Commercial Auto Insurance
Entrepreneurs work so hard to build your business. It’s scary to think that you could lose it all if one of your employees gets in an auto accident. When you get Commercial Auto Insurance coverage for your organizations’ vehicles, you are not just protecting the transport and cargo. You’re protecting your company from settlements, lawsuits, and financial losses. Commercial auto protection will give you confidence every time you send one of your valued employees out on the road.
This type of coverage protects your commercial vehicle or a fleet of vehicles and your business to help run smoothly and efficiently. Commercial auto insurance is designed to protect your business from costly risks and huge financial losses. The scenarios Commercial auto insurance can help in are following:
- If you, your employed drivers, or your passengers get injured in an accident involving your business vehicle, medical expenses and lost wages would be covered.
- Replacement car coverage is provided if you rent a vehicle temporarily for business operations after an accident involving your business vehicle.
- Commercial auto insurance automatically covers these vehicles through a blanket fleet endorsement if you have a fleet policy if the business acquires new vehicles.
You need business Auto Insurance in the following scenarios:
You have a company car solely used for work
The company uses Van or truck transport goods or people
Business services are conducted with your vehicle
Your business vehicle is used to haul tools or equipment
Business vehicles like Van trucks or cars driven by your employees
The company owns a truck or a van
Commercial Auto Insurance is similar to a personal Auto Insurance policy, accept liability limits are much higher. However, it provides the same coverages like collision, comprehensive, personal injury protection, uninsured motorist, and medical payments.
A big difference between commercial and personal Auto Insurance is, who is eligible? Coverage limits and exclusions.
The commercial auto policy offers:
Liability for bodily injuries that you cause another person
Property damage to another person caused by your vehicles is paid through property damage liability. It also pays for your legal defense if you are sued over any accidents or other incidents.
Personal injury protection and medical expenses for your passengers and yourself in case of an accident by your business vehicle. No-fault insurance States PIP is required.
Collision insurance pays for the damage if a business vehicle is hit or gets hit by another car or object.
Flood, Fire, theft, vandalism, or other specific problems are covered by comprehensive insurance.
If your vehicle is hit by an uninsured driver, an insured motorist coverage pays for medical bills and images.
Bodily injury liability property damage liability is the main component of Commercial Auto Insurance. It has some exclusions in which coverage is not typically provided.
Intentional body injury or property damage is not covered
Damage or injury because of pollution will not be covered by a commercial Auto Insurance policy. For example, any transport of pollutants, processed, treated, kept, or disposed ofof, which cause damage or injury, are not covered.
If your business vehicle is used professional or organized racing and causes damage or bodily injury, it will not be covered. Moreover, demolition contest stunting activity and other reckless activities will not be covered.
As with most insurance policies, war, terrorist activity, or warlike action is not covered.
Like a personal auto policy, a commercial auto insurance policy offers liability protection, vehicle protection and driver protection; however the difference between a personal policy and a commercial policy is that commercial insurance offers increased coverage to protect the larger risks associated with a business. These risks can become even greater if you own a business in the trucking industry or if you operate commercial trucks for your business as these heavy-duty vehicles can cause significantly more damage than a standard vehicle.
The cost of commercial Auto Insurance is influenced by several factors, including:
Make model and year of the vehicle
Cost of the vehicle
In the case of a truck, the gross weight of the vehicle
All the drivers driving records
The usage of the vehicle, what is it being used for? How long is it used for? Do the vehicles visit job sites or clients all day, or is it used to deliver supplies? Or is it used just back and forth from office and home?
The cost also depends on the number of the vehicle being insured
Personal auto insurance policies exclude coverage for the accidents and damages incurred. At the same time, the vehicle is being used for any business purposes like deliveries. Businessowners assume that if their employees use their own cars for business, their own auto insurance will offer them coverage in an accident. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case. Commercial auto insurance is the way to protect your staff’s vehicles.
Personal and commercial auto insurance, in actuality, are not that different. Essentially both offer the same types of coverages. For example, both personal and commercial auto policies provide coverage for comprehensive liability, collision, and so on. The big difference between these two types of insurance is the amount of liability protection each has. The liability coverage amount can be substantially higher in commercial auto depending on the cargo. Additionally, commercial policies cover a more comprehensive array of vehicles, such as delivery vans, shipping trucks, as well as standard cars.
The biggest difference between business insurance and commercial Auto Insurance is how the vehicles are used. Local courier delivering documents can be covered by a Business insurance policy button 18 wheeler traveling across the state delivering products to warehouses, which can only be covered by a commercial Auto Insurance policy.
Another big difference is the liability coverage between business insurance and commercial Auto Insurance. A business owner ought to know the difference because wrong insurance can lead to lawsuits. Commercial Auto Insurance costs a lot more than business insurance because the size of the vehicles and usage demands higher insurance premiums.
Whether you have one vehicle for your business or a fleet of autos, trucks, or vans, Commercial Auto Insurance is one of the most complex insurance you would need. There are a lot of factors that go into determining the cost commercial auto policy for your business.
With the help of an expert agent from comparing a quote, you can have peace of mind that your fleet of vehicles or one vehicle is adequately covered.
Conclusion
If your business is dependent on commercial vehicles. It is very important for you adequately insure them. Also, business owners should be aware of liability coverage for each commercial object vehicle. For example, a larger vehicle like an 18 wheeler would need higher liability protection because it can cause a lot more damage. Also, you should be aware of all the exclusions that can be in a policy. A business should not suffer huge financial losses or shutdowns due to inadequate insurance coverage. Your vehicles are your revenue generator, so make sure they have adequate protection.
