[hnnewguy]

>As for insurance, I think $200/mo is probably a conservative guess

Conservative? I think you are severely underestimating the cost of obtaining insurance that covers the liability of injuring multiple passengers that you are transporting around as a "for hire" driver.

Much like AirBnB, people seem to overlook this cost and responsibility. That will change when an Uber driver slams into another car with 5 passengers, killing someone, or an AirBnB user, there "illegally", burns down an apartment complex. It will be the end of these businesses.

I'm not saying that these models can't work. But right now, much of the cost advantages come from working around regulations.

[dnautics]

the ridesharing companies provide insurance on top of personal insurance. Both Uber and Lyft have $1M liability + casualty insurance while you're transporting passengers, and Lyft has $1M policy while you're not (don't know about Uber on that one).

The insurance premiums for these companies (I know Lyft partners with Met Life) probably is adjusted downwards relative to taxis, because of several factors, but the biggest one being that the drivers own their own cars and are out of it if they wreck it, so there's a good reason not to drive dangerously. A larger proportion of Uber and Lyft drivers have been driving american streets for longer periods, and also have educations, for whatever statistical benefit that confers. Finally, the taxis are, in the end, smaller companies, so the rideshares can negotiate better deals and also provide far more statistical data to the adjusters, which enables a narrower margin.

[hnnewguy]

>Both Uber and Lyft have $1M liability + casualty insurance while you're transporting passenger

Well, I'm not going to claim to be an expert on such matters, but I believe $1MM is the minimum that is offered for liability insurance on a driver's policy here in Canada. I'm not sure how far that'd go if you killed multiple passengers in a vehicle accident, especially if you were found negligent.

Again, this isn't to say that these are insurmountable problems, by any means. You can insure anything for the right price. But how many people are actually sufficiently insured? And how many users are checking, or even care? I can't see this not being a problem in the future.