Insurance for Car Rental Business: Cost & Quotes

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Updated: May 10, 2025 . 8 min read

Written by Ofir Sahar

CEO & Founder

Ofir Sahar

CEO & Founder

Some of the products on this page come from partners who may compensate us when you click on their links or take specific actions. This helps us keep our content free. That said, our opinions are our own and based on independent analysis.

 

Renting a car is as economical as renting a bike. In connection,  the car rental industry generates approximately  $58.34 billion and is projected to grow to $144.21 billion by 2027. While highly lucrative, there’s no doubt that the business comes with its share of risks. 

That’s why you need commercial insurance for rental cars for your business.

 This article features,commercial insurance for rental cars, what this is, how much it costs, policies available and the best companies offering it.

Liability Insurance for Car Rental

Liability insurance insurance for car rental takes care of claims filed against your car rental business. 

General liability insurance, employment practices liability insurance, cyber liability insurance, and employer’s liability insurance are the most common liability policies included in the insurance for car rental companies. 

General Liability Insurance for Car Rental Business

General liability insurance (CGL) is the most common insurance for car rental business and is often included in business auto rental insurance programs.  

This insurance for car rental business provides protection when your business is liable for the damages incurred by third parties. Specific risks covered are:

  • Third-party property damage claims-
  • Third-party personal injury claims
  • Legal expenses- In personal injury claims and property damage claims, this auto rental liability insurance covers administrative costs, settlements, attorney fees, and other legal expenses

Insurance companies underwriting general liability coverage for car rentals will allow you to avail the following optional inclusions in the policy:

  • Advertising injury coverage- Advertising injury coverage will cover compensatory payments, administrative costs, attorney fees, and other legal expenses. It applies when third parties sue your car rental business for copyright infringement, false advertising, slander, libel, and other similar offenses
  • Rented premises liability coverage- When the rented space becomes damaged due to fire, rented premises liability coverage will reimburse the losses of the property owner on your behalf
  • Products and completed operations coverage- It will cover expenses if the car rental service you completely delivered to a client caused personal injuries or property damage.

 

 

Commercial Auto Insurance for Car Rental Businesses

Insurance companies offer commercial auto insurance as a stand-alone policy or as an inclusion in the specialized insurance for car rental businesses. Usually, this commercial insurance for rental cars will provide the following coverages:

  • Auto liability coverage- It covers the medical expenses and their property damaged of those injured when renting a car.
  • Physical damage coverage-It covers the parts repair or replacement costs of your business’s commercial vehicle. Note that physical damage coverage is underwritten as either a collision coverage or comprehensive coverage.
  • Medical payments/personal injury protection coverage-You need medical payments or personal injury protection coverage to protect the driver and passengers of your car rental business’s vehicle.
  • Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage-It will cover expenses if your car rental business’s commercial vehicle got involved in a vehicular accident and the driver at fault isn’t covered by insurance or doesn’t have insurance, to begin with

 

 

Fleet Insurance for Rental Cars 

Typically, commercial car rental insurance protects against losses and is already useful for covering your rental cars. However, the best way to protect all of the cars comprehensively and cost-efficiently is through rental car fleet insurance. 

Car rental fleet insurance covers rental companies with more than 10 cars used for rental services.

Commercial fleet insurance for car rental companies is largely specialized and only few offer this type of coverage. Fleet insurance for rental cars is a requirement in some states. The state requirements dictate the coverage you must include in your auto rental fleet insurance

 

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Commercial Property Insurance for Car Rental Businesses 

Commercial property insurance primarily covers these exposures:

  • Building damage-When your car rental business’s garage or office becomes damaged due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils.

 Commercial property insurance provides the money you can use to cover repair expenses. The amount you’ll receive will be equal to a percentage of or the total value of the damage incurred

Car rental business commercial property insurance can be added with business equipment and tools coverage. This will recoup losses if the equipment and tools essential for business operations becomes damaged or lost due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered risks. 

The rental cars might be covered too as long as they become damaged or lost while in the premises of your business due to the aforementioned perils. 

