As with personal auto insurance, it pays to shop around for the best commercial auto insurance company, if you use a car for business. Commercial auto insurance is usually more expensive than personal auto insurance, but you risk your business and your personal assets, if you insure a car you use for your business on a personal auto insurance policy. However, just like personal auto insurance, you can save $100s per year by shopping with all the leading commercial auto insurance companies. This blog post will tell you why you may need commercial auto insurance, the leading companies providing it, and how to get the coverage you need at the best price.Why buy commercial auto insurance when you have a personal auto insurance policy? Because having the wrong insurance coverage when your vehicle is used for any business purpose can bankrupt you.

For example, if you deliver a product to one of your customers, and you are involved in an accident on the way to the customer’s home or business, your personal auto insurance policy will decline the claim, because use of your vehicle for delivery is excluded from coverage. You may try to conceal the circumstances, but your insurance company will investigate the claim and find out the truth. Not only will the claim not be covered, but your personal auto insurance company will cancel your policy.

It’s hard enough to run a successful business, but having to pay out of your own pocket for an uncovered claim can put you out of business quickly. The cost to pay for the injuries and damage from a severe accident can bankrupt both your business and you.

You may be set up as a Limited Liability Company, but a lawyer will go after your business and YOU as the responsible party, putting your personal assets, such as your home, at risk. This is true even if you weren’t the driver, and don’t own the car.

For example, you own a restaurant delivering food. You hire delivery drivers using their own cars and require the drivers to have their own auto insurance. You will not be protected by their auto insurance, whether the driver’s insurance company covers the claim or not for the driver. You need a commercial auto insurance policy covering you for the use of non-owned autos in your business.

If your vehicle is registered as a private passenger vehicle in your name alone, not your business, and you use your car only as personal transportation to make sales calls or drive to different work sites, you may be able to insure your car or truck on your personal auto insurance policy with a “business” use rating.

This is perfect for sales people who do not make deliveries or carry expensive samples or merchandise, or contractors driving to different work sites during the day for the sole purpose of personal transportation.

However, if you have any advertising on your vehicle, or use it to transport business tools, like lawn mowers for a landscaping business, most insurance companies will decline you for personal auto insurance.

If you are self-employed or use your car in the course of your work, you should have your insurance needs reviewed with several agents to make sure you have no gaps in coverage, or need commercial auto insurance.

It’s very important you speak with more than one agent and different insurance companies. This will help you avoid relying on one agent giving you bad information. Also, some personal auto insurance companies differ in how they accept business use, or how it is excluded from their policies.

For example, I have worked for a company which would not insure anyone using their car for deliveries, even if it was not for a fee, or they were an employee, not the business owner.

I later worked for a company which was okay with insuring a salaried company employee managing a group of delivery drivers, who would occasionally have to make a delivery. Since these occasional deliveries were not “delivery for a fee,” and made by a salaried employee, not the owner of the company, or an employee paid per delivery, this insurance company’s business use exclusion does not apply.

This company would not only cover claims occurring while running deliveries in this situation, the insurance company was also willing to insure the car. These are two separate issues; an insurance company may knowingly or unknowingly insure a car or truck used in business, but it does not mean the business use will be covered by the auto insurance policy.

For example, your agent may know you now do some hauling for a fee with your truck, but the agent doesn’t want to lose your business, so he does not notify the insurance company, or advise you, if you are involved in an accident while your vehicle is being used in your hauling business, you will not be covered.

This is why it’s important to have more than one agent or insurance company review your policy, to see if you have exclusions which can cause you financial ruin. Talk to agents who sell a lot of commercial auto insurance. Your average agent sells mostly personal insurance, and has little experience or expertise with commercial auto insurance. Get quotes from multiple agents and companies and you will get the coverage you need at the best price, and save hundreds of dollars.

Many independent insurance agencies have employees specializing in commercial insurance for businesses, plus they represent many insurance companies.

Companies with exclusive (captive) agents, like Allstate & State Farm, also sell commercial auto insurance. However, since their agents represent the one company, the agent will try to convince you their commercial auto insurance is the best for you, even if it’s not the company with the coverage you need at a competitive price. If you don’t qualify for their primary company, they may be able to broker with another insurance company, but this may not be best for you, since the agent’s expertise is regarding their primary company.

What one agent tells you cannot be done may be easily done with another agent or company. Use shopping the market with more than one agent to find the best solution for you.

To give you an idea about which companies offer commercial auto insurance, here are the top 5 companies with the largest market share for commercial auto insurance in the USA for 2011.

Progressive Insurance has recently expanded their commercial auto insurance to include new coverage options, and new programs for:

– For-hire debris and garbage removal

– Gas and oil well drilling

– Wholesale route distributors

You can read this Insurance Journal article to find out more about the expanded Progressive Commercial Auto Insurance Program.

Travelers Insurance is the largest provider of commercial auto insurance in the USA, but that does not mean they insure small businesses, or have a good rate or product for them.

For example, Travelers may be great for a large national rental car company, but may not be good for a local food cart or local pest control business or HVAC business.

The best commercial auto insurance company for you, with the best program and rates, will depend on your type of business, the state your business is located, and other factors. Independent insurance agents know the market and are a great resource for you.

An independent insurance agency can help you with the insurance needs for your business. Don’t gamble with your future and hope you don’t have gaps in your coverage if you need it. Use the expertise of insurance agents to inform you so you can make smart insurance decisions.

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