Truck Insurance
For those that operate an OTR trucking business, or work as an independent, you will find the expertise at CompareAQuote a very valuable partner for all your insurance needs, Here at Compare A Quote, we not only can get you great value on insurance, but we can even help you save time while taking care of state and federal filings for you. That’s just one of the many benefits of having a CompareAQuote US Agent.
With our multiple policy discounts, you can save a lot by going with CompareAQuote insurance, and this can make a difference in your policy cost. In general, your cost will depend on a number of factors including your driving radius, your vehicle, your location, Your driving history, and your business type, but the most important factor will be your ability to access hundreds of insurance companies through our CompareAQuote network of authorized, licensed agents.
Commercial truck insurance is an important type of coverage to protect you from costly bills should any of your trucks become involved in an accident. If you drive a personal truck or car, you already know you require auto insurance to stay legal on the road.
Commercial trucking insurance covers circumstances where you use your truck to transport products, animals, customers, and materials. If you use your vehicle both professionally and personally, a commercial insurance truck policy will fill in the gaps your personal auto insurance leaves behind. But, this isn’t typically the case with larger commercial trucking companies.
Trucking insurance policies start with primary liability and then build on that with several other coverages. You’re required to have primary liability coverage as part of a trucking license to protect property and people from damage your trucks cause. But, there are also other types of company trucking insurance you should consider.
Commercial truck insurance is a specific grouping of insurance auto policies developed to cover trucking needs. The trucking policies start with primary liability and build upon that foundation with various additional coverages. Primary liability truck insurance is often required as part of a trucking license — it protects people and property from damage caused by your truck.
If you are a driver and want to drive on your own authority, then you will need primary liability insurance. If you are an owner-operator of a trucking company, then you’ll expand your trucking insurance to include general liability, as well.
Types of Commercial Trucking Insurance
Common commercial truck insurance coverages include:
As mentioned, you are required by federal regulations to have this insurance coverage. Every one of your trucks, including leased units, must carry commercial auto insurance. Liability insurance will provide you with protection when a third party becomes injured from an accident.
Every state requires general liability coverage. It protects you if one of your drivers causes property damage or bodily damage because of a crash. It covers a driver’s actions who is operating on another person’s premises, like truck stops or loading docks. It also includes load delivery mistakes.
Physical damage coverage will pay for a commercial truck or trailer repairs from damage by things like:
- Vandalism
- Collision
- Theft
- Natural disasters
Alternatively, if your truck becomes damaged beyond repair, this coverage will replace it. The cost of the truck and equipment will determine the premiums.
Bobtail coverage, also called non-trucking liability, is coverage for circumstances where the truck driver is driving the truck for personal reasons or is off dispatch. Any situations where the owner-operator isn’t covered by primary liability coverage, bobtail coverage will cover kick in. But, bobtail insurance doesn’t protect truck drivers when they’re pulling a trailer, using a truck to make money or driving a truck for a trucking company.
This coverage provides you with protection if the cargo on one of your commercial trucks is lost or damaged. Premiums will depend on the freight type.
Rental reimbursement is exactly what it sounds like — it provides you with money for renting a replacement truck while your vehicle is being repaired
Trailer Interchange insurance provides Physical Damage insurance for trailers being pulled under a trailer interchange agreement. This is essentially Physical Damage insurance for non-owned trailers. This insurance protects you if the trailer is damaged by collision, fire, theft, explosion or vandalism.
Medical payment coverage pays for any medical bills you or a passenger incur while driving or riding in the truck. Each state will vary in this coverage
This insurance will protect you if another person hits you and doesn’t have liability insurance.
If you own refrigerated trucks, reefer breakdown coverage would cover the cost of things like:
- Refrigeration breakdown
- Lost cargo
- Damage to products because of a collision
Some insurance policies have exclusions. For instance, certain products are excluded, such as tobacco products, frozen food, or seafood.
As mentioned, you are required by federal regulations to have this insurance coverage. Every one of your trucks, including leased units, must carry commercial auto insurance. Liability insurance will provide you with protection when a third party becomes injured from an accident.
Every state requires general liability coverage. It protects you if one of your drivers causes property damage or bodily damage because of a crash. It covers a driver’s actions who is operating on another person’s premises, like truck stops or loading docks. It also includes load delivery mistakes.