 

Workers Compensation Insurance for Car Rental Businesses 

Your auto rental business will need workers’ compensation insurance to cover employees who sustain a work-related injury or disease. Having workers’ compensation insurance is crucial because it will help you cover the following without using personal funds or business funds:

  • Medical treatment/procedure
  • Hospitalization
  • Medication
  • Rehabilitation
  • Lost wages
  • Death benefits

Van Rental Insurance

Commercial rental car insurance is generally available for businesses that rent pickups, sedans, and other related medium-to-light vehicles. For those who rent vans, it’s better to get covered through tailored van rental insurance. Companies that sell this include the following policies:

  • General liability insurance
  • Commercial property insurance
  • Commercial auto insurance

Commercial Truck Rental Insurance 

Truck rental businesses can’t enjoy comprehensive coverage with car rental insurance.  This is because trucks are more costly to maintain. Furthermore, unlike cars, trucks are rented to be used for transporting various goods between locations. 

Carriers offer tailored commercial truck rental insurance. This consists of the following policies.

  • Contingent auto liability insurance
  • General liability insurance
  • Commercial auto insurance
  • Commercial property insurance

 

Contingent auto liability is the policy in truck rental insurance, which is not included in car rental insurance. So what does it do? Contingent auto liability insurance will help shoulder costs if your client causes an accident while using your truck, and you’re pulled into their mess. 

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Commercial Car Rental Insurance Cost 

On average, car rental insurance cost is $50 a month or $600 a year for a $1 million general liability coverage. The price you pay for your commercial car rental insurance cost varies based on various factors. Typically, these factors rely heavily on the makeup of your fleet like:  

  • The number of cars in your fleet
  • The types of vehicles you have in the fleet. Generally, insuring trucks will be more expensive than small cars
  • The age and condition of the cars
  • Additional equipment or accessories on the vehicles

 

The car rental business insurance cost also depends on the extent of your coverage, the limits, the policies you have, and the carrier. 

Below is a generalized breakdown of commercial car rental insurance cost estimates:  

Cost per Month  Cost per Year 
Commercial auto  $142  $1,704
General liability $50 $600
Commercial property  $63  $755
Workers’ compensation  $47 $560
Business owner’s policy (BOP) $99 $1,191

 

Commercial Truck Rental Insurance Cost

For commercial trucks, insurance is $87 per month or $1,044 a year for a $1 million general liability insurance. Like other rental businesses, the premiums depend on location, the number of units, revenue, and claim history. 

 

Van Rental Insurance Cost

Van rental businesses pay $75 a month or $900 a year for a $1 million general liability insurance. Like other rental businesses, the premiums depend on location, the number of units, revenue, and claim history. 

 

Best Car Rental Business Insurance Companies

 

CoverWallet

CoverWallet customizes the insurance policies of its partners to provide its own commercial vehicle rental insurance. 

Policies included are general liability, workers’ compensation, and commercial property, which you can bundle through a BOP to enjoy cheaper rates. 

Average cost: $49 per month 

Our rating: 10/10

Pros

  • Customizable and cheap car rental insurance
  • Allows you to compare different car rental insurance quote

Cons

  • CoverWallet’s rental car insurance quote is underwritten by its partners

Compare Cheap Car Rental Insurance Quotes Online

Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!

 

Progressive 

Progressive stands out with its business car rental insurance policies. The cover includes liability, physical damage, hired auto, and medical payments.

The company covers everything, including commercial trucks and business cars, and extends to trailers, buses, and  tractors

Average cost: $82 per month

Our rating: 9/10

Pros 

  • It is the second-largest business auto insurer in America
  • Offers discounts for bundling multiple business insurance policies
  • The policies cover a variety of risks and vehicle types

Cons 

  • No online support via live chat
  • Not all states qualify for discounts

 

State Farm 

State Farm  has an exceptional commercial liability umbrella or excess policy with numerous benefits, including the ability to further name other perils to fit your business needs. The company also offers commercial auto insurance and business owners’ policy. 

Average cost: $75 per month 

Our rating: 8/10

Pros 

  • Offers highly customizable insurance for car rental
  • Live chat support
  • Expansive insurance policies across various industries

Cons 

  • Claims are filed over the phone, not online
  • Not all insurance agents can cross state lines

 

The Hartford

The Hartford is an excellent choice because it offers a comprehensive Business Owner’s Policy. The policy covers commercial auto insurance, professional liability insurance, and workers’ compensation insurance. 

Average cost: $67 per month 

Our rating: 6/10

Pros 

  • Ability to buy optional add-ons to cover unique risks
  • Discounts for bundling options

Cons  

  • It doesn’t cover rental car businesses in Alaska or Hawaii
  • No live chat support

 

 

 

About the author

Ofir Sahar

Ofir is the founder and CEO of Insuranks. He established Insuranks in 2019 from scratch and has been running educational insurance websites since 2009 on a mission to help businesses...See full bio.

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