Commercial Auto Insurance

If you are a business owner, you need to carry several different types of insurance. These could include general liability insurance, malpractice insurance, product and professional liability insurance, and commercial property insurance. Another type of insurance that business owners may need to carry is commercial auto insurance. Commercial auto insurance coverage is similar to the insurance you carry for the car you use for personal transportation. A commercial policy, like a personal automobile policy, covers liability, collision and comprehensive, medical payments (personal injury protection) and coverage for uninsured motorists.

Some business owners may forget about carrying commercial coverage because they use their automobile for both work and personal business. What many of these business owners may not realize, however, is that their claim may be denied if they lack commercial auto insurance and they have an accident while doing business with their automobile. To maintain proper coverage on a vehicle that is used for business, you must have commercial auto insurance and should have your vehicle listed under the business name as a principal insured entity on your policy. This way, if a claim is filed by you or against you, the insurance company will be able to process your claim without any confusion.

Determining which type of business auto insurance policy you need will of course depends on several factors, such as the number of employees who will drive the vehicle and the type of driving they will do for the job. It also matters whether you drive the vehicle personally or if your employees drive the vehicle, or whether you will have your employees drive their own vehicles for business purposes. While similar to a personal auto insurance policy, there are differences in liability and other types of coverage that you will need with a commercial policy.

The policy itself will outline exactly what constitutes commercial use of an insured vehicle. How exactly this definition fits your company’s vehicle use will determine if you actually need a commercial policy. As with all insurance coverage, your agent can help you to investigate your needs and plan accordingly.

Your monthly premiums for a commercial account will be influenced by several factors, such as business location (whether you are in a bad neighborhood or not), the driving records for yourself and your employees, the type of vehicles you are insuring (how safe they are), which size deductible you choose, and which safety or anti-theft devices are installed on the vehicle.

There are also some special considerations which can affect your commercial auto insurance rates. If you run a trucking business, for example, you may have certain insurance requirements you must meet for the state and federal government or department of transportation. Commercial policies also differ from personal ones in regards to who is covered in the event of a claim. It could be the driver, owner, or corporation, for example. As with other business insurance, the type of business you run and specific uses for your vehicles are the largest determining factor in how much commercial auto insurance coverage you will need.