Commercial Truck Insurance in California: Costs, Benefits, & Who Needs It
Trucks transport products from their primary pickup location to their final delivery at the receiver’s location. The products or cargo may include finished goods, raw materials, or other work-in-process items. The truck driver or trucker may also assist clients in the packing and unpacking of items.
Many California trucking businesses have warehouses for the long-term and temporary storage of their customers’ products. Some haul their cargo to the same locations repeatedly, while others frequently change their destinations.
It doesn’t matter if your business owns one or more trucks. What’s essential to your trucking business’s success is preventing the perils your truckers face on the road. You might own one truck to deliver goods or an entire fleet of vehicles that transport freight to different parts of the world.
Either way, California commercial truck insurance is always a good idea.
But what’s the best semi-truck insurance in California? What are the best trucking insurance companies in California? How can you lower your costs?
Read on to learn everything you need to know about commercial truck insurance in California.
What is Commercial Truck Insurance in California?
In 2019, 5,005 large trucks were involved in fatal crashes. According to the same source, trucks also made 10% of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes. It only shows how dangerous the commercial trucking industry is.
Regardless, California’s commercial truck accidents are expensive, specifically in cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco.
The average payout can add up to an average amount of $70,000.
California commercial truck insurance is a bundle of specific auto insurance policies designed to protect the needs of your trucking business. Even the most basic commercial truck insurance policies will cover your vehicles in case of an accident.
When looking for the perfect California truck insurance policy, it is always recommended to make sure that this insurance policy information is explained by your insurance company, together with the accurate insurance quote applicable for your business.
If you have included big commercial trucks for your business, like auto trailers, garbage trucks, dump trucks, car haulers, tank trucks, box trucks, tow trucks, and flatbed trucks, make sure that the truck insurance you’ll get is enough to enclose your liabilities.
Commercial truckers’ insurance limits the losses in case of a covered peril. The risk you face is changing, though these trucking vehicles have different work to do. Many factors are included regarding how much you will pay for the California truck insurance. These include the employees who drive the truck, the number of miles logged yearly, and the truck’s time on the road.
Read next: The Complete Commercial Truck Insurance Guide
What Does Commercial Truck Insurance in California Cover?
California commercial insurance truck coverage is applicable in various iterations like any other vehicle. Each of them is created to safeguard the truck insurance policy owner from significant losses.
Below are the different types of insurance coverage that may be included in your trucking insurance in California.
- Liability Insurance Coverage: Every time truckers operate their rig, they need to carry liability trucking insurance. It puts protections into an appropriate place that helps safeguard truckers and owners against unnecessary situations. Injuries, property damage, and other types of accidents can happen anytime while operating a trucking vehicle. Since trucks have more weight and size, they usually tend to do more damage and injuries than car accidents in California. The liability trucking insurance coverage will pay for any legal defense if someone files a lawsuit after an accident.
- Physical Damage Insurance Coverage: The repair cost, including the damages done in an accident, is prohibitive. But this insurance coverage will compensate for the repair cost specified in your trucking commercial insurance policy limits. Though sometimes the collision coverage can pay for the injuries and damages because of the colliding incident between the objects or vehicles, this trucking insurance coverage is more comprehensive and still pays for non-collision damages. State law in California doesn’t require this type of insurance coverage for the trucking business. However, it’s still crucial to get one, especially if trucks are financed. Getting California commercial truck insurance is crucial to ensure appropriate compensation and fair insurance market value.
- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Insurance Coverage: This insurance coverage occurs if other parties involved in an accident lack coverage to pay or compensate for damage repairs or don’t have any truck insurance.
- Motor Truck Cargo Insurance Coverage: Suppose someone asks to transport their items using your trucking vehicle. You must provide a good service and take responsibility for the products or goods because they are in your possession. But if an accident or a collision happens, and the goods are damaged or dumped onto a roadway, the cost can be expensive if you don’t have insurance. It’s good that motor cargo insurance coverage safeguards you from different liabilities that occur, with many risks of products being transported for others.
What Doesn’t Commercial Truck Insurance in California Cover?
There are certain coverages that California commercial truck insurance doesn’t include, such as:
- Some vehicles that aren’t trucks: For example, commercial truck insurance in California doesn’t cover cement trucks, limos, busses, or passenger vans.
- Driver injuries: The basic commercial truck policy covers other people. If you want to protect your driver, you need to purchase workers’ compensation insurance.
- Loss of cargo
- Loss of income after an accident
Read more: Long Haul Truck Insurance
Why Do You Need Commercial Truck Insurance?
Suppose you are in California cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, and many others. In that case, California commercial truck insurance is an excellent way to keep your company moving and provide your truckers with the benefits they deserve.
If your truck is on the road, you are always making money. But if not, you’ll get business losses, especially without insurance. Just make sure that the commercial California insurance you purchase covers the important coverages mentioned above.
It’s always a good idea to shop around first and consider which Commercial Auto Insurance in California quote is appropriate.
How Does Commercial Truck Insurance in California Work?
As mentioned above, commercial truck insurance for new drivers in California covers bodily injuries and property damages if the truck driver is responsible for an accident. California commercial insurance also includes other policies such as liability insurance, uninsured/underinsured motorist policy, and cargo coverage. When the accident happens, the driver reports the claim to the insurance carrier, who pays the covered benefits.
How Much Does Commercial Truck Insurance in California Cost?
On average, the cost of truck insurance in California is $14,189 per year.
For example, an owner of a truck based in Bakersfield with over 3 years of experience will need to pay $12,721 for an annual premium. Another truck owner at the same location but with 2 years of experience and a different type of cargo will pay $15,600 for the same annual premium.
The cost of commercial truck insurance in California is based on many factors, including:
- The type of cargo you are hauling
- Your driving history
- How long you’ve been in the trucking business
- State requirements
Read More: Commercial Truck Financing Calculator
Is Commercial Trucking Insurance Required in California?
The California commercial truck insurance requirements are as follows: Any truck traveling within California with more than 10,000 gross vehicle weight needs liability insurance.
East Insurance Group provides insurance in all locations in California, including San Diego, Los Angeles, Fresno, Sacramento, and San Jose.
Many unpredictable situations can happen to you if you are driving a truck. Accidents, theft, and injuries are just some situations that can be covered with commercial trucking insurance in cities like Los Angeles in California.
How to Lower the Costs of Commercial Truck Insurance in California
There are ways to lower the cost of your commercial truck insurance premium and save money on insurance. Here are some ways to get a cheap commercial truck insurance policy in California:
- Hire experienced drivers with clean records
- Raise your deductibles
- Pay your premiums in full each year
- Implement safe driving training for employees
- Ask about discounts before purchasing the policy
California Truck Insurance Filings
Here are California truck insurance filings East Insurance Group can help you with:
- ICC
- MCS90
- MCP65
- TL672
- 676
- PL914
- TL1000
- FORM H
- OL207
- SR22
East Insurance Group Offers Policies in All Cities in California
You can buy our insurance policies in all cities in California, including:
- Anaheim
- Bakersfield
- Fremont
- Fresno
- Long Beach
- Los Angeles
- Modesto
- Riverside
- Sacramento
- San Bernardino
- San Diego
- San Francisco
- San Jose
- Santa Ana
Are you still confused about commercial vehicle insurance in California or do you need some help with getting a quote for your business? Contact us today and get all the information you need fast and for free!
