A rideshare ride on I-85, at a busy downtown intersection, or on the roads leading into Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport can turn into a serious accident, leaving passengers, drivers, pedestrians, or cyclists injured and unsure what to do next.
Uber and Lyft crashes are not always handled like ordinary car accidents. The available insurance may depend on what the rideshare driver was doing in the app when the collision occurred, making the details of the trip especially important. Knowing where to look for coverage and what evidence to preserve can make a real difference when you're trying to recover from an injury.
The Arndt Law Firm represents people injured in rideshare crashes across Greenville and Greenville County, helping victims pursue the compensation available to them. You may contact us at (843) 310-4645 to schedule a free consultation.
The key feature of a rideshare accident claim is that the available insurance coverage depends on what the driver was doing at the time of the crash. Transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft operate under a framework set out in South Carolina law at Title 58, Chapter 23, that divides a driver's activity into phases, each with different coverage. Which phase applies is the first important question in a rideshare claim.
In the first phase, the app is off and the driver is using the vehicle for personal purposes. In this situation, the rideshare company's insurance does not apply, and the driver's own personal auto policy is the relevant coverage, as in an ordinary car accident. The driver is not engaged in rideshare activity at that moment, so the special framework does not come into play, and the claim proceeds as a standard auto claim against the driver's personal insurance.
The second and third phases are where the rideshare framework provides additional coverage. In the second phase, the app is on and the driver is waiting for a ride request but has not yet accepted one. During this phase, a contingent level of coverage applies, generally including liability coverage at lower limits than the full driving phase.
In the third phase, the driver has accepted a ride and is on the way to pick up the passenger or has the passenger in the vehicle, and the highest level of coverage applies, generally a substantial liability policy.
Under S.C. Code § 58-23-1630, coverage while awaiting a request is at least $50,000/$100,000/$50,000, rising to at least $1,000,000 once a ride is accepted or a passenger is aboard. The driver’s phase at the time of the crash determines which insurance coverage applies and how much is available, making it a critical factor in any rideshare claim.
The phased structure exists because rideshare driving blurs the line between personal and commercial use of a vehicle. A personal auto policy generally excludes commercial activity, and a driver carrying passengers for payment is engaged in commercial activity, so without a special framework, there would be a gap in coverage.
The phased system fills that gap by specifying what coverage applies at each stage of rideshare activity, but in doing so, it creates the complexity that makes these claims different from ordinary car accident cases. The practical consequence is that the same crash can have very different coverage depending on a fact that is not visible at the scene: what the driver was doing on the app.
A driver waiting for a request and a driver carrying a passenger may look identical from outside the vehicle, but the coverage available to someone injured in a crash differs substantially between those two situations. This is why determining the phase is not a technicality but often the central question that determines what a claim can recover, and why it deserves attention from the very first steps of the claim.
The rideshare company’s own data determines the driver’s phase by recording the driver’s status at the time of the crash. The app data shows whether the app was off, on and waiting, or engaged with an accepted ride at the time of the crash, and this record is the definitive evidence of which phase applied.
The rideshare company controls this data, which is important to establish coverage. A formal request to obtain and preserve it is therefore a critical early step in a rideshare claim. The timestamps in the company's records resolve the phase question, and securing them protects the claim from a dispute about which coverage applies.
The importance of this data is hard to overstate, because the phase determination can change the available coverage by a wide margin, and the only authoritative record of the phase is held by the rideshare company. A driver or a company with an incentive to minimize what is paid might characterize the driver's status in a way that points to lower coverage, and without the underlying data, an injured person has no way to contest that characterization.
Obtaining the actual records, with their timestamps showing the driver's status at the precise moment of the crash, removes the ambiguity and establishes the phase as a matter of record rather than assertion. This is why a formal, prompt request to preserve and produce the trip data is among the first steps in a serious rideshare claim, taken before the question of coverage can become a contested matter of competing accounts.
A rideshare crash can injure several different people, and the phase analysis applies to each, though their situations differ. The passenger in the rideshare vehicle is in the strongest position in many respects, because a passenger is almost never at fault for a crash and, when the driver was engaged with an accepted ride, the highest level of coverage generally applies.
A passenger injured in a rideshare crash can pursue a claim against whichever driver was at fault, with the rideshare coverage available when the rideshare driver was in the active phase.
People in other vehicles struck by a rideshare driver form another group. When a rideshare driver causes a crash that injures the occupants of another vehicle, those injured people can pursue a claim, with the available coverage depending on the rideshare driver's phase at the time.
