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Truck drivers are the backbone of several companies. They sometimes spend hours delivering items back and forth across the country. With them, some businesses may have a chance to survive.
If this is true for your employees, you will want to look into commercial truck insurance. Even if your employees occasionally drive a truck for deliveries or appointments, you still need to protect them with this type of commercial truck insurance. It is vital and provides valuable coverage for you and your finances.
But despite how crucial commercial truck insurance is, you may be lost as to where to begin with buying commercial truck insurance. The guide below will assist you with determining what type of coverage you need and how you should budget to cover premiums.
Commercial Truck Insurance Personalized for Your Business
Truckers spend hours on end braving the open road. Due to their higher risk of getting into an accident, you need commercial auto insurance if you regularly utilize commercial trucks to conduct business.
Commercial Trucking Insurance protects you, your employees, and your vehicles in the event of an accident. Truck Insurance helps cover your assets, so you do not become liable for an accident.
Commercial vehicle insurance offers higher coverage limits, making it a better option to cover commercial vehicles than a personal auto insurance policy. Nearly every state requires drivers of all types to carry auto insurance, and failure to do so can be detrimental to your business. A truck insurance policy is right for you if your business relies on trucks to operate.
Trucking Operations Covered by Commercial Insurance
Regarding company trucking insurance, almost any truck you can think of will be covered. If you use it for business, your commercial truck will benefit from a commercial auto insurance policy.
Below are some common types of trucks for which you can purchase commercial auto insurance. Some Vehicles covered are:
- Dump trucks
- Tow trucks
- Garbage trucks
- Long-haul/short-haul trucks
- Delivery trucks
Commercial trucking operations require specific coverages and add-ons to strengthen protection following an accident.
Trucking insurance can be a broad type of commercial auto insurance. It includes coverages specific to the trucking industry with policy add-ons that can be used to protect the kind of trucks your business operates.
For example, if you use refrigerated trucks, you can purchase refrigerated trucking insurance. Truck insurance acts like any other commercial auto insurance but also provides you protection for your refrigerated cargo specifically.
Figuring out what type of truck insurance you need comes from analyzing your business and what industry you are established in.
Customize Your Truck Insurance Policy
Every business and its trucks are different, meaning the commercial auto insurance you purchase needs to be customized to fit your business.
Commercial auto insurance offers your business a couple of different types of coverage. While every vehicle on the road needs to meet its state’s liability insurance requirements, multiple ways exist to expand coverage.
Below are the standard types of coverage, along with the truck insurance business policies offered.
General Liability Insurance
Liability insurance is comprised of coverage for bodily injuries and property damage. It pays out for damage you cause to another driver following an accident you have found to be at fault for.
Physical Damage Insurance
Physical damage refers to comprehensive and collision insurance. Comprehensive coverage pays for damage to your truck following non-collision-related damage. This includes things like theft and extreme weather. Collision insurance coverage pays for repairs to your truck after an accident. Both payouts, no matter who was found to be at fault.
Motor Truck Cargo Insurance
This type of Commercial auto insurance will cover any loss of property that occurs while the items are in transit.
Hired & Non-Owned Insurance
If your company does not own its trucks and regularly rents them, hired and non-owned auto insurance will protect your drivers when driving a truck they do not own.
Trailer Interchange Insurance
Trailer interchange insurance provides coverage for any trailers your trucks are pulling. It includes both comprehensive and collision damage.
Rental Reimbursement Insurance
If your truck has been damaged in a collision and needs to spend some time in the shop, rental reimbursement will provide you with funds to rent a vehicle while you wait for yours.
How Much Does Trucking Insurance Cost?
Trucking insurance costs vary depending on the circumstances surrounding your trucks.
Suppose you are an owner-operator with a permanent lease from a motor carrier. In that case, you could pay around $3,000 to $5,000 per year for truck insurance. That breaks down to about $250 to $417 monthly for insurance coverage for your business.
Commercial auto insurance rates will be drastically higher if you are an owner-operator on your own authority. The cost of truck insurance coverage has been steadily increasing over the years.
Other factors about you and your business will determine your insurance premiums for truck insurance.
Type of Vehicles
The make, model, and year of your truck(s) will affect how much you pay for commercial auto insurance. Larger trucks may cost more to insure than smaller ones. The number of safety features in the model will also be considered.
Usage
What you are hauling and how often you are driving can be considered by your insurer. You can expect to see higher rates if you are trucking heavy, expensive equipment across the country. The type of industry you operate in will also affect your truck insurance rates.
Driving records
Both you and your employees' state driving records impact your annual premiums. You will pay more for truck insurance if your drivers need better records.
Company Location
What states your business operates in will affect your insurance rates. If you are in a city or state with a dense population and high crime rates, you can expect your premiums to be more expensive than your neighbors.
Insurance Coverage limits
The higher the limits on the commercial auto insurance you want, the more you will pay. But do not let this discourage you from purchasing the truck insurance coverage you need.
Information Needed to Purchase Truck Insurance
What you will need to provide to get a quote for truck insurance is different from what is required for general auto insurance.
Since you are dealing with truck insurance, further information regarding your vehicles and employees will be requested. It would help if you were prepared to present the following information:
- Current insurance policy (personal auto insurance or commercial insurance)
- Driving history and state driver’s license numbers (both you and all your employees)
- VIN numbers of vehicles (including a list of safety features on each vehicle)
You can still get a truck insurance quote if you need to include all the above information. It would have to be based on rough estimations and will be less accurate.
What you pay once you successfully purchase truck insurance can be slightly different than what you quoted. It is best to present as much information as possible about your business and trucks to get an accurate truck insurance quote.
Get a Truck Insurance Quote Online
Ready to get a commercial truck insurance policy? Contact us today to get a free truck insurance quote for your business. Make sure you let us know your zip code, details of your business, and information on your trucks. By providing us with all this, we can better understand the coverage you need.
Quotes are available either at one of our many locations or online in just a few clicks via our website and mobile app. Savings on your commercial policy are just one call away. Get your commercial trucks insured today and drive worry-free tomorrow.