Commercial vehicle insurance protects everyone who drives for a living or as part of their employment, including ride-share drivers, pizza delivery drivers, and other delivery personnel. If any of these persons are involved in an accident while driving their own car on the job, they may be unable to submit a claim via their personal auto insurance coverage.
If you drive a car owned by the business where you work, the employer must have a commercial insurance policy in place for the vehicle. But what is the cost of commercial vehicle insurance compared to personal coverage? Find out all you need to know about purchasing a commercial driver’s insurance coverage below.
Cost Comparison
When we look at commercial vehicle insurance and personal auto insurance, we see that the two are not significantly different.
The average costs of commercial vehicle insurance and personal auto insurance are:
- Commercial vehicle insurance: $1,704 per year ($142 per month)
- Personal auto insurance: $1,592 per year ($133 per month)
The difference is seen when we look at commercial vehicle insurance closely through the type of covered vehicle. For example, commercial car insurance would cost around $900 to $2,000 compared to commercial tractor-trailer insurance, which costs approximately $9,500 to $20,000.
Factors Which Influence the Cost
When comparing the costs of commercial auto insurance and personal auto insurance, it’s essential to consider some factors that can impact the cost. These include your age, experience, driving history, the make and model of your vehicle, and the safety record of your business. All these factors impact the cost of commercial and personal auto insurance.
Commercial Auto Insurance Coverage
Similar to a personal policy, a business vehicle insurance policy includes liability coverage for property damage and physical injury as well as medical payments, uninsured and underinsured motorists, comprehensive, and collision.
There are a few more forms of coverage that are not available with personal vehicle insurance plans, such as:
Liability for damage incurred when loading or unloading a commercial vehicle, sometimes known as “loading and unloading liability,”
After an accident, they’ll reimburse you for the cost of replacing your vehicle’s supplies and equipment.
In addition to the owner, non-owners can be covered by this policy.
Intended Users and Consumers
Commercial vehicle insurance is required for anyone who drives for a living. Anyone who drives for a living should ensure that they have commercial vehicle insurance to protect themselves from the costs associated with an accident.
Filing a Commercial Claim
It can be challenging for those who use their personal car for business to know when to claim their personal or commercial insurance. Consider what you were doing at the time of the accident to get the answer to this question.
Claim your personal insurance coverage if you were driving to or from work or on your lunch break and were involved in an accident. If an accident occurs while working for your company, business insurance will pay the costs. As a driver on the clock, you will be uninsured without business coverage.
To put it another way, if your private car is used to transport passengers or items for a living, you must have both commercial and personal auto insurance. A more expensive option than personal vehicle insurance, getting multiple quotes from different providers might help you discover a good deal.
Conclusion
Commercial vehicle insurance can get expensive, but this type of coverage is necessary for anyone who drives for a living. If you own a business and employ drivers, you should ensure that your drivers have commercial auto insurance coverage. If you are a business owner and do not require drivers to have commercial auto insurance, you can purchase a business vehicle insurance plan to cover your business property.
Quesurance is the trusted insurance agency in Hopatcong and the surrounding New Jersey communities. Call our toll-free number now to get your commercial auto insurance quotes.
