commercial truck insurance for new drivers

Commercial Truck Insurance for New Drivers

Commercial Truck Insurance For New Drivers

When it comes to the trucking industry it can be very difficult to find insurance.  The trucking industry has gone through a lot of change, especially when it comes to the insurance world.  Trucking insurance has become much more difficult to obtain recently.  Many of the carriers that originally were writing a lot of policies haven’t been offering terms nearly as often.  Truck drivers can do very well, but many times finding a company willing to give you a chance is the hardest part…  Now being a new truck driver, then you really fall into a conundrum..  When it comes to finding commercial truck insurance for new drivers, the odds are definitely stacked against the driver.

Another big concern is the 2-year rule.  Many companies have a hard and fast rule regarding insurance.  Drivers must have experience driving a truck for at least 2 years before they will take on the driver for insurance.  This can make that ever challenging process of finding insurance very hard.

New Truck Driver Insurance

With all of these questions about where to find insurance and how to find a company that is willing to actually cover you, it can be quite a difficult process.  Here at Evolution Insurance Brokers we are willing to insure any company regardless of claims, driving history, or in this case lack of driving history.    Finding coverage for a driver that is just beginning nowadays is about the hardest it has ever been.

New drivers continue to face an uphill climb in getting any type of insurance.  They are facing further issues with all the requirements that they have with DOT regulations and this can very difficult as well.  We will be able to help lead your path in finding the insurance portion of this.  It is important to us that a good partnership is built.  Getting you started on the road as soon as possible is our goal.  We can also help with high risk truck insurance.  Specializing in these types of risks will help us to solve your problems with insurance.

These are specific solutions we can help with:

  • New Truck Drivers
  • Problem Truck Drivers
  • New Authorities
  • High Risk Trucking Companies
  • Problems with obtaining insurance because of claims history
  • DUIs for truck drivers
  • High Risk Commercial Truck Insurance
  • High risk cargo insurance
  • Drivers that have been denied coverage previously
  • Drivers with high FMCSA scores
  • Authorities with high FMCSA Scores
  • Any other type of reason that you might not be finding insurance for

Insurance Needed By New Truck Drivers

There are Various Insurance that you need as a new truck driver.  It is crucial that you make sure you have the required insurance to get jobs with the load brokers etc.

  • Liability Insurance – This will pay for claims from you that caused damage to other drivers, or bodily injury to other drivers and their passengers.  You typically will need $1,000,000 liability for the brokers.  Sometimes $750,000 is acceptable as that is the required limit currently by the DOT.
  • Physical Damage Coverage – This is typically to cover your truck for damages.  This will cover if you run into somebody or an object and it’s your fault and need your truck repaired.  It also will cover theft of the vehicle.
  •  General Liability Insurance – This will cover things that happen when you are not on the road.  You will want a policy that covers both loading and unloading of the truck, if you are doing any loading yourself.  For many companies they are wanting a policy of $1,000,000 per accident and $2,000,000 Aggregate.
  • Motor Truck Cargo Insurance – This is coverage for the goods that you are hauling if they get damaged in accident or while in transit.
  • Refrigeration Breakdown Coverage – This is for coverage on a trailer that is a “reefer” unit.  This will cover if your trailer’s refrigeration unit malfunctions and causes spoilage of your load.
  • Trailer Interchange Insurance – This is insurance to cover a trailer for damages that is constantly being swapped or rented.  Many load brokers require this coverage, and so you will want to find out their requirements to haul for them.
  • Bobtail Insurance – This will cover you when you are not on a load or doing personal type of errands etc.  Most companies want this coverage if you are an owner operator for them.
  • Umbrella/Excess Liability Insurance – Some Contracts may require this coverage.  Many do not.  This is just coverage on top of the $1,000,000 that you already have.  This can be on top of both the Auto Liability and General Liability Insurance policies.

These are just some of the coverages that may be required as a new truck driver.  When you get loads or are looking to work under someone make sure and check their requirements for insurance.

New Venture Trucking Insurance

Many new drivers are wanting to hit the road running.  I like and respect that.  The big issue they may face again is the “2-year rule”.  Most insurance companies want to see that a trucking company has 2 years with their authority.  They also want to see that the driver has 2 years of experience with a CDL.  This turns finding insurance into a precarious situation for many new companies.  Finding an insurance company that will accept new ventures is challenging.  It is also hard to find an insurance company that is comfortable with growth in the first 2 years.  So that leaves the question, how do new drivers get started with their own new venture?

At Evolution Insurance Brokers we have no issues allowing new drivers to start their own companies and we also allow them to grow and will offer help for that challenge.  We have a risk management team that can guide you to setting up the best company you can.  The “2-year rule” doesn’t apply here.  We will cover any new company with any driver that has a valid CDL, if driving a truck that requires a CDL.  We will also cover any hotshot trucking company or other type of trucking venture.  Finding new venture insurance is simple when you don’t have those restrictions.  Insurance for a new trucking company definitely has it’s hurdles, but we can be there to help you jump those in flying colors.

 

If you have been running into problems trying to find commercial truck insurance for new drivers, I know I can help.  You can call me direct and we can usually provide a quote within 24 hours of receiving your application.  Don’t keep banging your head on the wall having more insurance carriers deny you coverage for any reason.  Thanks for reading.

Commercial Truck Insurance For New Drivers
Rick J. Lindsey
Rick Lindsey

President, CEO and Chairman