirement in subsection (1)(b)(iii) is tied to the passenger: it runs "from the moment a passenger enters the transportation network company vehicle of a driver until the passenger exits." The list for the accepted-ride period in (1)(b)(ii) names the $1,000,000 liability and PIP, not UIM. What the TNC's policy actually provides on the way to a pickup is a question for that policy's wording, not something I can answer from the statute.

• Personal auto minimum (RCW 46.29.090)
• App on, no ride accepted (RCW 46.72B.180)

0$50K$100K$150K

Injury/personInjury/accidentProperty

Source: RCW 46.29.090, 46.30.020 and 46.72B.180(1)(b)(i), accessed Oct. 29, 2026

Show the numbers

	Personal auto minimum (RCW 46.29.090)	App on, no ride accepted (RCW 46.72B.180)
Injury/person	$25K	$50K
Injury/accident	$50K	$100K
Property	$10K	$30K

The waiting-phase limits are double the personal minimum for bodily injury and triple for property damage. The $1,000,000 figure is one combined pot, so it's not on that chart. For the personal-auto side, the details are in Washington car insurance requirements.

Who has to buy the TNC policy

By default, the rideshare company. RCW 46.72B.180(1)(a) says the TNC "must secure this policy for every personal vehicle used to provide commercial transportation services," and it defines the required policy as a primary policy that is not a private passenger auto policy.

The law leaves room for other arrangements:

• The driver can buy it. Under subsection (2)(a), a driver may carry a primary policy with the same coverage from an admitted or surplus lines insurer. It can take the form of a rider or endorsement on the driver's personal policy, but only if the OIC has approved it as such.
• Or a mix. Subsection (2)(c) allows the TNC, the driver, or a combination of both to put the coverage in place.
• The TNC is the backstop. If the driver's policy doesn't respond "for any reason, including that the policy lapsed or did not exist," the TNC has to provide the required coverage "beginning with the first dollar of a claim" (2)(b).
• Proof before your first trip. The TNC must give you written proof that you're covered by a qualifying primary policy before you drive, or verify the policy you bought yourself (4).

Keep that written proof. After a crash while logged in, it tells you which insurer to call.

What your personal policy can exclude

This is the part to read twice. Subsection (6) lets any insurer writing auto coverage in Washington exclude "any and all coverage" on a personal policy for losses while you're logged in to a TNC app or giving a prearranged ride. The statute lists what that can include:

Source: RCW 46.72B.180 and 48.177.005 (app.leg.wa.gov), accessed Oct. 29, 2026.

Three more subsections round this out:

• No duty to step in. Subsection (7) says nothing requires a personal policy to provide primary or excess coverage, or to defend you, while you're logged in, on a ride, or otherwise using the car "to transport passengers for compensation."
• The old for-hire exclusion still stands. Subsection (8) says the law doesn't invalidate or limit an exclusion for vehicles "used to carry persons or property for a charge or available for hire by the public," including in any policy in use or approved for use in Washington before July 24, 2015. That's the livery or for-hire language you'll find in many personal policies, and note it says persons or property.
• Your personal-use claims are protected. Subsection (13): after July 1, 2016, an insurer may not deny an otherwise covered claim from purely personal use "solely on the basis that" you drove for a TNC at other times. Driving for an app on weekends doesn't, by itself, void coverage for your Tuesday grocery run.

The gap people miss: damage to your own car

Read subsection (1) again and look at what it requires: liability, PIP, underinsured motorist. Comprehensive and collision, the coverages that fix your car, aren't on the required list. They appear only in subsection (14), which says that if a TNC's insurer pays a comprehensive or collision claim, the money goes to the repair shop or jointly to you and your lienholder.

Put that next to subsection (6)(e) and (f), which let your personal insurer exclude comprehensive and collision while you're logged in. The possible result: you're waiting for a request, someone backs into you in a parking lot, and neither the law's required TNC coverage nor your personal policy is obligated to fix your bumper. It depends on the TNC policy and your personal policy's rideshare wording.

