Inland Marine Coverage for Trucking Insurance

Inland Marine Coverage for Trucking Insurance

Commercial truckers are on the road a lot, hauling valuable materials from place to place. It therefore is perfectly understandable why you need the appropriate insurance on your cab and trailer. In case of wrecks and countless other driving hazards, this coverage will prove instrumental in helping your trucking business protect itself from costly ramifications. 

However, one area where you will need to look beyond standard trucking coverage for protection is your truck’s cargo. Whether you carry your own equipment or transport the materials of others, you need to protect it regardless. That protection will come from inland marine insurance. 

Consider the perks of this essential benefit that you should add to your trucking insurance portfolio. 

What is inland marine insurance? 

Even though it includes the word marine, inland marine insurance is not necessarily related to water. This type of insurance developed at a time when most of America’s trade and commerce happened on river routes. However, now that most of it has shifted to the interstate highway system, this coverage primarily important equipment and cargo transported by a business. 

Why do truckers need this coverage? 

A commercial trucker might transport both their own company equipment or products belonging to others. In either case, a vehicle accident or other hazard might damage the items. This means that not only the trucking company, but also those who entrust their items to its care, could stand to lose these items along with the investment they have made in them. 

With appropriate inland marine insurance, the business will have a way to protect itself from the costs that might arise from these issues. Your plan can help you cover the losses of both your own items transported in a truck, but also the items of customers.  

A special type of inland marine insurance called motor truck cargo insurance is designed to help when others’ items transported by your business sustain damage. So, if you have a trucking accident where cargo is damaged, then this is the coverage that will help you cover the loss and compensate the customer. 

One very interesting thing about inland marine insurance is that it protects company assets from numerous problems besides just car accidents. For example, if you transport company computer systems to a remote worksite, and they get damaged in a fire at that site, then your coverage can help you replace these items. 

Over the years, inland marine insurance has developed into a very critical piece of protection on which every trucking company can rely. It’s often one of the easiest ways you can protect your trucking company from extremely costly losses.