If the rideshare driver was carrying a passenger or on the way to one, the higher coverage applies; if merely waiting for a request, the contingent coverage applies; and if the app was off, only the driver's personal policy is available.
Pedestrians and cyclists struck by a rideshare driver are a third group, and the same phase analysis governs their claims. Whoever is injured, the analysis returns to the same question: what the rideshare driver was doing at the moment of the crash, because that determines coverage.
A rideshare crash can involve passengers, other drivers and their passengers, and vulnerable road users, all of whom may have different paths to recovery and different available coverage based on the driver’s phase. For an injured passenger, both the rideshare driver and another driver may share responsibility, so pursuing claims against both can be important to securing a full recovery.
The passenger's position warrants a closer look, because passengers are usually the most sympathetic and best-protected claimants in a rideshare crash. A passenger entrusted their safety to the rideshare driver and had no control over how either vehicle was operated, so a passenger is almost never assigned fault.
When the rideshare driver caused the crash during the active phase, substantial rideshare coverage is available to the passenger, and when a third driver caused it, the passenger can pursue that driver and seek the rideshare company's uninsured and underinsured coverage if the third driver's insurance is inadequate.
A passenger injured in a rideshare crash may have more than one avenue of recovery. Identifying each one based on the driver’s phase helps ensure that the passenger does not rely on a single inadequate source of coverage.
You can recover damages as long as your own fault is 50% or less, under South Carolina's modified comparative negligence rule established by the S.C. Supreme Court in Nelson v. Concrete Supply Co., 303 S.C. 243, 399 S.E.2d 783 (1991).
Not every rideshare crash is caused by the rideshare driver, and when another driver is at fault, the analysis shifts. A passenger injured because a third driver caused the crash has a claim against that at-fault driver's insurance, and if that driver was uninsured or underinsured, the rideshare company's uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage may apply during the active phases, providing protection to the passenger when the at-fault third party's coverage falls short.
This interaction between the at-fault driver's coverage and the rideshare company's coverage is one of the more valuable protections for an injured rideshare passenger. A passenger has no control over either driver, and when the at-fault driver carries too little insurance, the rideshare company's uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage during the active phase can fill the gap, which is significant given that the rideshare coverage in that phase is often substantial.
The same principle applies to people in other vehicles and to pedestrians and cyclists when a rideshare driver was involved but a third party caused the crash. The injured person pursues the at-fault party, and the rideshare coverage may come into play depending on the phase and the circumstances.
A rideshare claim requires a clear determination of which coverage applies, in what order, and up to what limits. This requires the phase data and a review of every policy that may provide coverage, so the injured person does not face a shortfall if one source proves inadequate or an insurer shifts responsibility to another.
Rideshare use is common in the Greenville area, shaped by the area's character as a growing metro with a vibrant downtown and a shared regional airport. Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport, located in Greer between Greenville and Spartanburg, is a frequent origin and destination for rideshare trips, as travelers take rides to and from the airport.
These trips on the connecting routes are a common setting for rideshare activity. The revitalized downtown, with its restaurants, entertainment, and events, also generates significant rideshare use as people travel to and from the area.
The roads these trips travel are the same corridors that carry the area's traffic. Rides to and from the airport travel on I-85 and the connecting routes between the airport in Greer and Greenville, while trips within the metro use the interstates, the major arterials, and the downtown streets.
The mix of heavy traffic on these corridors and the volume of rideshare activity means rideshare crashes occur across the area, from the airport routes to the downtown core to the commuter corridors. This pattern of rideshare use matters because it shapes the kinds of rideshare crashes that occur and the claims that follow.
An airport trip, a downtown evening out, and a routine ride across the metro all involve the same phase analysis, but the specific circumstances of each crash, the road, the traffic, and the other vehicles involved, shape how it happened and who was responsible.
The airport trips deserve particular note because of how common they are and the roads they travel. Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport sits in Greer, between Greenville and Spartanburg, and a rideshare trip between the airport and a destination in Greenville travels I-85 and the connecting routes, which carry heavy traffic at interstate speed.
A crash on one of these airport runs raises the same phase question as any other rideshare crash, but the interstate setting means the crashes can be severe, and the trip is almost always in the active phase, since a driver taking a passenger to or from the airport has accepted the ride and has the passenger aboard.
For a passenger injured on an airport trip, the highest level of coverage generally applies, which can be significant given the severity an interstate crash can produce. The downtown trips, by contrast, often occur at lower speeds but in heavier and more complex traffic, with more points of conflict, and they too turn on the phase and the circumstances of the particular crash.
