Sunday, February 1, 2009

Commercial Truck Insurance - How Your Premiums Are Calculated

By Ray Baker

How commercial truck insurance premiums are determined depends on a large number of different contributing factors.

These factors can be very different from one insurer to the next, but in general it is accepted that to properly determine the associated risk of insuring a commercial truck, the company must take into account the drivers age, their driving experience and their employment history.

There will be many other factors as well, factors associated with the truck to be insured, but ultimately commercial truck insurance premiums will be determined after the driver and the fleet has been reviewed.

Drivers under 35 or over the age of 65 are much more likely to get involved in a road traffic accident according to the statistics. This can be a difficult area for a company to manage, but there are some steps that can be taken to minimize any risks in this department.

One way to reduce the threat of higher commercial truck insurance premiums is to make sure you employ drivers who have a lot of driving experience. At the same time you need to consider the drivers past employment history to make sure they haven't been involved in a ton of accidents in a previous job.

Your insurer will almost certainly ask about your previous commercial truck insurance coverage history. If you have had long-term insurance in place, you will undoubtedly see your premiums reduce. If on the other hand you have there's no history of truck insurance for your company, you will probably end up paying almost double the cost.

Your insurance company will also look at the area your fleet is operated in when determining your premiums. Rural and out of town areas have less traffic and less accidents, and suffer less crime, so you will pay less if you operate here rather than a big city. The type of cargo you cover will affect what you pay as well - there's less risk with cargo such as lumber for instance than there is with chemicals.

To determine your commercial truck insurance premium, your insurer will want to take into account information about your vehicles. This would be info about the age and maintenance history of each truck, added to that they will also want to see the company's DOT history, and last but not least they will take in to account the amount of deductible your company is willing to accept. - 15275

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