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Step 1
Commercial truck insurance covers many different types of commercial trucks, including tractor-trailers, dump trucks, straight trucks, tow trucks and pickup trucks. This type of insurance can be purchased by owner-operators for a single truck or for companies that need to insure an entire fleet of trucks. No matter which one of these categories that you fall into, commercial truck insurance is required in order to drive a commercial truck in California.
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Step 2
Commercial truck insurance is a lot like personal automobile coverage, it provides standard protections such as comprehensive and collision, general liability, uninsured/underinsured motorist protection and medical payments. Unlike personal auto insurance you usually can get commercial auto insurance by providing less information than you would have to provide for a personal auto policy.
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Step 3
Commercial truck insurance can also include specialized business-related coverages that can further protect you. These coverages are usually more specialized than what a standard policy provides. Motor truck cargo is one type of extra coverage which affords protection against lost, stolen or damaged cargo in transit. Motor truck cargo insurance can also offer protection against terrorism. Trailer Interchange coverage protects the insured against losses to non-owned trailers being pulled by their insured trucks. Non-trucking (bobtail) liability offers protection to owner-operators who are permanently leased to an ICC-regulated carrier. This provides coverage for trucks when not being used directly for business purposes, such as when a truck is bobtailing and goes to a truck wash or to a shop for repairs. There are lots of different types of coverage that you can get with your commercial auto insurance. Make sure to always ask your insurance agent if you don’t understand any part of the coverage on your policy.
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Step 4
Many insurers, and their agents, provide assistance with ICC (Interstate Operating Authority) compliance and filings. In California, insurance companies can also do an electronic filing which is required by the DMV in order to issue a MCP or motor carrier permit. This filing from the insurance company is called the MCP65 filing.
