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Wondering if your business needs commercial trucking insurance? This guide to commercial truck insurance will answer all your questions and point you toward the best providers.
Matt has been helping small businesses make decisions since 2017. He has written reviews and articles across many different channels but specializes in the point of sale, payroll, and small business insurance categories and has been quoted in articles for Fox Business, Forbes, and other publications. Prior to joining Merchant Maverick, Matt was a journalist and editor for 14 years for a pair of weekly newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and currently resides in Gladstone, Oregon.
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Matt ShermanMatt has been helping small businesses make decisions since 2017. He has written reviews and articles across many different channels but specializes in the point of sale, payroll, and small business insurance categories and has been quoted in articles for Fox Business, Forbes, and other publications. Prior to joining Merchant Maverick, Matt was a journalist and editor for 14 years for a pair of weekly newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and currently resides in Gladstone, Oregon.
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Shelbi Wescott began working for Merchant Maverick in 2019 after 17 years as a journalism educator and publications advisor, where she has extensive knowledge of newsroom systems and editorial workflows. She has overseen multiple print and online publications and mentored hundreds of emerging writers. Shelbi is also an award-winning journalist, published author, and former small business owner with a Master of Arts in Teaching from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.
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Shelbi WescottShelbi Wescott began working for Merchant Maverick in 2019 after 17 years as a journalism educator and publications advisor, where she has extensive knowledge of newsroom systems and editorial workflows. She has overseen multiple print and online publications and mentored hundreds of emerging writers. Shelbi is also an award-winning journalist, published author, and former small business owner with a Master of Arts in Teaching from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.
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The best commercial trucking insurance provides complete protection for your fleet of commercial trucks and everything you transport in them.
Does your business need commercial truck insurance? If so, how can you find the best provider? Not every insurance provider offers commercial truck insurance, but you have some great options. We found six great providers to help you start your search.
Why We Chose Progressive As Best Overall Trucking Insurance
Rated the number-one truck insurer by S&P Global Intelligence in 2021, Progressive continues to offer a full range of policies aimed at trucking companies. Offering several kinds of discounts on its policies, Progressive offers reliable coverage at an attractive price. You'll also find 24/7 claims assistance with in-house adjusters and a network of pre-approved repair shops that give Progressive customers priority status.
Progressive is rated A+ by A. M. Best, A by the Better Business Bureau, AA with Standard & Poor, and Aa by Moody's Investors Services.
Progressive Commercial Trucking Pricing
Most insurance providers offer custom pricing, and they hesitate to share pricing information outside the personalized quote process. We give Progressive full marks for pricing transparency because this is one provider that shares information online.
Progressive analyzed two groups of new trucking policies sold in 2022: for-hire transport (truckers who haul goods) and for-hire specialty (those specializing in a niche, such as garbage or logging).
On average, Progressive policies for commercial truck insurance cost $736/month for specialty truckers and $1,125/month for transport truckers. The price of your policies will depend on a variety of factors, including your cargo type, operating radius, driving record, and more. You can get a fast personalized quote from Progressive online or by phone.
You can obtain a price discount of up to 15% if you pay your Progressive Insurance bill annually instead of monthly. Discounts are available if you’ve had your CDL for at least two years and have been in business for three or more years.
Progressive Policies For Commercial Trucking
Progressive Insurance offers a full range of small business insurance policies. Here are some truck-specific policies you can get from Progressive:
Motor truck cargo
Motor truck general liability (available only as an addition to a Progressive commercial auto policy)
Non-trucking liability
Rental reimbursement with downtime
Trailer interchange
Types Of Trucks Progressive Covers
Progressive writes commercial truck insurance policies for owner-operators, for-hire truckers, and private carriers. Insurance is available for the following types of trucks:
Tractors
Pickup trucks
Tow trucks
Box trucks
Dump trucks
Agriculture trucks
Bucket trucks
Catering trucks
Cement mixers
Flatbeds
Front-loaders
Garbage trucks
Ice cream trucks
Pump trucks
Refrigerated trucks
Stake body truck
Street sweeper
Tank trucks
Best For...
Trucking companies that want discounts and 24/7 claims service
Why We Chose The Hartford For Best Commercial Truck Insurance
The Hartford is a top-rated insurer offering comprehensive insurance to businesses of all types and sizes. The Hartford's truck insurance is particularly well suited for small to large specialized truck equipment and trailer operations. Specifically, The Hartford aims to serve manufacturers, installers, and repairers of customized equipment added to a bare chassis to create a specialty vehicle.
