Does my auto insurance cover me driving for DoorDash?

On most personal auto policies, no. The minute you are logged into a delivery or rideshare app, your personal policy can stop covering you, and people usually find this out at the worst possible time, which is right after a crash.

Here is why. A personal auto policy prices your risk as a commuter and errand runner. Delivering food for money is business use, and most personal policies exclude it outright. It does not matter that it is your own car, or that you only do it a few nights a week.

The app companies do carry some insurance, but it is limited. What it covers depends on which company you drive for and what stage of the delivery you are in, and it often sits behind a deductible bigger than most people expect. It is not a substitute for knowing what your own policy says.

The fix is usually simple. Many carriers offer a rideshare or delivery endorsement you can add to a personal policy for a modest amount. If you drive full time, a commercial policy might be the better answer. Either way, the first step is telling your agent that you drive for an app. Keeping it quiet does not help you, because a claims adjuster will figure it out.

If you are not sure where you stand, pull out your auto policy and read the exclusions section, or ask whoever sold it to you. The time to ask is before something happens, not after.