Several contributing factors appear repeatedly in rideshare accidents across the Greenville area, including distraction, driver fatigue, and unfamiliarity with local roads.
A rideshare driver's phone is not just a potential distraction; it is a required tool for the job. Drivers glance at the app to accept ride requests, follow turn-by-turn navigation, and confirm pickup or drop-off locations, sometimes while messaging a passenger about where to meet.
This built-in reliance on a mobile device can pull a driver's attention from the road at moments when precision matters most, such as merging onto I-385 or navigating the Woodruff Road corridor, one of the most congested retail stretches in the Upstate.
Rideshare drivers can be influenced by ride volume, acceptance rates, and time-sensitive incentives built into the app. This can contribute to rushed decisions, including speeding to reach a pickup before a request expires, making abrupt lane changes near a busy interchange, or cutting through congested retail corridors to save a few minutes. Over time, this kind of pressure can factor into a pattern of following too closely, rolling stops, or failing to yield.
Many rideshare drivers work long or irregular hours, sometimes stacking a rideshare shift on top of another job or driving late into the evening when downtown Greenville's restaurant and entertainment traffic is at its heaviest. Fatigue slows reaction time and impairs judgment, and it can be difficult to prove directly after a crash, though it often shows up in a pattern of erratic driving in the moments before impact.
Rideshare drivers frequently pick up travelers at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport who are unfamiliar with the area, but the drivers themselves are not always local either. A driver new to the region may not anticipate the merge points along I-85 near the airport connector, the lane configuration at high-traffic interchanges like Woodruff Road and I-385, or the one-way streets and event-related congestion around downtown's Main Street and Falls Park. Unfamiliarity with these patterns can contribute to sudden braking, missed turns, and last-second lane changes.
Greenville's growth has led to sustained congestion on several corridors commonly used for rideshare trips. Roads such as Woodruff Road, Laurens Road, Pleasantburg Drive, and Wade Hampton Boulevard are widely recognized locally for high traffic volumes and elevated crash rates, driven by dense commercial development, frequent turning movements, and stop-and-go conditions.
A rideshare crash on one of these corridors can involve the same underlying factors seen in other collisions there: closely spaced intersections, aggressive lane changes, and drivers reacting to sudden slowdowns.
Rideshare crashes can cause the full range of motor vehicle injuries, from minor soft-tissue harm to catastrophic injury, depending on the forces involved. A passenger in a rideshare vehicle is subject to the same risks as any vehicle occupant, and a person in another vehicle, or a pedestrian or cyclist struck by a rideshare driver, can suffer severe injuries.
The injuries common to rideshare crashes include head injuries, spinal injuries, fractures, and internal injuries. A high-speed crash on one of the area's interstates can be catastrophic.
When a serious rideshare crash occurs in the Greenville area, the most critically injured are treated at Prisma Health Greenville Memorial Hospital, the Upstate's Level I trauma center and the region's premier referral center, which also operates the Upstate's only pediatric trauma center.
The medical care for a serious rideshare crash injury follows the same course as any serious crash injury, and the claim must account for the full scope, including future medical needs and lost earning capacity. The available coverage, determined by the phase, affects what a serious rideshare claim can recover, making the phase analysis as important to the value of the claim as its structure.
When the highest coverage applies, a substantial policy is available to address a catastrophic injury, while in the lower-coverage phases, the injured person may need to look to other sources, including their own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.
This is one of the areas where a rideshare crash genuinely differs from an ordinary two-car collision because the layered, phase-dependent coverage creates both opportunity and complexity. The opportunity is that, in the active phase, a substantial policy may be available that far exceeds what a typical personal auto policy provides, which can be decisive for a catastrophic injury.
The complexity is that reaching that coverage requires establishing the phase, navigating the rideshare company's claims process, and coordinating the rideshare coverage with any at-fault driver's policy and the injured person's own coverage.
Handling that coordination so that the injured person receives the full coverage available rather than settling with the first insurer to respond is part of what a rideshare claim involves, and it is why the phase analysis and the coverage investigation run together from the start.
South Carolina law allows an injured person in a rideshare crash to recover for the full range of harm the crash causes, the same categories that apply in any motor vehicle claim, though the available coverage depends on the phase.
Economic damages cover medical expenses from emergency care through future treatment, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, and other out-of-pocket costs. For a serious injury, the future medical and lost-earning components are usually the largest part of the claim and require careful projection beyond the bills already received.
Non-economic damages compensate for pain and suffering, emotional distress, and the loss of enjoyment of life, which can be significant where a crash causes lasting injury. A serious injury sustained as a rideshare passenger, in another vehicle, or as a pedestrian or cyclist struck by a rideshare driver can bring chronic pain, permanent limitation, and a lasting change in how a person lives, and South Carolina law recognizes these as compensable harms.