The Hartford also courts trailer manufacturers, non-franchised trailer dealers, and auto body shops with tow operations of up to 50% of sales. The company says that its ideal truck insurance customer is one with insurance premiums that add up to $25K or more per month. That means The Hartford's policies are designed for companies seeking insurance for a fleet of trucks rather than for those with a single vehicle or two.
The Hartford Commercial Truck Insurance Pricing
Although The Hartford says its ideal commercial truck insurance customers will spend $25K/month or more to insure a fleet of trucks, premiums for individual trucks start at around $2,500/month with vehicle limits up to and above $1 million.
The Hartford provides personalized price quotes based on your business details and insurance needs. You can start your application online and expect to receive your personalized quote within 16 business hours of the time your request is acknowledged.
The Hartford Policies For Commercial Truckers
You can sign up for the following types of commercial truck coverage with The Hartford:
Motor truck cargo
Separate limits for named shippers
Separate limits for specific trips
Inland marine
Umbrella
Dealer plates
Newly acquired property
Business income
Business income for off-premises utility services coverage
Property in transit
Accounts receivable
Loss of use
Multinational
The Hartford specializes in risk-reduction engineering and has a dedicated risk engineering team to perform exposure evaluations and provide recommendations for improving your business security and safety.
Types Of Trucks The Hartford Covers
The Hartford’s commercial truck insurance is aimed at specialized truck businesses. The company lists businesses that install or repair equipment on specialized vehicles like the following:
Why We Chose State Farm For Best Commercial Truck Insurance
Some insurers on this list of the best commercial truck insurance are focused on large fleets, but not State Farm. If you have a smaller business with just one truck or a few, you can take advantage of State Farm's stellar reputation for service and its financial stability.
State Farm has earned an A++ rating from A.M. Best, the highest available from the credit rating agency. It's also rated AA by S&P Global Ratings. State Farm was also recently ranked number one for customer satisfaction in an Investopedia report.
State Farm Pricing For Commercial Truckers
State Farm does not make its pricing public. You’ll need to ask for a personalized price quote.
The cost of your State Farm coverage depends on how many vehicles your business operates, their value, your industry, and how many miles you drive.
State Farm Policies For Commercial Truckers
State Farm takes a slightly different approach to commercial truck insurance, marketing its coverage as distributors insurance. That indicates this insurance is aimed at cargo and delivery operations. State Farm’s distributors insurance package starts with these types of coverage:
Property
Business liability
Loss of income
Motor truck cargo
Employee dishonesty
Computer property
Equipment breakdown
State Farm recommends that customers work directly with an agent to discover if additional policies like the following make sense:
Commercial auto
Workers compensation
Commercial liability umbrella
Types Of Trucks State Farm Covers
State Farm covers many different types of vehicles, including trucks, vans, refrigerator trucks, catering trucks, farm vehicles, and more.
Policies available for many types of commercial vehicles
Cons
Not available in all states
Why We Chose Nationwide For Best Commercial Truck Insurance
Nationwide offers a full range of commercial trucking insurance policies. In addition to fleet insurance, Nationwide singles out public auto businesses that provide transportation for members of the public, like taxis, limousines, and buses.
If your business auto insurance needs fall within that description, Nationwide could be a good company to start your insurance search with.
Nationwide Commercial Truck Insurance Pricing
Nationwide pricing information is available by custom quote only. You can request your custom quote online or by phone. If you phone in for a quote, you’re likely to receive it within 30 minutes.
Nationwide has two pricing policies commercial truck customers will find beneficial. First, you’ll be able to set and pay a single deductible for combined physical damage and cargo losses, potentially saving you money in the event of a claim. Nationwide also has a “diminishing deductible” policy. That means your deductible will be reduced by a percentage for each claim-free year, starting with your second year of coverage.
Nationwide Policies For Commercial Truckers
Nationwide’s business insurance offerings are second to none, with all the basic coverage types and many specialty policies. Additional types of coverage aimed at commercial truck customers include:
Physical damage
Cargo
Bobtail
Earned freight
Broadened reefer breakdown
Auto liability
Downtime expenses/loss of business income
Electronic equipment
Loan or lease gap
Personal effects
Towing
Windshield
Types Of Trucks Nationwide Covers
You can find Nationwide coverage for all kinds of commercial vehicles, including:
Why We Chose Milepost For Best Commercial Truck Insurance
Milepost Insurance is a reliable insurer offering a full range of commercial truck insurance. Beyond the basics, Milepost stands out for its focus on trailer insurance. Other insurance companies cover trailers, but we haven't seen one that specializes in trailers the way Milepost does.
