Uber has raised its minimum age requirement for novice drivers in its home-based state, the ride-share company confirmed Thursday.

Most of those who drive for the company headquartered in San Francisco must now be at least 25 years old to drive in California, an Uber spokesperson told USA TODAY. The Associated Press was the first to report the news.

The decision was made because of the need to save money due to rising insurance costs, the spokesperson shared.

Under previous rules, employees as young as 21 were permitted to drive for the company in California.

According to its website, Uber's age minimum driving requirements differ by state.

In a statement released by the company, it called California’s insurance coverage requirements for rideshare "baselessly higher than nearly every other car on the road" − up to 10 times that of taxis and 30 times that of personal vehicles. 

"As a result of these lopsided requirements, personal injury attorneys have created a cottage industry specializing in suing rideshare platforms like ours, pushing Uber’s California state-mandated commercial insurance costs to rise by more than 65% in just two years," Uber said in the statement.

The company said it hopes to work with lawmakers, policy leaders, and industry experts to "discuss legislative and regulatory changes that will improve the experience for all California drivers."

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When does the new rule start?

The new age requirement minimum went into effect on Thursday, and Uber said it would alert new drivers who sign up to drive.

"Anyone already approved to drive on the platform that is under 25 will be grandfathered in and will not be impacted by this change," the spokesperson said.

Does the new rule apply to Uber Eats drivers?

Don't worry, Uber Eats drivers: The new rule doesn't apply to you.

It only applies to people signing up to transport passengers with the company's ride-hailing platform, the spokesperson shared.

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Lyft already requires people to be 25

Those driving for Uber's top competitor, Lyft, must already be at least 25 to drive for the company, a spokesperson shared with USA TODAY. Outside of NYC, all new applicants since 2020 have needed to be 25.

Lyft is also based in San Francisco.

Commercial insurance is required in every U.S. state in order for drivers to earn money with a ride-sharing service, the Uber spokesperson said.

"Some of these requirements are specific to the rideshare industry and substantially higher than what is required of commercial transportation services," the spokesperson said. "This is especially true of California."

"Uber stands for safety and we feel strongly that every ride should be covered - that’s why we maintain this insurance on behalf of drivers; the alternative would be for them to go out and purchase it individually since personal auto insurance typically doesn’t cover activity on ridesharing apps," the spokesperson shared.

The Associated Press reported Uber protects its drivers with at least $1 million of liability coverage once a ride is accepted.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @nataliealund.