Things to Consider While Choosing a Motor Truck Cargo Insurance

Having a truck without cargo insurance is like having a roofless home to stay in!

As you very well know, the trucking business is very risky. So, why have constant worries of truck liabilities every day when it goes to deliver goods..??

Commercial drivers met with a number of risks on the road like accidents, equipment breakdown, weather problems, or any road issue. The one and only solution to this problem is having motor truck cargo insurance.

Standard trucking insurance may not provide you the coverage against the cargo, the truck carries. And you know, cargo can be so valuable which can result in very expensive losses and damages. So, all transport owners must consider motor truck cargo insurance to have a safe side for their business. Below we take a look at the basics of insurance so that you will be well prepared to get the Top HGV insurance quote in minutes and able then to choose the best motor truck cargo insurance for your needs.

Before jumping to know the considerable things while choosing a motor truck cargo insurance, Let’s understand its basics first!

What is Motor Truck Cargo Insurance?

This sort of insurance covers all the liability of the goods in transit, in case they are damaged due to reasons like fire, crashes, or collisions. This kind of insurance basically comes under the inland marine coverage category. You can get cover for so many extra charges under this insurance plan like Compensation for removing debris from roads, Legal defense costs, and Any other damage to goods.

As you know, cargo can be valuable and expensive, So the insurance coverage premium largely depends upon the cargo to be carried. The premium cost mainly depends upon some factors like:

• Number of vehicles used
• Type of cargo to be carried
• Specific trucking operation

There is also an option to purchase the plan as per the gross revenue. It is helpful in case of usage of large fleets to carry an order or if the cargo needs to be switched from vehicle to vehicle.

However, there are some exclusions of the truck cargo insurance which are:

• Cargo types such as jewelry, animals, money, artworks, tobacco, explosives, alcohol, etc.
• Goods in transporter’s warehouse for over 3 days
• Shipping containers
• Types of vehicles such as garbage trucks, passenger vehicles, etc.

As you have read about what actually a Motor Truck Cargo Insurance is, Let’s jump onto discussing some considerable things to choose the one!

Things to Consider While Choosing a Motor Truck Cargo Insurance:

In any trucking industry, truck insurance including the cargo is mandatory. Before hiring your vehicle, most of the agents ask for this insurance to be in safe hands. Also, business owners need to get protected in case of an unforeseen accident. So, here we have gathered some points to consider to help you to buy suitable motor truck cargo insurance.

Different Types of Motor Truck Cargo Insurances

There are mainly two types of cargo insurance for the coverage of shipment between states and countries. One is a land cargo and the other is marine cargo.

• Land Cargo

This sort of cargo insurance is domestic in nature. You can insurance protection against all land transportation within a country’s boundaries. It has coverage for risks such as theft, collision, goods damage, or loss.

• Marine Cargo

Marine cargo insurance provides protection coverage to the transportation services by air or sea. This includes protection of goods against bad weather, loading or unloading goods damage, sea-related risks, etc. Marine cargo has further two divisions.

• Specific Cargo Policy- When you go to an agent or a truck insurance company to insure a fixed consignment, then this policy is applied. This specific cargo policy is used for voyage policies.
• Contingency Insurance Policy- This sort of cargo policy serves to get insurance against several further risks that a primary insurance plan may not cover. You can use this policy when the legal solutions to some losses are slow.

There is one more term related to the type of motor cargo insurance that is Open Cargo Cover. This sort of marine cargo insurance provides coverage for all types of consignments shipped during some fixed period only in policy time.

Cargo Limits and Plans Disparity

The cargo limits and premiums may differ depending upon the cargo being transported and the load they carry. It also depends on the start and end of the transported commodities.

On an average limit, the cargo ranges between $20,000 to $100,00. The minimum amount can be as per the state’s policies from where you will get the PUC authority.

Unguarded Vehicle

If you have loaded a vehicle but it is left unguarded, is not covered under cargo insurance plans. If in this situation, any damage or loss occurs, then the insurance company is not liable to pay for it.

Just make you to understand the case, we have an example of a driver who left his vehicle at his home, at the truck stop, or somewhere else, and the unfortunate event occurs at that time. Then the driver or the owner will not get any compensation.

Any Limitation

As we already mentioned above, there are some exclusions of the cargo policies. Motor truck cargo premium is not available for all types of commodities. Some major examples of this are Jewelry, animals, explosives, contraband, pharmaceuticals, alcohol, tobacco, etc.

These limitations may be subject to change as per the different insurance provider’s policies. So, it’s advisable for you to communicate with an agent or insurance provider before having the cargo insurance.

Types of Coverage Plans:

Cargo insurance providers give coverage for air, land, or water transportation. There are different sorts of coverage under this such as:

• Free from a particular coverage- This type of coverage gives you protection against particular risks such as earthquake, collision, theft, fire, bad weather, non-delivery, etc.
• General average- Marine transits require this basic kind of coverage which has coverage for basic protection only. All the cargo holding parties in the shipment will require to pay for any loss that occurred in case of any damage or loss.
• Warehouse to warehouse coverage- This type of plan helps in the situation where the shipment has to be unloaded and transported to the warehouse of the client.
• All risk coverage- This covers damage and losses due to external factors. All risk coverage doesn’t mean all types of risks. Some selected risks such as loading damage, unattended cargo, cheating by employees, etc. are covered under this. So, these are some of the types of coverage which has to be concluded to choose the right motor truck cargo insurance.

Bottom Line:

Those all are the important things to keep in mind while choosing motor truck cargo insurance. We have tried our best to collect useful information for you.

Knowing and understanding all the factors that help you to choose the right cargo cover for you that will help you to swing things on your side. Not only, you can make an informed decision, but also decide on inclusions and exclusions of the insurance plans.

Hope to cover all your questions in the article….Still, if you have any queries, then feel free to connect with us. We will be delighted to serve you!