FMCSA requires primary liability insurance (minimum $750,000 for general freight). Most brokers require $1,000,000 before they'll give you loads. Beyond that, you need cargo coverage and physical damage on your truck. Those three pieces, liability, cargo, physical damage, are the foundation of a new authority insurance program.
Here's the full breakdown, coverage by coverage.
Primary liability insurance
Primary liability covers bodily injury and property damage you cause to others while operating your truck. It's the single most important policy you buy. It's also required by federal law before you can activate your authority.
- FMCSA minimum: $750,000 for general freight
- Broker minimum: $1,000,000 (universal)
- Hazmat: $1,000,000 to $5,000,000 depending on class
- Filed with FMCSA as: BMC-91 or BMC-91X
Do not save money by carrying the $750K minimum. The jump from $750K to $1M is usually under $50/month and opens up every broker in the country.
Motor truck cargo insurance
Cargo coverage pays if freight you're hauling is damaged, lost, or stolen. It's not technically required by FMCSA for general freight, but every broker requires it. $100,000 limit is standard.
- Standard limit: $100,000
- Auto transport: $250,000+ often required
- High-value freight: may need $250,000 or more
- Typical deductible: $1,000 to $2,500
- Reefer loads: add reefer breakdown endorsement
Read the exclusions before you haul anything unusual. Standard cargo policies often exclude high-value freight, live animals, hazmat, household goods, and refrigerated items without specific endorsements.
Physical damage insurance
Protects your truck itself. If you wreck it, it's stolen, it catches fire, or a tree falls on it, physical damage pays to repair or replace. Required by any lender financing your truck.
- Written at: stated value or actual cash value
- Typical deductible: $1,000 to $2,500
- Includes: collision + comprehensive (theft, fire, vandalism, weather)
- Optional add-ons: downtime coverage, towing, rental
Trailer interchange / non-owned trailer
If you drop-and-hook someone else's trailer, you need coverage for damage to that trailer. Either through trailer interchange (when you operate under an interchange agreement) or non-owned trailer coverage (when you're just pulling a borrowed trailer).
- Typical limit: $25,000 to $75,000
- Required by: most larger brokers (Amazon, CHRW, XPO)
Non-trucking liability (bobtail)
Covers you when you're operating the truck without dispatch , driving it home, running a personal errand. Inexpensive coverage, required if you're leased onto a motor carrier.
Occupational accident or workers' comp
If you're an owner-op leased onto a carrier, you generally need occupational accident coverage. If you run your own authority and employ drivers, you generally need workers' comp. Rules vary by state, some states let you exempt yourself as an owner, others don't.
General liability
Covers premises liability (someone slips on your property) and completed operations. Usually bundled with your trucking package at low cost. Some shippers require it.
What's required vs. what's smart
Required to legally operate and find loads:
- Primary liability, $1M
- Cargo, $100K
- Physical damage, your truck's value (if financed, your lender requires it)
Strongly recommended for a complete program:
- Trailer interchange / non-owned trailer
- Non-trucking liability (if leased on)
- Occupational accident or workers' comp
- General liability
Specialty coverages depending on what you haul:
- Reefer breakdown
- Higher cargo limits for auto transport, high-value freight
- Hazmat endorsements
- Pollution liability (for tankers, waste haulers)
Related questions
Is $750K liability enough?
Technically yes, legally. Practically no. Most brokers won't dispatch you below $1M, so you're limiting your freight pool for the sake of saving a few dollars a month. More on this in the FAQ.
Do I really need cargo coverage?
If you want to haul loads, yes. Every broker and most shippers require it. It's also what pays when freight damage happens, and it happens more than you'd think.
Can I skip physical damage on a paid-off truck?
You can. Some owner-ops do when the truck is fully paid off and they can afford to self-insure a total loss. For most owner-ops running one truck that's their livelihood, that's a bad bet.