Although it's not as familiar a name as some others on this list, you can rest assured that Milepost is a reliable company. Not only has it earned the highest financial stability rating of A++ by A.M. Best, but this insurance company is owned and backed by the multinational conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and all its resources
Milepost Trucking Insurance Pricing
Milepost offers pricing information by personal quote only. You can call or apply online. If you call, the company says you’ll have a quote within 15 minutes.
You can also access a certificate of insurance coverage online 24/7. That lets you provide instant proof to freight brokers and shippers.
Milepost offers a friendly feature for trucking companies, offering to handle insurance filings on your behalf. This includes:
Merchant Maverick has been researching and reviewing business insurance since 2020. Our writers have tested over twenty different major insurance companies. In each review, we evaluate pricing, features, customer service, and user reviews.
When comparing different business insurance companies, we consider many data points, including relative pricing, the number of standard insurance policies available, and the ability to create custom policies. Our lists of the best business insurance providers include only those we’ve deemed worthwhile from multiple vantage points and often share qualities such as low cost, a variety of niche business insurance policies, multiple ways to file claims, and excellent customer support.
We spend an average of 10-15 hours researching and updating each one of our lists, ensuring that the business insurance companies included meet our internal standards for quality and reputation.
Commercial Trucking Explored
Commercial truck insurance is a type of commercial auto insurance. More specifically, it’s a bundle of insurance policies that offer comprehensive protection for trucking businesses and independent owner-operators. The exact combination of insurance your business needs depends on the specifics of your operation.
Here are some common elements you can include in your commercial truck coverage:
Primary Liability Truck Insurance: Just as personal auto insurance is legally required, you may be required to carry commercial auto liability insurance if your business involves trucking. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), a part of the US Department of Transportation, enforces strict requirements for coverage between $750K and $5 million that vary depending on the types of cargo you carry and where you carry it. Factors include truck weight and size as well as cargo hazards.
General Liability Truck Insurance: You can add extra coverage to pay for damages done to someone else’s property. This may also protect you from lawsuits involving slander, libel, and false advertising claims.
Physical Damage Coverage: You’ll need an additional policy to cover damage to your truck and equipment in an accident or disaster. This type of coverage is voluntary.
Non-Trucking Liability: This type of coverage adds protection when you use your truck for a non-business purpose.
Bobtail Insurance: This type of coverage covers you when your truck is being driven without a trailer attached.
Motor Truck Cargo Insurance: The value of your cargo could exceed the value of the truck that’s hauling it. If you want to insure it against loss or damage, you’ll need a separate cargo insurance policy. This type of cargo insurance is not available in every state or for every trucking situation. Talk to your insurance agent to see if it’s a good idea for you.
Rental Reimbursement With Downtime: This policy kicks in when your vehicle is kept off the road because of an accident. It helps you recover the costs of renting a vehicle, helps you make your truck payments, and covers other bills.
Trailer Interchange Coverage: If you routinely use your trucks to haul trailers that you do not own, this type of insurance protects you if the trailer becomes damaged due to a collision, theft, fire, explosion, or vandalism.
Who Needs Commercial Trucking Insurance?
Commercial truck insurance is not the same as commercial auto insurance. Even if you routinely use work vehicles, including trucks, for your business, you may not qualify for commercial truck insurance.
If you and/or your employees haul cargo within the state where you do business, you may need only general liability. Interstate haulers who use large semi-trucks to haul cargo through multiple states may be subject by state or federal authorities to a different set of insurance requirements.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires certain insurance minimums before you’re allowed to register as a hauler with the FMCSA. If you’re planning to transport interstate cargo, either independently as an owner-operator or through lease agreements with employees, you must acquire FMCSA authority to do so. Once you receive valid Motor Carrier (MC) and Department of Transportation (DOT) numbers, you’ll have 90 days to acquire the appropriate insurance.
Final Verdict
Hopefully you have a better idea of what to expect from a variety of companies when it comes to insuring your trucking business. There are many companies that can give you a wide range of coverages depending on your various needs but you’ll need to decide if you want to go with one of the larger firms that may have more resources at their disposal, or a more niche insurance company that can give you some customized plans.
Thanks for checking us out and be sure to look at some of our other insurance blogs if you have any additional questions!
Matt has been helping small businesses make decisions since 2017. He has written reviews and articles across many different channels but specializes in the point of sale, payroll, and small business insurance categories and has been quoted in articles for Fox Business, Forbes, and other publications. Prior to joining Merchant Maverick, Matt was a journalist and editor for 14 years for a pair of weekly newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and currently resides in Gladstone, Oregon.
View Matt Sherman's professional experience on LinkedIn.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
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