What Injured Grubhub Drivers Should Do After a Delivery Accident in Chicago

A Chicago lawyer can help you protect your claim and find every source of compensation

Getting hurt in a car accident while delivering for Grubhub creates two problems at once. You have to deal with the injury itself, and you have to figure out how you are supposed to get paid while you cannot work. Grubhub’s current Delivery Partner Agreement says drivers using a motor vehicle must carry their own insurance, warns that a personal auto policy may not cover delivery-related losses, and says delivery partners aren’t eligible for workers’ compensation benefits through Grubhub. At the same time, Grubhub says delivery partners have access to occupational accident coverage for medical expenses and lost income while they are actively making a delivery.

That means an injured Grubhub driver may have more than one path to compensation. The money may come from the at-fault driver’s insurance, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, Grubhub occupational accident coverage, or a lawsuit if the insurer refuses to pay fairly. A Chicago Grubhub accident lawyer can sort out those paths before coverage disputes start cutting into the claim.

What to do right away

The first few days matter. Grubhub says occupational accident coverage applies only while the driver is actively engaged in a delivery, which it defines as the time from accepting the order until the order is delivered or canceled. That makes early proof especially important.

A good first step is to lock down the facts before anyone starts arguing about them. Following a Grubhub accident:

Get medical care: Your health comes first, and the records will help prove the injury.
Call police: A police report can help document how the crash happened and who was involved.
Save the delivery evidence: Keep screenshots, order details, timestamps, pickup information, dropoff information, and anything showing you were on an active Grubhub delivery.
Get insurance information: Gather the other driver’s policy information and keep your own policy information.
Report the crash promptly: Don’t let the timing of the delivery become unclear later.
Call a lawyer early: Grubhub delivery cases can turn into insurance fights fast. Contact us after an accident for a free consultation to learn more about your rights and protect your claim for maximum compensation.

Those steps help protect every possible claim. They can also make the difference between proving you were hurt while working and ending up in a dispute about whether any Grubhub-related coverage applies at all.

How an injured Grubhub driver can get money

An injured Grubhub driver may be able to recover from more than one source. The right answer depends on who caused the crash and what kind of coverage actually applies.

The main possibilities are:

The at-fault driver’s insurance: If another driver caused the crash, that driver’s liability policy may be the first source of compensation.
Uninsured motorist coverage: Illinois requires uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident. This can matter if the at-fault driver has no insurance or leaves the scene.
Underinsured motorist coverage: This can matter when the at-fault driver has insurance, but not enough to cover a serious injury claim.
Grubhub occupational accident coverage: Grubhub says this may cover medical expenses and lost income if the injured person was actively making a delivery.
A lawsuit: If the insurer denies liability, disputes fault, or refuses to pay enough, a lawsuit may be necessary.

Most injured drivers shouldn’t assume there is only one place to look. A strong claim usually comes from finding every source of compensation and pursuing them in the right order.

What Grubhub occupational accident coverage may pay

Grubhub says delivery partners have access to occupational accident coverage for medical expenses and lost income resulting from injuries suffered while making deliveries. Grubhub also says all delivery partners are eligible for this coverage as of January 1, 2024, subject to the policy’s terms, conditions, limitations, and exclusions.

For an injured Grubhub driver, that may mean help with:

Medical expenses: Grubhub says the coverage helps with medical expenses resulting from injuries suffered while making deliveries.
Lost income: Grubhub says the coverage also helps with lost income resulting from injuries suffered while making deliveries.

But there are important limits.

Active delivery time only: Grubhub says the coverage applies only while the driver is actively engaged in a delivery, from order acceptance until delivery or cancellation.
No vehicle damage: Grubhub says occupational accident coverage doesn’t cover damage to the driver’s vehicle.
Not workers’ compensation: Grubhub says delivery partners aren’t eligible for workers’ compensation benefits through Grubhub.
Not a full liability claim: This coverage is for the delivery partner’s own injuries. It doesn’t replace a claim against the at-fault driver and it doesn’t automatically provide pain and suffering damages the way a liability case can.

That is why injured Grubhub drivers shouldn’t stop at the first benefit they hear about. Occupational accident coverage may be part of the answer, but it’s rarely the whole answer.

What if your own insurance company pushes back?

Grubhub’s current agreement warns drivers that a personal automobile policy may not afford liability, collision, medical payments, uninsured motorist, underinsured motorist, or other coverage while the driver is providing delivery services. That warning matters because many injured drivers assume their own insurer will handle the crash the same way it would handle ordinary personal driving.

If your insurer denies coverage or limits what it will pay, that doesn’t mean the case is over. It may mean a lawyer needs to challenge the denial, identify another policy, push the at-fault driver’s insurer harder, or make sure occupational accident coverage is being evaluated properly.

This is where having the right law firm matters. Insurance companies know delivery-work cases are messy. They use that confusion to delay, deny, and underpay.

When a lawsuit may be necessary

Not every injured Grubhub driver needs a lawsuit, but some do. A lawsuit may become necessary when the at-fault driver denies responsibility, the insurance company blames the delivery driver, coverage is denied, or the settlement offer is too low to cover the real losses.

This is also where the value of the claim changes. A liability case can include medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, property damage, and future losses. Grubhub occupational accident coverage is much narrower. It may help with medical expenses and lost income, but it doesn’t replace a full injury case against the person who caused the crash.

That is why a delivery driver compensation lawsuit sometimes becomes necessary. It’s not about being aggressive for the sake of it. It’s about forcing the right party to pay when insurance won’t do the job.

Injured Grubhub drivers count on Keating

If you were hurt while delivering for Grubhub in Chicago or anywhere in Illinois, contact Keating Law Offices for a free consultation. These cases can involve app evidence, disputed coverage, uninsured or underinsured motorist claims, occupational accident issues, and insurance companies looking for a way to pay less. Keating knows how to deal with that.

Our law firm fights for people in Chicago, not insurance companies. With nearly 20 years of experience, we have the resources to handle complex cases and know how to get insurers to take a claim seriously. Our firm has recovered multiple $1 million settlements for injured accident victims. We handle injury cases on a contingency fee basis, which means you don’t pay attorney’s fees unless we recover compensation for you.

Keating Law Offices can review the crash, identify every available source of compensation, and pursue the best possible outcome through settlement or trial. Contact us now for a free consultation.