Best Commercial Truck Insurance of 2024

• 1st Guard
• Great West Casualty
• RLI Insurance
• Sentry

Commercial truck insurance is a form of small business insurance that provides financial protection if you get into an accident, have cargo damage, lose cargo or experience other problems.

Commercial truck insurance generally includes a specialized set of coverage types that address the specific problems that truckers can face. The best commercial truck insurance companies also help with risk management so you can avoid costly claims.

If you’re buying commercial truck insurance, you’ll select the coverage you want and the insurer will calculate the annual premium. Once you have the policy, you can make a claim for damage and other problems covered by the policy and get reimbursement from the insurance company.

If you are an independent owner-operator or you manage a fleet of trucks, you already know you need commercial truck insurance. Our analysis focuses on the needs of tractor-trailer operators.

Each state has minimum insurance requirements for commercial truck insurance. The coverage amount might depend on the freight type.

For instance, in California, if your truck weighs over 10,000 pounds, you need a minimum of $750,000 in coverage if you’re transporting general freight, $300,000 if you’re transporting household goods, $1 million if transporting oil, and a minimum of $5 million if you’re transporting hazardous materials.

Check with your state’s DMV for specific requirements.

Commercial truck insurance costs about $650 a month for transport truckers and $1,000 a month for specialty truckers, according to the National Independent Truckers Insurance Co.

Cost depends on factors such as:

The value of your truck. The size and value of your truck will affect the cost of physical damage insurance.

Location: Location always affects vehicle insurance rates.

Value and type of cargo you’re transporting. Valuable cargo will cost more to insure. In addition, some types of cargo are more susceptible to theft or are at higher risk—such as hazardous or flammable material.

Driver details. Your past driving experience and coverage history affect your rates, as well as violations in a company’s U.S. DOT operating history.

Coverage chosen and deductible. The types of coverage you select, the policy limits and the deductibles chosen will affect truck insurance costs.

Truck Insurance Discounts

Our analysis found that truck insurance discounts are not common. Instead, you can try to keep your rates low by maintaining a clean driving record and avoiding damage to your truck and cargo.

You can easily find basic truckers insurance such as auto liability and cargo insurance. You may have to look harder for more niche coverage.

Basic Truck Insurance

Commercial truck liability insurance. This coverage pays other people when you’ve accidentally injured them or caused property damage to them with your truck. It will also cover your legal costs if you’re sued over an accident. Liability insurance does not pay for any type of damage to your own truck or trailer or your own injuries.

Non-trucking liability insurance. This coverage is for permanently leased owner operators and applies to vehicles that are solely for your personal use.

Physical damage coverage. Pays to fix damage to your own tractor and trailer.

Trucker cargo insurance. Pays in case the cargo you’re hauling is stolen or damaged.

Workers’ compensation insurance. Motor carriers are likely required by their states to have workers’ comp for employees. If an employee becomes injured or sick due to work-related tasks, workers’ comp can pay for their medical bills, lost wages and rehabilitation services.

Specialized Truck Insurance

Commercial excess liability insurance. If the coverage in your base commercial auto liability policy is used up for accident costs, you can use a commercial excess policy to pay for additional costs. This kind of insurance is a smart buy in case you cause a very expensive accident.

Hired and non-owned liability insurance. Pays for injuries or damage to someone else that you cause while you’re driving a vehicle that you borrowed, leased, rented or hired.

Occupational accident truck insurance. If you’re not covered under workers’ compensation insurance, this insurance includes coverage for accidental death and dismemberment, accident medical and accident disability income.

Towing. Pays for the costs to tow your truck to the nearest facility.

Trailer interchange insurance. Pays for damage to a trailer you’re hauling that you don’t own.

Related: Best Commercial Auto Insurance

The following problems are examples of exclusions that might be found in a commercial truck insurance policy:

• Dishonest, intentional or criminal acts by you.
• Damage to cargo while being loaded or unloaded by anyone but you.
• Abandoned cargo.
• Cargo that has been accepted by the receiving party.
• Cargo being transported across a frozen waterway.
• Damage to cargo caused by war or insurrection.
• Loss caused by the explosion of a nuclear weapon or power plant.
• Loss caused by radioactive, biological, viral or chemical contamination.
• Anything not listed on a bill of lading.
• Lost revenue and profit.
• A vehicle while used in any professional or organized racing or demolition contest or stunting activity.
• Loss of fuel.

We evaluated 12 trucking insurance companies based on commercial auto insurance complaints made to state regulators in 2022, using data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. We also considered coverage options and online/mobile features in our rankings.

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