888-900-0205Auto Fleet Insurance
As the owner of a small to medium sized business with a fleet of automobiles, it is imperative that you carry the appropriate types and amounts of commercial fleet insurance. Businesses like yours that own fleets of vehicles depend heavily on those vehicles. Without them you may not be able to deliver the goods and services your company supplies. Not only would you lose money from the loss in business operations, but if you also had to pay for repairing or replacing one or more of your business autos it could put a severe financial strain on your company.
Protecting your commercial vehicles is an investment in the future of your company. By carrying proper insurance, you can prevent financial strain and hardships like those mentioned above. Here are the most important types of business fleet auto insurance you should carry:
- Liability Insurance – Liability insurance is required by law in most states of the nation. This insurance coverage is designed to protect other people from suffering losses if one of your commercial fleet vehicles causes an auto accident. When accidents happen, people can sustain minor or major medical injuries and there can be extensive damage to the other vehicles as well. Liability coverage is designed to pay for the damages and medical expenses of those victims.
- Bodily Injury – Bodily injury coverage is the portion of your liability insurance policy that pays for people’s medical needs. Whether someone receives minor injuries in an accident or they are severely harmed, they will have extra expenses to pay in exchange for the care they receive. Your bodily injury coverage pays those expenses when you are at fault for the accident. This portion of your small business auto insurance pays for medical transportation, emergency medical care, extended hospital stays and the expenses involved in rehabilitation. It also pays for the victim’s pain and suffering, or lost wages due to time off work. When someone is killed in the auto accident, your bodily injury coverage pays for the funeral expenses.
- Property Damage – When other people’s property is damaged in an auto accident that you or one of your company drivers caused, the property damage portion of your liability insurance will pay for the necessary repairs. If the other vehicle is damaged beyond repair, then this part of your coverage can also pay for the cost of replacing the totaled vehicle.
Medical Payments – Medical payments coverage is important commercial fleet insurance to carry if you’re able to. This insurance is particularly useful for businesses that have multiple people traveling in their vehicle fleet, and those that carry passengers. This coverage pays the medical bills and expenses that arise from an auto accident. Benefits apply to the driver of the vehicle as well as all passengers who are riding in the vehicle at the time of the accident. This is a no fault coverage option, which means it will pay the medical bills regardless of who caused the auto accident. It is not available in all areas however. Call and speak to one of our licensed representatives and we’ll help you determine the availability and feasibility of this coverage for your business fleet auto insurance package.
Physical Damage Insurance – Physical damages insurance protects you from loss of or damages to the autos in your fleet directly. If one of your business vehicles is damaged for example, physical damages coverage can pay for the cost of repairing it. This insurance is especially important for business fleets that are leased or still under finance, because it provides you with the most protection available.
- Comprehensive Physical Damage – Comprehensive damages protection provides your auto fleet with insurance against a wide variety of events. If one of your business vehicles is damaged by something that is not a collision or roll over event, this coverage can pay for repairs or replacement as necessary. For example, if one of your vehicles is stolen while parked at a job site, comprehensive damages can pay for the replacement. If the vehicle is damaged in a hail storm, a tree falls on it, or it is damaged due to vandalism, comprehensive damages pays for the necessary repairs.
- Collision Damage – Collision damage protection is designed specifically for collisions and roll over events. If you own a commercial fleet of delivery vans for example, and one of them is damaged because a driver ran into a customer’s mailbox, your collision damages protection will pay for the cost of repairs.
- Specified Peril (CAC) – ike comprehensive damages protection, specified peril does not apply to damages caused by collisions or overturning. Instead, it protects you from specific hazards and perils that are listed on your business auto fleet insurance policy. This coverage is also known as Fire and Theft with Combined Additional Coverage, or CAC.
Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist – As the owner of a commercial fleet of vehicles, your changes of an auto accident increase just because of the volume of vehicles you have on the road. Despite laws in the United States, not all drivers carry basic liability insurance on their vehicle. Others carry minimal amounts of coverage, which may not be enough to pay for all of the damages they cause. You can protect your business fleet by carrying an uninsured and underinsured motorist policy. When the other driver is at fault but has little to no insurance coverage, your policy will pay for taking care of your drivers and your vehicles.
- Bodily Injury – As noted for Liability insurance.
- Property Damage – As noted for Liability insurance.
- Collision Deductible Waiver (CDW) – When you carry an uninsured or underinsured motorist policy with bodily injury coverage, you can qualify for a collision deductible waiver, or CDW. The CDW makes it so that you do not have to pay the standard insurance deductible if one of your fleet vehicles is involved in an accident that the other driver is at fault for.
Other Important Business Fleet Auto Insurance Includes:
- Rental – Rental insurance pays for the cost of renting a temporary replacement vehicle when one of your own commercial fleet vehicles is damaged in an auto accident.
- Towing – Some accidents cause so much damage that the vehicle must be towed away from the scene. Towing insurance pays the cost of this added accident expense.
- Accessories (Ex: mileage meters, navigation units, radios) – Your commercial fleet vehicles may have expensive accessories installed, such as GPS navigational units, communications radios, or mileage meters. Accessories coverage can be added to your business auto insurance policy, so that you don’t have to pay for the repairs or replacement of these devices when they’re damaged or destroyed in an accident.