What Insurance Do You Need for Amazon Fresh Delivery?
Last Updated on November 27, 2021
Amazon Fresh is a premium delivery service available to Amazon Prime subscribers. As an Amazon Fresh driver, you need special car insurance.
Amazon Fresh drivers deliver perishable foods, seafood, meats, and frozen foods to customers in select cities across the United States. Drivers pick up food, then deliver it to an address. Your car insurance provider treats this like a business trip, which means you need business use or commercial coverage.
Fortunately, Amazon extends its commercial insurance to protect Amazon Fresh delivery drivers. As long as you have full coverage car insurance, you should be covered when driving for Amazon Fresh – even if you don’t have a business-use or commercial insurance policy.
Today, we’re explaining everything you need about Amazon Fresh car insurance requirements for delivery drivers.
Table of Contents:
- You Need Extra Car Insurance for Amazon Fresh
- What Is Amazon Fresh?
- Car Insurance for Amazon Fresh
- How Amazon’s Car Insurance Works for Amazon Fresh Drivers
- Consider Business-Use or Commercial Coverage for Amazon Fresh
You Need Extra Car Insurance for Amazon Fresh
An ordinary personal car insurance policy will not cover you when delivering Amazon Fresh orders.
Just like with Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub, Instacart, and other delivery services, Amazon Fresh is a commercial enterprise You are delivering goods in exchange for money. You are using your car for business purposes – not personal purposes.
An ordinary car insurance policy covers you for personal use. It covers trips to the grocery store, commutes to work, and road trips. It does not, however, cover using your car for business reasons – like food deliveries.
If you are driving for Amazon Fresh and cause an accident, then you cannot make a claim through your own car insurance – even though you were driving your own vehicle at the time of the accident. Your insurer will deny your claim. You were driving for business purposes at the time of the accident, and you don’t have business car insurance.
However, Amazon extends basic car insurance coverage to drivers, and you may be covered even with a personal auto insurance policy. If you get into an accident while making an Amazon Fresh delivery, then you could make a claim through Amazon – not your own insurer.
What Is Amazon Fresh?
Amazon Fresh is a new delivery service launched by Amazon in select cities in 2019. Amazon has rolled out Amazon Fresh to a growing number of cities over the last few months, and the delivery service has become particularly popular during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic.
Amazon originally launched Amazon Fresh as a premium service for Amazon Prime subscribers. In 2019, Prime members had to pay a $14.99 per month fee for Amazon Fresh deliveries. In 2020, Amazon removed this fee, and Amazon Fresh deliveries are now available to all Prime members.
Amazon Fresh subscribers receive discount groceries beyond what they would normally be able to order through Amazon Prime. You can order meat and seafood, for example, along with all types of perishable foods, frozen foods, refrigerated foods, and more.
Amazon Fresh orders come from Amazon fulfillment centers in your metro area. Many of the items are the same items you get through Whole Foods, although Amazon partners with other supermarkets in certain areas.
Amazon relies on a network of delivery drivers to fulfill its Amazon Fresh orders. You order food through Amazon Fresh, and a delivery driver arrives with that food. Most Amazon Fresh orders arrive the same day or the next day, although some areas support one-hour or two-hour delivery.
As an Amazon Fresh delivery driver, you pick up Amazon Fresh orders at the Amazon fulfillment center, then deliver bags of food to the address.
Car Insurance for Amazon Fresh
Ordinary personal auto insurance policies will not cover you when delivering for Amazon Fresh. If you cause an accident while driving for Amazon, then make a claim through your insurer, then your insurer will deny your claim.
However, Amazon provides basic car insurance to its drivers. If you cause an accident while delivering for Amazon, then you might be able to make a claim through Amazon.
Amazon only provides car insurance to drivers during deliveries. As long as you have Amazon Fresh packages in your vehicle, you should be covered by Amazon’s car insurance policy.
Amazon’s car insurance only applies if you have full coverage car insurance. If your car insurance has collision and comprehensive coverage, then you should be covered by Amazon’s commercial car insurance policy when making Amazon Fresh deliveries. This is considered a full coverage policy.
Note: Amazon Fresh drivers in New York are not covered by Amazon’s commercial car insurance. The New York DMV requires drivers to obtain their own commercial coverage.
How Amazon’s Car Insurance Works for Amazon Fresh Drivers
Amazon provides car insurance to most Amazon Fresh driers who have full coverage car insurance. You have full coverage car insurance if you have liability coverage, collision coverage, and comprehensive coverage.
If you meet these requirements, then Amazon provides you with the following insurance coverage:
- Up to $50,000 of coverage per accident for damage to your vehicle (with a $1,000 deductible for at-fault accidents)
- Up to $1 million in auto liability coverage for damage to another person’s car or property (if you caused an accident and harmed another person or damaged their property)
- Up to $1 million in uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage
To receive this coverage, you must maintain full coverage car insurance on your personal policy.
Plus, Amazon’s car insurance only covers you when actively delivering an order. It covers you from the moment you pick up the Amazon Fresh order to the moment you drop it off. You must be driving the vehicle for this coverage to apply (you cannot be the passenger).
Consider Business-Use or Commercial Coverage for Amazon Fresh
As an Amazon Fresh driver, you need either business-use or commercial coverage.
Amazon extends its commercial car insurance coverage to many Amazon Fresh drivers, although other drivers need to buy their own business-use or commercial coverage. Drivers in New York, for example, require their own business-use or commercial coverage policy:
Business-Use Coverage: Most insurance companies make it easy to add business-use coverage to your policy. You can pay a few extra dollars per month to cover your vehicle during occasional business trips. If you drive your ordinary vehicle for Amazon Fresh, then this coverage should be the right choice for you.
Commercial Coverage: Commercial coverage covers businesses and their vehicles. Some companies – like Uber – have a type of commercial coverage that protects all drivers. If you primarily drive your vehicle for business purposes, then you may need a commercial coverage policy for Amazon Fresh.
Generally, Amazon Fresh drivers pay a few extra dollars per month for business-use coverage, which extends coverage to your vehicle during business trips – including Amazon Fresh deliveries.
Final Word – Amazon Fresh Insurance
Amazon is one of the better companies for delivery drivers. Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash, and other delivery services provide limited insurance to drivers. Amazon, however, covers drivers whenever they’re making a delivery.
Amazon Fresh drivers who maintain full coverage car insurance (with liability insurance, collision coverage, and comprehensive coverage) should be covered under Amazon’s commercial insurance. Amazon’s commercial insurance covers you when picking up and delivering Amazon Fresh orders.
However, some Amazon Fresh drivers may want added protection, so they buy their own business-use or commercial coverage policy. Additionally, Amazon Fresh drivers in New York must obtain their own commercial or business-use coverage because of state insurance laws.
