How to Get Commercial Auto Insurance?

Whether you’re about to launch your new business, or you need to buy or rent vehicles for business purposes, getting commercial auto insurance is both a financial and legal requirement.

It protects your employees and company registered vehicles against accidents, provides liability coverage and ensures legal compliance.

If you’re wondering how to get commercial auto insurance and whether it’s a tough process? The good news is the process itself is quite easy and straightforward. But you will assess your business requirements and prepare some essential documents.

So, to ensure you get the right coverage, it’s crucial to provide accurate information about your vehicles and employees to your insurance agent. This article breaks down each step of the process, ensuring you secure the right coverage to safeguard your business assets and stay compliant with legal regulations.

How to Get Commercial Auto Insurance?

While it’s fairly an easy process to get commercial auto insurance, there are some steps that you need to take which includes the following.

If you’re not entirely familiar with commercial auto insurance, you should read this article on What is Auto Insurance for Commercial Vehicles.

Assess Your Business Needs

To identify what commercial auto insurance policy, and the amount of coverage your business needs, it is essential to first identify your business requirements this includes.

• how many vehicles your business has
• the types of vehicles, their make and model
• the number of employees your business has
• how many employees drive for commercial purposes

Once you have quantified these requirements, you should document them and evaluate them to determine how much commercial auto insurance coverage your business needs.

Know More About: Does My Personal Auto Insurance Cover Business Use?

Choose the Right Commercial Auto Insurance Coverage

The next step is to explore auto insurance companies online and see their commercial auto insurance plans. Based on the information on their website, compare the insurance packages and see which one best fits your best business needs.

After exploring the commercial auto insurance policies, contact the insurance company, and consult with their agent to know which policy and coverage is necessary for your business.

To get a better understanding, contact a few auto insurance companies, and note down the recommendations. Then, compare it with your business needs to determine the right commercial auto insurance coverage for your business.

If you’re looking for a reliable auto insurance agency in Michigan, you can consider checking PLPD Insurance.

Provide Vehicle, and Employee Information

When it comes to determining auto insurance policy, it is essential to provide your company’s vehicle, and employee information. Based on the number of vehicles that you own, their make and model, and the number of employees that need commercial auto insurance coverage, the insurance agent will recommend different polices, and coverage options.

This information typically includes the VIN (vehicle identification number) of each vehicle, mileage driven, copy of employee driving licenses, and their driving records. Auto insurance companies can retrieve individual driving records as they have access to the local DMV database.

If you need to compare auto insurance rates by vehicle, and area, you can use the Zebra’s Insurance Comparison Tool, or CarEdge’s Research Tool.

Compare Auto Insurance Providers and Get Quotes

According to recent studies, there are more than 5,000 auto insurance companies throughout the USA. If the ratio is narrowed down, there are dozens of auto insurance companies in Michigan. This shows that the auto insurance industry in the USA is highly competitive, and that’s why different companies offer varying insurance rates.

• Although it falls within the average; to get the best deal with your budget, it is crucial to go for the most affordable commercial auto insurance rate. So, here’s what you need to do.
• Explore multiple auto insurance company websites which should be at least 5.
  Check their commercial auto insurance policies and coverage information on their website
  Schedule a consultation with the auto insurance company, or call them directly to talk to an agent
  Get quotes from different auto insurance companies
  Compare, negotiate and decide

If you prefer any particular auto insurance company for their reputation, or the quality of their services, and if another insurance company is offering a lower rate, then you can negotiate with your preferred insurance company to gain a competitive leverage. Although it does not guarantee a lower rate, it's still worth a shot.

When it comes to deciding which commercial auto insurance policy you should buy, go for an insurance company that’s reliable and it also offers the best coverage at the most affordable rate within your budget.

Review Insurance Policies

Make sure to carefully review the insurance policy, ensure specifically going through the terms and conditions to know the benefits, and what you’re signing up. Sometimes lower rates, discounts and bundle offers only apply for a specific time, such as six months to max a year.

Also, there are specific criteria that violate the agreement, which means you won’t get insurance coverage under the condition(s). In worse case scenarios your commercial auto insurance policy can get revoked and cancelled.

This involves the risk of having a policy lapse, which is the gap between the time when your company is under auto insurance coverage and the time it’s uninsured. So, if your commercial auto insurance policy either gets cancelled, or you get a policy lapse, your insurance rate can increase.

And that’s why you should be extra careful by thoroughly reviewing the insurance policies. If something goes against your best interests negotiate the terms with the insurer and go for the insurance company that offers the best policies for your business.

Know About More: How Many Types of Auto Insurance are There?

Finalize and Purchase the Commercial Auto Insurance Policy

After comparing different auto insurance companies, and their policies, determine the one that provides the best coverage within your budget. Based on that, choose and purchase the commercial auto insurance policy.

After you’re done with the paperwork, and the payment your commercial auto insurance will be activated immediately. Then again to stay on the safe side, make sure to confirm the activation of the commercial auto insurance policy with your insurer.

Final Tips on How to Get Commercial Auto Insurance

This is pretty much a simple guide to help you understand the steps to get commercial auto insurance. Make sure to properly follow the step-by-step process to seamlessly acquire your commercial auto insurance.

There are times there can be complications for which you may need professional help. If it comes to that, you’re always welcome to contact us, and our insurance agent will be glad to answer your questions and help you out.

FAQ

How to get commercial car insurance?

To get commercial car insurance assess your business needs by listing the number of vehicles and employees in your company. Find different auto insurance companies, and discuss the requirements based on your business needs. Finally, get a quote, compare the insurance companies and purchase from the one that offers the best commercial auto insurance policies at the most affordable rate.

How to get cheap commercial auto insurance?

To get cheap commercial auto insurance within your budget compare insurance quotes among different companies, while you are getting a quote ask for discounts and bundle offers. Here’s another tip that might be useful, look for local auto insurance companies that offer B2B deals, in that way you can save up and get cheaper commercial auto insurance. I own a business and do not drive;

how do I get commercial auto insurance?

You don’t necessarily need to drive to get commercial auto insurance. Unlike personal auto insurance, commercial auto insurance covers your company registered vehicles and every employee of the business. So, as it’s for the whole business itself, you don’t necessarily need to drive. If any employee gets into an accident while you’re riding as a passenger, you will still get commercial auto insurance coverage, because it covers your entire business which also includes you.

How can I get commercial auto insurance for my personal car?

You will need to get Hired and Non-Owned Auto Insurance to get your personal car under your commercial auto insurance. The HNAO (Hired and Non-Owned Auto Insurance) is a special type of auto insurance policy that covers personal vehicles under commercial/business auto insurance policies.