If you finance or lease your car, this matters twice. Check your loan or lease contract for its insurance requirements, and remember the TNC disclosure tells you to notify the lienholder about rideshare use. Ask the TNC (in writing) whether its policy includes comprehensive and collision during each phase, and what deductible applies. Then ask your agent whether your personal policy has a rideshare endorsement available that fills the gap.

PIP and underinsured motorist coverage on the TNC policy

Washington doesn't require drivers to buy PIP or UIM on a personal policy. It requires insurers to offer them, and a named insured can reject them in writing (RCW 48.22.085 for PIP, RCW 48.22.030 for UIM). I walked through both in PIP in Washington State and uninsured motorist coverage in Washington.

The TNC law borrows those same rules. For the logged-in and ride periods, the required TNC policy must include PIP "to the extent required under RCW 48.22.085 and 48.22.095." The minimum PIP package in RCW 48.22.095 is $10,000 for medical and hospital bills, a $2,000 funeral benefit, $10,000 of income continuation at up to $200 a week, and $5,000 for loss of services at up to $200 a week.

Source: RCW 48.22.095 and RCW 46.72B.180(1)(b), accessed Oct. 29, 2026.

Subsection (9) adds two things: the rideshare exclusion applies to PIP and UIM whatever you selected on your personal policy, and a rideshare rider doesn't need its own PIP or UIM rejection form. Read the endorsement's PIP and UIM terms; don't assume your personal elections carry over.

If you're the driver and you're hurt by an at-fault driver with too little coverage, which UIM applies to you depends on the TNC policy wording and whether your personal policy excluded it.

Food and package delivery is a different situation

RCW 46.72B.180 is built on passenger definitions. A "commercial transportation services provider" in RCW 48.177.005 is a company that connects passengers to drivers for a prearranged ride, and a prearranged ride is a route "chosen by the passenger." I didn't find a Washington statute that sets insurance minimums for delivering food or packages in your personal car. If you deliver through an app, the rideshare law above isn't what tells you how you're covered; the app's own insurance terms and your personal policy are.

The OIC's gig workers and delivery drivers page is blunt: "Most personal auto and homeowner insurance policies sold in Washington state don't cover losses that occur during shared economy activities such as gig work. Many policies have specific language that states they won't cover those losses." The OIC also notes, on its volunteer and home-care driving page, that many policies "do not automatically include coverage for paid ride share or food delivery services," and that some insurers offer an endorsement for it.

Source: RCW 46.72B.180, 48.177.005; Washington OIC gig workers and volunteer driving pages; L&I TNC driver workers' compensation fact sheet (Sept. 2022), accessed Oct. 29, 2026.

If you do both rides and deliveries, ask about each activity by name. A rideshare endorsement may say nothing about delivery.

Workers' comp for rideshare drivers

Washington's 2022 TNC driver law (Engrossed Substitute House Bill 2076) added a second layer. According to the Department of Labor & Industries, starting Jan. 1, 2023, TNCs must provide workers' compensation coverage for their drivers. The catch is timing. RCW 51.08.180(2) treats a driver as a "worker" under the workers' comp title "only while the driver is engaged in passenger platform time and dispatch platform time," and RCW 51.08.070(2) mirrors that for the company.

Those two terms come from RCW 49.46.300: dispatch platform time is the drive from where you accepted the trip to the pickup point, and passenger platform time is while you're transporting a passenger. Time spent logged in and waiting is not on that list.

Source: RCW 46.72B.180, 51.08.070, 51.08.180, 49.46.300; Washington L&I TNC driver workers' compensation fact sheet (Sept. 2022), accessed Oct. 29, 2026.

L&I lists possible benefits as medical care related to the injury, potential partial wage replacement, return-to-work help, and disability or pension payments for severe injuries. If you're hurt during dispatch or passenger time, L&I says to get medical help, tell the TNC, and file at 1-877-561-FILE (3453) or Lni.wa.gov/FileFast. Ask L&I and the auto insurer how the two benefits interact.

Two apps at once, and proving which phase you were in

If you run more than one app, subsection (10) decides which policy responds:

• If you've been matched with a passenger (heading to pickup or carrying them), the TNC that matched you provides the coverage.
• If you're logged in to more than one TNC and not matched yet, liability is "divided equally among all of the applicable insurance policies" that specifically cover TNC driving.

