What are the Most Important Considerations When You Buy Unladen Insurance?
Now that you know what unladen insurance is, let’s talk about the things you have to think about when planning to purchase unladen liability insurance.
It’s important to inquire if there are limitations based on the radius of operations. In a nutshell, radius of operations is the distance a vehicle is covering during intrastate or interstate commerce. Note that some unladen insurance companies put exclusions on their policy based on this. For example, a company might deny your claim if the accident happened 1,000 kilometers away from the terminal.
Next, ask if you can treat unladen insurance as an automobile insurance unladen rider. Basically, what this means is that you can add it to your existing commercial auto insurance policies.
The third consideration is whether or not the unladen insurance company can cover your truck against physical damage. Note that, while this is not common, you can still find unladen insurance coverage that comes with comprehensive auto insurance or auto physical damage insurance.
Last and most important, see to it that you can instantly get an unladen liability insurance certificate the moment you get insured. Let’s discuss what is an unladen liability insurance certificate and why it’s important in the next section.
Also read: Heavy Equipment Insurance
Unladen Insurance Certificate: Saying You’re Insured Without Proof Won’t Make the Cut
Again, what is an unladen insurance certificate? To make it short, this is a document that proves you have an unladen insurance policy in force. Reflected on this are essential pieces of information such as:
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Your policy number
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Date when the policy started and when it will end
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The number of vehicles covered
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How much coverage you have
Is an unladen certificate of insurance important? For sure. Understand that a client will not sign a contract with you if you can’t show this document.
Remember that a certificate of insurance is free. And so, if your carrier asks for a fee the moment you request to get a copy, report them to the nearest department of insurance in the locality.
Also read: Dump Truck Insurance
Do Insurance Companies Offer Unladen Insurance Through a Business Owner’s Policy?
Unladen insurance is not commonly offered as an inclusion in a business owner’s policy. However, it can be included with other types of commercial auto insurance in a motor carrier policy. It is also available through a custom business insurance plan.
The Alternatives: Non-Trucking Liability Insurance and Bobtail Liability Insurance
The protection that unladen insurance provides might be obsolete for your business. This is why insurance companies offer less comprehensive options namely bobtail liability insurance and non-trucking liability insurance.
Bobtail Liability Insurance
Bobtail liability insurance is a type of insurance for motor carriers and owner-operators that covers bodily injuries and property damage caused by a semi-truck or any other power vehicle not pulling a trailer but on the way to get another load.
Non-Trucking Liability Insurance
Nontrucking liability insurance covers personal injuries and property damage caused by a semi-truck or any other power vehicle pulling a trailer or not pulling a trailer that is currently used by the driver for personal errands. In simple terms, non-trucking liability insurance covers accidents caused by a semi-trailer or any other related machines not used for business purposes.
Other Insurance to Get
Aside from unladen insurance, you might also find the following insurance policies useful for your business.
Personal Injury Protection Coverage
Personal injury protection covers the driver and passengers who got injured after the semi-truck or any other similar commercial vehicle caused an accident or got involved in an accident. This insurance will pay for medical bills, lost wages, transportation fees, ambulance bills, emergency treatment, and more. Personal injury protection can be bundled with unladen coverage in a motor carrier policy.
Medical Payments Coverage
Medical payments (MedPay) - MedPay also covers the driver and passengers of a semi-truck. However, it is least comprehensive when compared to personal injury protection because it only covers medical expenses and funeral costs. MedPay can be bundled with unladen coverage in a motor carrier policy.
Emergency Roadside Assistance Coverage
Emergency roadside assistance coverage is very useful for the owners of semi-trucks and other similar power vehicles. This coverage, which can be bundled with unladen insurance in a motor carrier policy, will cover the expenditures for battery jump-start, tire repair, gas delivery, tire delivery and replacement, and more.
Physical Damage Coverage
Physical damage coverage covers the parts repair or replacement of the semi-truck or any other commercial vehicle that an owner-operator or motor carrier owns. It has two types - collision and comprehensive. Collision physical damage coverage will cover costs if a commercial vehicle incurred damage after colliding with a vehicle or an object. On the other hand, comprehensive physical damage coverage will cover parts repair or replacement if the commercial vehicle becomes damaged due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils
Motor Truck Cargo Insurance
Insurance companies offering coverage for for-hire motor carriers allow motor truck cargo insurance to be bundled with unladen insurance. Motor truck cargo insurance allows an owner-operator or for-hire motor carriers to reimburse the losses of clients whose cargo got lost or damaged during the trip as caused by malicious mischief, fire, and other covered perils.
Workers Compensation Insurance
Just like unladen coverage, workers' compensation insurance is very useful for motor carriers and owner-operators. This provides protection against the resulting expenses when a work-related injury or illness happens. The coverage of workers' compensation insurance includes the following:
Medical treatment/procedure - Workers' compensation insurance helps motor carriers or owner-operators cover the cost of surgeries, therapies, and other treatments or procedures the employee needs to recover from a work-related injury or illness
Hospitalization - Workers' compensation insurance covers hospital bills if an employee needs intensive care. Coverage applies regardless of how costly hospital fees are and where the employee is admitted
Medication - Expenses for the medicines the attending physician wants the employee to buy is also covered by workers' compensation insurance
Rehabilitation - Workers' compensation insurance covers expenses for therapists’ services, equipment, and others if an injured or sick employee needs to undergo rehab to fully recover
Lost income compensation - Workers' compensation insurance compensates lost income if an employee can’t go to work because of a work-related injury or disease. Compensation for lost income is a weekly allowance equal to two-thirds of the average weekly wage
Death benefits - If an employee dies because of a work-related injury or disease, workers' compensation insurance covers funeral expenses and provides cash aids to the deceased’s dependents
How Much Does Unladen Liability Insurance Cost?
So how much is unladen liability insurance? Before telling you the estimates, know that the rates of unladen insurance depend on different factors. Such factors that affect unladen liability insurance cost are:
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Driving record
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Specialty driving license or certificate (affects cost because having a specialty driving license or certificate affects your eligibility for discounts)
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Radius of operations
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Type of business operations - interstate or intrastate
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Types of goods to deliver
Refer to this bullet showing what does unladen insurance cost:
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Unladen insurance for rv transport costs $95 a month or $1,140 a year for a $1 million coverage
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Trucking businesses pay $98 a month or $1,176 a year for a $1 million unladen truck insurance
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The cost of $500,000 unladen liability insurance policy is $82 a month or $984 a year
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A $1,000,000 unladen insurance for moving businesses is $85 a month or $1,020 a year
Here’s a table showing unladen insurance cost based on the best unladen insurance companies many recommend:
| Monthly Rate | Annual Rate | Best for |
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| CoverWallet | $43.85 | $526.2 | Unladen insurance with the minimum limit required by the FMCSA |
| Gallagher | $50 | $600 | Affordable $1 million combined single limit unladen insurance
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| Northwoods Insurance | $89 | $1,068 | Unladen trucking insurance having $500,000 limit or $1 million limit
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| Trinity Insurance | $207.5 | $2,490 | Unladen insurance for light to medium duty vehicles
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| OOIDA | Contact an OOIDA representative for accurate pricing
| Contact an OOIDA representative for accurate pricing
| Membership-based unladen insurance |
Take the time to use our free online quote comparison tool. We are committed to helping you, and the best way to do that? Provide you with all the cheap unladen insurance quotes of different carriers which are the leading companies in that sector so that you make the smartest buying decision. Start by clicking the "Get Quotes " and filling up the form.
