Commercial Auto

Insurance


Commercial Automobile Insurance – a Good Business Decision


If you own a business that involves travel by automobile or truck, you are likely to need Commercial Auto Insurance. Most of us are familiar with the necessity of having automobile liability insurance when navigating the nation’s highways, but this type of insurance is specifically aimed at businesses.


Who is the Insured?


Businesses often acquire their own vehicles for the use of employees in conducting their business. Employees will also use their own vehicles in the conduct of the employer’s business. Both of these situations bring up the question about who is insured. If your business owns the vehicle and your employee uses the vehicle in the process of conducting business for you, your business must maintain a commercial automobile insurance policy to respond in the event that a lawsuit is brought against your business for negligence with regard to that automobile. This policy covers the employee also if their use of the automobile is with the permission of the business owners and upon the business of their employer.

Confusing, isn’t it? Commercial automobile insurance is necessary if a vehicle is owned by the business or used in the conduct of the business. Personal automobile policies exclude usage of vehicles for business purposes, so the liability must be carried by either the business entity or the individual involved. Your business, by having a commercial automobile policy bypasses legal questions about this.


What is Commercial Usage?


When discussing a commercial automobile policy with your agent, be certain that your business is named on the policy in all the forms in which you do business. Often businesses establish different entities to do different tasks such as:


Interstate hauling


Intrastate hauling


Leasing of automobiles for business usage

These different entities and purposes have specific laws and legal duties, so it is best to combine them under one insurance policy to avoid confusion.


Why Purchase Commercial Auto Insurance?


Protect the interests of your business


Allow your employees a certain amount of coverage for their vehicles


Comply with state and interstate laws


Commercial automobile insurance varies widely from personal auto insurance. Businesses need to be aware of this in order to protect themselves.


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