Coverage for for-hire trucking — owner-operators, local and regional fleets, and long-haul carriers running under their own authority. Primary liability, motor truck cargo, physical damage and excess, placed by an independent Rochester Hills agency that scopes the authority, the commodities and the safety record before it markets the account.
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A trucking program is several policies working together, and the freight itself is insured separately from the truck. These are the parts that decide whether a loss is covered or argued.
The bodily injury and property damage cover the operating authority is built around. Where a carrier holds federal authority, evidence of financial responsibility is filed on its behalf and the applicable minimum limit depends on the commodity hauled and the vehicle weight — so the required limit is a function of what is being run, not a single number that applies to everyone.
Covers the freight in the carrier's care, custody and control, which auto liability does not. Limits are set against the value of a typical load rather than an average, and the exclusions do the real work: refrigeration breakdown, unattended vehicle, theft and certain commodity classes are commonly restricted or written back by endorsement.
Comprehensive and collision on the tractors and trailers, usually written at stated amount per unit. Financed equipment brings a lienholder onto the policy, and where the schedule includes owner-operator equipment under lease, whose physical damage responds should be settled in the lease and reflected on the policy rather than assumed.
Responds to damage to a trailer a carrier is pulling under a written interchange or equipment agreement but does not own. It is a distinct coverage from physical damage on owned trailers, and the limit should track the value of the equipment actually being interchanged — a detail that surfaces when a carrier begins pulling for a new shipper.
For owner-operators leased to a motor carrier, this addresses use of the truck when it is not dispatched under that carrier's authority. It is narrower than commercial auto liability and turns on whether the unit was in business use at the time, which is precisely what tends to be disputed — so the lease terms and the policy wording should be read against each other.
General liability answers premises and loading or unloading exposure that the auto policy does not, excess liability adds limit above the primary auto where a shipper contract calls for it, and workers' compensation applies to employee drivers where the statutory criteria are met. How owner-operators are treated for comp purposes depends on the arrangement and is worth confirming rather than assuming.
Trucking is underwritten on operating profile far more than on fleet size. These are the items that decide which markets will look at an account at all.
How long the authority has been active is one of the first questions asked. New-venture carriers are a distinct underwriting class with a narrower set of markets, and prior verifiable experience under someone else's authority can matter to how a new operation is viewed. Lapses in authority are worth explaining in the submission rather than leaving to be discovered.
Years of verifiable CDL experience, age, and the motor vehicle record for each driver. Many trucking markets apply minimum experience criteria and look closely at moving violations and preventable accidents. Driver turnover is read as an operational signal in its own right, separate from any individual record.
What is on the trailer changes both the cargo underwriting and, where federal authority applies, the minimum liability limit that governs the operation. General dry freight, refrigerated product, vehicles, hazardous materials and high-theft categories such as electronics are treated very differently, and a carrier that hauls a mix should describe the mix by percentage rather than name a single commodity.
Local, intermediate and long-haul radius are rated as different exposures, and the specific states run matter because loss costs vary by jurisdiction. The radius stated at binding should reflect actual dispatch history — a carrier rated regional but running coast to coast is a mismatch that tends to surface at audit.
Power unit and trailer counts, model years and stated values, plus the ratio of trailers to tractors. Older equipment can restrict physical damage terms, and specialised trailers — reefer units, flatbeds, tankers — carry their own considerations for both physical damage and the cargo form.
Currently valued loss runs, usually three to five years, read alongside the public safety data attached to the DOT number. Roadside inspection and violation history is visible to underwriters whether or not it is volunteered, so addressing a poor period directly — and describing what changed — generally produces a better result than leaving it unexplained.
Requirements vary by market and by the class of operation, but a trucking submission moves faster when this is assembled up front.
Direct answers to what Michigan carriers and owner-operators ask before moving a program.
Most for-hire carriers carry primary auto liability, physical damage on the equipment, and motor truck cargo, with general liability and excess added where contracts call for them and workers' compensation where employee drivers meet the statutory criteria. Owner-operators leased to a carrier often need non-trucking liability instead of a full primary auto policy. The right combination depends on the operating authority, the commodities and what shipper or broker agreements obligate the carrier to carry.
It depends on the authority and what is being hauled, not on a single universal figure. Where federal operating authority applies, minimum financial responsibility is set by regulation and varies with vehicle weight and commodity class, with higher minimums for certain hazardous materials. Intrastate-only operations are governed separately. Shipper and broker contracts frequently require more than the regulatory minimum, so the practical limit is often set by the contracts a carrier wants to run under.
It covers the freight in the carrier's care, custody and control while it is being hauled — an exposure auto liability does not address. The limit should be set against the value of a full typical load rather than an average one, and the form's exclusions matter as much as the limit: refrigeration breakdown, theft from an unattended vehicle and specific commodity classes are commonly restricted, with some available back by endorsement depending on the carrier.
Chiefly driver experience and motor vehicle records, years the authority has been active, commodities hauled, operating radius and states run, equipment values, and loss and roadside safety history. Fleet size matters less than operating profile — a two-truck carrier hauling high-value freight across several states can be a harder placement than a larger local fleet running dry freight within one radius.
Yes, though new-venture operations are a distinct underwriting class served by a narrower set of markets and generally priced accordingly. Verifiable driver experience gained under a prior authority is one of the most useful things a new carrier can document, along with a clean motor vehicle record and a realistic description of the intended radius and commodities. Terms typically improve as the authority builds a clean operating and loss history.
Substantially. Local, intermediate and long-haul radius are rated as different exposures, and the states travelled matter because loss costs and litigation environments differ by jurisdiction. The radius on the application should reflect actual dispatch history rather than intent — a mismatch between the stated radius and where the trucks actually run is a common source of disputes at audit and at claim.
At minimum: the USDOT number, how long the authority has been active, a driver list with CDL numbers and years of experience, motor vehicle records, an equipment schedule with VINs and stated values, the commodities hauled, the operating radius and states, typical load values for the cargo limit, and currently valued loss runs. Contract requirements and any needed filings should be included, since they can determine which markets are viable before anything is marketed.
Titanium Shield Insurance Agency is an independent commercial agency in Rochester Hills. We scope the authority, drivers, commodities and safety record before marketing, and place liability, cargo, physical damage and excess coverage across carriers rather than through one company.