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Truck insurance glossary

Plain-English definitions for the words you'll hear from agents, carriers and brokers.

Binding
When coverage officially starts. Get the bind date and time in writing.
BMC-91 / BMC-91X
Proof of your liability coverage, filed by your insurer with the FMCSA. Required for your authority to be active.
BOC-3
The filing that names a process agent in each state. Not insurance, but required for your authority.
Bobtail insurance
Another name for non-trucking liability: coverage when a leased owner-operator drives off dispatch.
Cargo insurance
Covers the freight you haul if it's damaged, lost or stolen. Most brokers require it.
Certificate holder
A company, such as a broker, listed on your certificate of insurance so they're notified about your coverage.
Certificate of insurance (COI)
A one-page summary of your coverages and limits that brokers and shippers ask for.
Deductible
What you pay on a claim before the insurance pays the rest.
Endorsement
A change or addition to a policy, such as reefer breakdown coverage.
Exclusion
Something a policy doesn't cover. Read them before you need them.
General liability
Covers claims that don't involve driving, like damage at a customer's facility.
Limit
The most a policy pays for a covered claim.
MCS-90
An endorsement guaranteeing payment to the public after a crash. You may have to pay the insurer back for claims your policy wouldn't otherwise cover.
Non-trucking liability
Coverage for leased owner-operators when driving for personal use, off dispatch.
Occupational accident
Covers your own injuries on the job when you don't have workers' compensation.
Physical damage
Covers repair or replacement of your own truck or trailer. Required on financed trucks.
Premium
What you pay for the policy, usually yearly, often split into a down payment and installments.
Primary auto liability
Pays for injuries and damage you cause to others in a crash. Required for your own authority.
Reefer breakdown
Coverage for spoiled refrigerated freight when the reefer unit fails.
Trailer interchange
Covers trailers you pull but don't own, under an interchange agreement.
Workers' compensation
Covers employees hurt on the job. Required in most states once you have employees.
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