General Liability for Truckers

Bodily injury and property damage that isn't caused by operating the vehicle: a customer slipping in your yard, damage at a shipper's dock while not loading or unloading the truck, advertising injury. Loading and unloading is often covered by the auto policy, so we check how your forms coordinate.

Shippers, warehouses and brokers often ask for $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, with them named as additional insureds.

Commercial auto liability responds to accidents arising from the use of your trucks. General liability covers other bodily injury and property damage claims, such as someone hurt at your yard or office, damage at a customer's dock not caused by the truck's operation, and some products and completed-operations exposures. Shippers, warehouses and some brokers require it on the certificate, often at $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate.

Watch the overlap: loading and unloading claims can fall between auto and GL depending on policy wording. Ask your agent which policy responds and whether the forms line up.

Carriers with a yard or terminal, carriers that do warehousing or loading, drayage carriers dealing with terminals in Newark and Norfolk, and anyone whose shipper contract requires it. GL premiums are usually modest compared with auto liability.

Combine GL with primary auto liability, cargo and physical damage. Some markets package them. See truck insurance cost.

Have these ready: your USDOT and MC numbers, the VIN, year and value of each truck and trailer, every driver's license number and date of birth (insurers pull MVRs), commodities with percentages, your radius and states, and 3–5 years of loss runs from prior insurers if you have them.

Underwriters also check your FMCSA record. That covers inspection and out-of-service history and safety ratings (public on SAFER) and crash history. Fixing data errors through FMCSA's DataQs system before you shop can make a real difference.

An agency that works with several trucking markets can compare them. Specialty markets and non-standard insurers accept new authorities and drivers with blemishes that standard carriers decline. See truck insurance cost for what moves price.

Make sure everyone is safe, call police when anyone is injured or vehicles must be towed, and photograph the scene, the vehicles, the load and the seal. Get the other parties' insurance information. Don't admit fault or sign anything except the police and inspection paperwork. Report the claim to your agent or insurer right away; most policies require prompt notice, and a late report can complicate coverage.

Under FMCSA rules (49 CFR 390.15), qualifying crashes must be recorded in your accident register, and drivers involved in certain crashes must be drug and alcohol tested under Part 382. For cargo, keep the bill of lading, delivery receipt notations, reefer download (if any) and photos. Exceptions noted at delivery are often what decides a cargo claim.

Brokers, shippers, warehouses and port equipment providers will ask for a certificate of insurance, often naming them as certificate holder or additional insured. Some also want a waiver of subrogation or specific limits. Send the contract to your agent before you sign, because a promise you make in a contract that your policy doesn't match is your problem, not the insurer's. Common requests include $1,000,000 auto liability, $100,000 cargo, general liability and trailer interchange for drayage.

Most coverage problems come from paperwork, not accidents. Add new trucks and drivers to the policy before they run, remove sold units, report radius or commodity changes, and pay installments on time. A cancellation for non-payment triggers an FMCSA filing cancellation and can take your authority down (see FMCSA insurance requirements). At renewal, request loss runs from your current insurer early so we can shop with them in hand.

GL limits are written per occurrence and as an annual aggregate, so several claims in one year can use up the aggregate. An umbrella or excess liability policy can sit above auto liability, GL and employer's liability, but umbrella markets for trucking are selective and price per power unit. Contracts with large shippers sometimes require $2,000,000 or more total liability, which is how many carriers end up buying excess.

• Does the auto or the GL policy respond to loading and unloading claims?
• Is there an exclusion for operations at customer facilities?
• Can additional insured and waiver of subrogation be added by blanket endorsement?
• Do products/completed operations apply to what I do?

Write down the answers and compare them across quotes. The cheapest premium often comes with the narrowest coverage.

• Schneider – How much is semi-truck insurance for owner-operators?