Where a driver's conduct was especially egregious, punitive damages may be available, subject to the state's proof standard and the exceptions that can lift the usual cap.
The interaction between the claim's value and the available coverage makes the phase analysis so consequential. A catastrophic injury can generate costs in the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars, and whether the claim can reach that level of recovery depends on which coverage applies.
It is worth emphasizing how much the injured person's own coverage can matter in a rideshare crash, just as in any car accident. A passenger or a person in another vehicle who carries their own auto policy has uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage that may apply when the responsible parties' coverage proves inadequate, and household policies may allow stacking that increases the amount available.
Many injured people focus only on the rideshare company's coverage and the at-fault driver's policy, not realizing that their own coverage can supplement these when the injury is serious enough to exceed them. Every policy available to the injured person and their household must be reviewed to build a rideshare claim that reaches the full resources the injury requires.
The steps after a rideshare crash can protect both your health and your claim, and some are unique to the rideshare context. The first priority is medical care, both for health and to document the injuries at their origin, since some crash injuries are not immediately apparent. A passenger or other injured person should accept evaluation even when injuries seem minor at first.
Document the rideshare-specific facts because the phase determines which coverage applies. If you can, note the rideshare company involved and the driver’s information. If you were a passenger, save the trip details from the app, including the ride record and trip confirmation. These records can help establish the phase at the time of the crash.
Take photos of the vehicles, crash scene, road conditions, and any other details that may preserve useful evidence. Get the names and contact information of any witnesses. Ask law enforcement to respond and document the crash when possible. An official crash report can prove especially useful when several parties and insurers are involved.
After the crash, protect your claim by preserving evidence and taking care with insurers. Keep all medical records, bills, receipts, and other proof of expenses. Save every rideshare app record, receipt, and trip confirmation that can establish the ride and its phase. Multiple insurers may have a role, including the rideshare company’s insurer and the insurers for the drivers involved. Those insurers may also dispute which policy applies.
For that reason, use caution before you give a recorded statement or accept a settlement. Do not agree to a quick settlement before you understand the full extent of your injuries and the coverage available to you. Early legal advice can help secure the phase data, identify every applicable policy, and protect your claim before an insurer can dispute or limit coverage.
| Rideshare phase | Coverage that generally applies |
| App off (personal use) | Driver's personal auto policy only |
| App on, awaiting a request | Contingent coverage at lower limits |
| Ride accepted or passenger aboard | Highest coverage, often around $1 million |
| Third party at fault | At-fault driver's policy; rideshare UM/UIM may apply |
It depends on the phase. With the app off, the driver's personal policy applies. While awaiting a request, contingent coverage applies. With a ride accepted or a passenger aboard, the highest coverage, often around one million dollars, applies.
A passenger is almost never at fault and can pursue the responsible driver. When the rideshare driver was in the active phase, substantial coverage generally applies, and the rideshare company's UM/UIM may apply if a third party was at fault and underinsured.
The rideshare company's app data records the driver's status at the time of the crash. Obtaining and preserving that data is essential to establishing which coverage applies.
Three years from the date of the crash under S.C. Code § 15-3-530(5). If a government entity may be responsible, South Carolina's Tort Claims Act generally shortens the deadline to two years, unless a verified claim is filed within one year, which can extend it to three years.
Greenville is entirely within Greenville County, so a significant rideshare accident suit is heard in the Court of Common Pleas for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit at the county courthouse on East North Street.
The Arndt Law Firm starts each Greenville rideshare crash claim by determining the driver’s phase through the company’s app data. That phase helps establish which coverage applies. Our firm then identifies every responsible party and applicable policy and documents the full extent of the injuries.
Attorney Jonathan Arndt has experience representing insurance companies, giving our firm insights into how rideshare companies and their insurers assess and challenge these claims. That experience helps us anticipate disputes and build each case around the coverage needed to fully address the client’s injuries.
If you suffered an injury in a rideshare crash in Greenville or elsewhere in Greenville County, early action can help protect the app data that establishes the driver’s phase and the coverage available to you. The consultation is free, and rideshare accident cases are handled on a contingency basis, so there is no fee unless our firm obtains a recovery.
To discuss your crash and learn what coverage may apply, schedule a free case review today.
Last reviewed: June 2026
This page was reviewed by Jonathan S. Arndt, licensed in South Carolina since 2018.
Content is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed South Carolina attorney for guidance specific to your situation.