Physical damage coverage will pay for a commercial truck or trailer repairs from damage by things like:
- Vandalism
- Collision
- Theft
- Natural disasters
Alternatively, if your truck becomes damaged beyond repair, this coverage will replace it. The cost of the truck and equipment will determine the premiums
Bobtail coverage, also called non-trucking liability, is coverage for circumstances where the truck driver is driving the truck for personal reasons or is off dispatch. Any situations where the owner-operator isn’t covered by primary liability coverage, bobtail coverage will cover kick in. But, bobtail insurance doesn’t protect truck drivers when they’re pulling a trailer, using a truck to make money or driving a truck for a trucking company.
This coverage provides you with protection if the cargo on one of your commercial trucks is lost or damaged. Premiums will depend on the freight type.
Rental reimbursement is exactly what it sounds like — it provides you with money for renting a replacement truck while your vehicle is being repaired.
Trailer Interchange insurance provides Physical Damage insurance for trailers being pulled under a trailer interchange agreement. This is essentially Physical Damage insurance for non-owned trailers. This insurance protects you if the trailer is damaged by collision, fire, theft, explosion or vandalism.
Medical payment coverage pays for any medical bills you or a passenger incur while driving or riding in the truck. Each state will vary in this coverage.
This insurance will protect you if another person hits you and doesn’t have liability insurance
If you own refrigerated trucks, reefer breakdown coverage would cover the cost of things like:
- Refrigeration breakdown
- Lost cargo
- Damage to products because of a collision
Some insurance policies have exclusions. For instance, certain products are excluded, such as tobacco products, frozen food, or seafood.
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.
Trucking insurance may not cover all damages incurred in an accident, including:- Vehicles not considered trucks under the policy.These can include hearses, buses, limousines, cement trucks, ice cream trucks, and passenger vans.
- Injuries to the driver or damage to the truck.Injuries to a driver who works for a trucking company would be covered under workers’ compensation insurance. Damage to the truck is only covered if the driver or trucking company purchased physical damage coverage, which is optional.
- Reduced income following an injury.A driver who’s injured in an accident and can’t work will need business interruption insurance to cover the loss of income.
- Lost cargo.This will only be fully covered if the driver or trucking company purchased sufficient lost cargo insurance prior to the loss.
Commercial trucking insurance can be expensive. For example, owner-operators with their own authority can expect to pay around $8,000 to $14,000 a year in premiums for primary liability coverage. An owner-operator who has a permanent lease with a motor carrier will pay less – around $2,000 to $5,000 a year – because the trucking company pays for some coverage. In addition, owner-operators with their own authority and trucking companies spend an average of $450 to $1,000 a year for $1 million on general liability coverage in addition to primary liability coverage.
There are a variety of factors that influence the price of commercial trucking insurance. These include:
- The cost of the truck
- What the truck is hauling
- How old the driver is, how long they have held a commercial driver’s license, and their driving record
- How far the truck is driven
- The owner-operator’s credit history
- Whether premiums are paid monthly, annually, or on some other schedule
- Is Commercial Truck Insurance same as Commercial Auto Insurance
- Trucking is different than driving around the city in a work van. Drivers often haul a large amount of merchandise or materials, across state lines, for long hours. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) — the governing body over trucking — requires certain insurance minimums needed by owners before their trucks can even hit the road. Drivers have to prove they have a minimum of primary truck insurance to be approved by the FMCSA.Leasing agreements for the trucks might also require proof of general liability truck insurance.
- Why won’t a commercial auto policy cut it? Well, the trucking world ultimately has different day-to-day risks than cars/vans, and for-hire truckers need truck insurance, not commercial auto. Otherwise, truck drivers might find themselves vastly under-insured under a commercial auto plan (or unable to get behind the wheel at all).
Conclusion
As with all insurance policies, there are ways to save some money. However, please remember that in the insurance world, cheaper may not be better; it may not have the needed coverage you’re required to have to hit the road. If you are after a specific policy, here are some ways you can get the premiums down:
• Hire drivers with impeccable driving records
• Drive carefully — even a single speeding ticket can affect rates
• Implement safe driving classes and seminars for employees
• Raise your deductibles
• Pay your premium in full each year (insurance companies offer discounts)
• Always keep your payments current
• Be aware of the cargo you are hauling and adjust needs accordingly
• Ask about discounts
When it comes to discounts, you can get a commercial driver’s license (CDL) discount if you have had your commercial driver’s license for over two years and you can get another discount if you’ve been in business for three years or more. As always compareaquote.com can guide you to best possible coverage and rates
