Insurance Coverage for Our Family

Specialized Insurance Protections That Semi Owner-Operators Need

20 March 2020

Christian Byrd

Driving a semi truck presents substantial and unique risk exposure, and owner-operators in this space need to protect themselves from many of the risks they face. If you're an owner-operator of a semi truck, here are some specialized truck insurance protections that you should probably have.

Freight Coverage for Cargo in Transit

The trailers that semi trucks haul hold a lot of cargo, and that cargo's often quite valuable. Even a load of only moderately valuable items becomes worth quite a lot when you consider how many units there are in a full load. 

Freight coverage helps make sure you have financial protection if anything happens to a load while you're hauling it. Should cargo be damaged in an accident or stolen outright, this insurance protection will help you reimburse the company that hired you to move the goods.

Without this coverage, many owner-operators would be financially ruined if they lost a full load of cargo. Even the most successful truck drivers probably couldn't afford to replace an entire load of goods without sustaining a major monetary setback (and possibly declaring bankruptcy).

Bobtail Coverage for the Semi Truck

As the owner of your truck, you need to protect the truck at all times. The truck is essential to your business, and it'd be extremely costly to replace the vehicle.

Bobtail coverage specifically protects your semi truck, and it does so even when the truck isn't towing a trailer. As long as a truck is being driven for work, this coverage will pay for any damage that the truck sustains in a covered incident.

Non-Trucking Coverage for Personal Driving

While bobtail coverage will provide protection for your semi truck during work-related driving, it won't necessarily cover personal driving. To cover your truck against damage when you're driving it for personal reasons, you need non-trucking coverage.

Non-trucking coverage is especially important to owner-operators, as they often end up driving their truck for personal use on occasion. If you run a quick errand with the truck when your personal vehicle brakes down, for instance, you'll need this coverage.

Equipment Coverage for Miscellaneous Equipment

If you own your own load-securing equipment, you'll want equipment coverage to protect the gear against damage and theft. Equipment coverage protects things like tarps, belts, chains and other peripheral items. Since these items are sometimes left sitting unsecured during loading or unloading, this isn't a protection you want to be without if you own the items.

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