USI can help your company avoid uninsured losses and expenses of $100,000 or more.

Non-Trucking Liability

A USI client with a 100-unit fleet, including 40 company drivers and 60 Independent Contractors, sought protection from liability that may pass from the Owner Operator to the company for non-trucking use.

USI reviewed the company’s Independent Contractor agreements to determine how liabilities were transferred, as well as their their existing policy language to determine if any contingent coverage was provided. Working with the carrier, we were able to determine the definition of "non-trucking use" and "under dispatch." We then negotiated Non-Trucking Liability coverage for the insured to protect their assets should an Independent Contractor be involved in an accident while outside of dispatch.

The coverage USI negotiated provided limits of insurance up to $1 million to the insured should they be named in a lawsuit for an Independent Contractor’s accident. The coverage limited exposure to the insured’s assets in the event of a judgement being uncovered by other insurance. USI also created a settlement deduct program that was cheaper than what the Owner Operators were paying individually and further enticed drivers to stay with the Motor Carrier.

  • Improved recruitment and retention for the Motor Carrier and improved cash flows for the Owner Operator
  • Certificate management improvement and efficiency for the Motor Carrier and aggregated rates/reduced costs for the Owner Operator
  • Easy Enrollment for both Motor Carrier and Owner Operator with differing levels of coverage and corresponding cost to meet your company's needs

Trucking companies are using more Independent Contractors/Owner Operators due to a shortage of drivers. Increasingly, the truckers are being liable for auto accidents caused by ICs and are unable to pass the losses off to the IC’s insurer. This is having an impact on truckers’ loss ratios and self-insured retentions. USI has worked with several insurance companies to create and manuscript endorsements to cover many different accident claim scenarios involving ICs.

Coverage extensions may be available for Motor Carrier sponsored Owner Operator Physical Damage programs that cannot be obtained by an individual policyholder, including:

  • Downtime/Rental Reimbursement
  • Towing as a Result of Mechanical Breakdown
  • Roadside Assistance
  • Mobile Equipment/Electronic Devices
  • Travel Expenses Related to a Covered Loss

Depending on the level of coverage costs can range from $25 per vehicle per month for Non-Trucking liability or Bronze-level coverage to $85-$155 per vehicle, per month for Unladen or Platinum-level coverage.