Why trucking insurance is different
A semi-truck on I-5 or the 805 carries risk that personal auto and even standard commercial auto policies won't cover. Federal FMCSA filings (MCS-90), cargo value, radius of operation, and hazmat exposure all change which carrier will write you and at what rate. We place trucking risks every week and know which markets welcome owner-operators, which want fleets of 5+, and which will take a new-venture trucker with a clean MVR.
What trucking insurance covers
- Primary Auto Liability Pays for bodily injury and property damage when you're at fault in a covered truck. Federal minimums start at $750,000 but most shippers require $1M.
- Physical Damage Repairs or replaces your tractor and trailer after a collision, theft, fire, or vandalism.
- Motor Truck Cargo Covers the freight you're hauling against damage, theft, or loss in transit.
- Non-Trucking Liability (Bobtail) Covers the truck when you're driving without a load and off dispatch.
- General Liability Covers slip-and-falls at terminals, loading-dock injuries, and other non-driving exposures.
- MCS-90 Endorsement Federal filing required by FMCSA for interstate for-hire carriers. We file it with the DOT on your behalf.
Owner-operator vs. fleet
Whether you run one truck or fifty, we shop your risk across trucking-specialist carriers (Progressive Commercial, Great West, Canal, Acuity, Berkshire Hathaway GUARD, and more). Owner-operators leased on to a motor carrier often only need NTL + occupational accident. Authority-runners need the full package. One call sorts out what's required for your operation.