One of a trucking business’s most significant expenses is trucking insurance. Trucking insurance is mandatory to protect your business assets, customers, and company reputation.
However, with increasing insurance rates, trucking companies are under pressure to find ways to minimize insurance costs without sacrificing coverage. Here are some tips on how to reduce your trucking insurance costs.
Pay Higher Deductibles
One way to lower insurance premiums is to opt for plans with a higher deductible. The deductible is the expense you pay out of pocket before the insurance provider pays for the damage. You can check with the insurance provider if they offer a plan with a higher deductible.
Although increasing the deductible would significantly lower the amount you have to pay for insurance coverage, it would also require you to pay high upfront costs in case of an accident before the coverage kicks in.
Consider Annual Payments
Insurance providers provide a 10%-20% discount on annual or semi-annual payment plans. Not all insurance companies offer this facility, so check with your provider. Also, consider making the annual payment during the off-season; you might be able to get a better deal.
Upgrade Fleet
One thing that can spike your insurance premiums is operating older trucks that frequently break down and require maintenance and repairs. Insurance providers consider clients that operate older vehicles to be risky. One of the reasons is that older vehicles may not have modern technology that can assist in preventing road accidents or alerting the driver about maintenance issues. By upgrading your fleet, not only can you take advantage of accident avoidance technologies, but it could also lead to a reduction in your insurance costs.
Keep Clean Driving Records
To reduce your trucking insurance costs, you should hire experienced drivers. You should also ensure they have no recent major violations on their record. Although minor violations such as not stopping at a stop sign may not increase your insurance premiums, major violations or accidents on a truck driver’s record can significantly impact trucking insurance costs. To reduce the overall costs of trucking insurance, ensure that your truck drivers maintain clean records.
Optimize Trucking Routes
The routes your fleet regularly travels can also impact your trucking insurance premiums. For example, your insurance premiums can be higher if your trucks travel in dense metropolitan areas because insurance providers often consider such areas to have a higher risk of accidents.
You should reevaluate your trucking routes and avoid areas with harsh weather conditions. You can also try splitting up your routes between individual drivers. This will help you experience a reduction in insurance costs and prevent trucks from undergoing excessive wear and tear due to traveling longer routes.
Take Advantage of Insurance Discounts
Insurance companies can offer discounts on premiums based on different factors. For example, an insurance company may lower your premiums if you have experienced drivers who maintain a clean record.
You may also enjoy discounts if your fleet is new or has been upgraded with the latest technologies to assist drivers in avoiding accidents and keeping up with maintenance. Contact your trucking insurance provider and ask them for their discounts on policies to check if you qualify for any ongoing deals. Click here to read more about insurance.