Every one of these rules turns on timestamps, and subsection (11) gives you a way to get them. In a claim investigation, the TNC or its insurer has to provide, within 10 business days of a request, its electronic record of the precise times you logged on and off on the day of the accident. It has to keep accident and coverage records for at least the applicable statute of limitations plus two years.

After any crash with an app open, note which apps were on, whether you'd accepted a trip and whether anyone was in the car, and tell every insurer involved.

What to check and what to ask

1. Find the TNC's written proof of insurance. The law requires it before your first trip (RCW 46.72B.180(4)). Note the insurer, the limits for each phase, and whether comprehensive and collision are included, with what deductible.
2. Pull your personal declarations page and policy. Look for an endorsement that mentions ridesharing, transportation network companies, or "for-hire" or "livery" use. If you see none, ask your agent whether the policy excludes app driving and when.
3. Ask about the waiting phase specifically. Limits are lowest there and physical damage coverage isn't required. Ask whether a rideshare endorsement covers it, in writing.
4. If you deliver, ask separately. Name the activity. "I deliver food through an app in my own car" gets you a more useful answer than "I do gig work."
5. Tell your lender. The TNC disclosure says to notify your lienholder about rideshare use.
6. Keep your PIP and UIM elections in mind. They protect you off the app. If you rejected either in writing years ago, that choice carries into renewals until it's requested back in writing.

If you want help reading your policy or comparing what a rideshare endorsement adds, start with my Washington auto insurance page or the Washington insurance FAQ. If an insurer denies a claim and you think the exclusion was applied wrong, the OIC's Consumer Advocacy line is 800-562-6900 (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday).

FAQ

Does my personal car insurance cover rideshare driving in Washington?

Not necessarily. RCW 46.72B.180(6) lets insurers exclude all personal auto coverage, including liability, PIP, underinsured motorist, comprehensive and collision, while you are logged in to a rideshare app or giving a prearranged ride.

What insurance is required for rideshare drivers in Washington State?

While logged in and waiting for a request, a primary TNC policy must carry at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident for bodily injury and $30,000 for property damage. From ride acceptance until the passenger exits, it must carry a $1,000,000 combined single limit, plus PIP, and $100,000/$300,000 underinsured motorist coverage while a passenger is in the car.

Who pays for rideshare insurance in Washington, the driver or the company?

The rideshare company must secure the primary policy by default. A driver may buy an equivalent primary policy, including an OIC-approved rider on a personal policy, or the two can combine coverage. If the driver's policy fails for any reason, the company must provide the coverage from the first dollar.

Does the Washington rideshare insurance law cover food delivery drivers?

RCW 46.72B.180 is written around passengers and prearranged rides. For food or package delivery, coverage depends on the app's insurance terms and your own policy, and the OIC says most personal auto policies sold in Washington don't cover gig work losses.

Do rideshare drivers get workers' comp in Washington?

Yes, since Jan. 1, 2023, but only during dispatch platform time (driving to a pickup) and passenger platform time (transporting a passenger), not while logged in and waiting.

Your own policy wording, the rideshare company's policy and Washington law control how any claim is paid. Confirm your situation with a licensed agent, the Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner, or, for legal questions, an attorney.

Sources

1. RCW 46.72B.180, insurance that covers commercial transportation services
2. RCW 48.177.005, commercial transportation services definitions
3. RCW 46.29.090, minimum liability limits
4. RCW 46.30.020, mandatory liability insurance
5. RCW 48.22.030, underinsured motorist coverage
6. RCW 48.22.085, PIP must be offered; written rejection
7. RCW 48.22.095, minimum PIP coverage
8. RCW 49.46.300, TNC driver definitions (dispatch and passenger platform time)
9. RCW 51.08.070, employer definition (TNCs)
10. RCW 51.08.180, worker definition (TNC drivers)
11. Washington OIC: Gig workers and delivery drivers
12. Washington OIC: Auto coverage for home health care workers and volunteers
13. Washington OIC: Mandatory auto insurance law
14. Washington L&I: Workers' compensation information for TNC drivers (Sept. 2022)