Trends in Physical Damage

Over the course of the last year I have seen a significant improvement in the physical damage coverages available to small companies with fewer than five trucks and owner operators who lease their equipment on to a motor carrier. Often referred to as “Physical Damage Enhancements,” many different insurance companies are offering unique coverages that clients can choose to add to their existing physical damage policies for a nominal premium increase. Some of the most popular coverage enhancements include:

Towing or Roadside Repair Allowance for Mechanical Breakdown: This is a particularly valuable enhancement because it doesn’t require that your truck be in an accident. It provides coverage for when your truck experiences a mechanical breakdown. The coverage provides an allowance which can be used toward the expense to tow your tractor to a repair facility or for a roadside repair in the event of a mechanical breakdown.

Emergency Family Travel Allowance: This endorsement will pay a specified amount toward the travel expenses of a driver’s qualifying family members so that they may travel to the location of an accident in the event that the accident resulted in the driver’s hospitalization or death.

Diminishing Deductibles: This endorsement will reduce the physical damage deductible by a specified amount for each loss free year. Most companies will waive the deductible entirely once you have been loss free for 4 or more consecutive years (starting from the year this coverage is purchased.)

Downtime or Rental Reimbursement: This endorsement will pay to supplement the loss of income or the additional costs incurred to rent a replacement tractor due to covered loss that left your tractor in the shop for repairs.

Personal Contents: This is a nice enhancement because your personal belongings in the truck are not covered by a typical homeowners or renters policy. This endorsement provides an allowance to reimburse you in the event that personal contents in your truck are stolen or destroyed due to a covered loss.

Gap Coverage: Provides coverage so that in the event you owe more on your tractor or trailer than it is worth at the time of loss your bank note will be paid off. Provides coverage for the gap between what you owe on your equipment and what it is worth at the time of a total loss. With equipment values depreciating so quickly right now, this is a valuable coverage.

Electronic Equipment: Covers permanently installed electronic equipment such as computer systems, fax machines, video cameras, satellite tracking systems, two-way radios and so forth in the event of a covered loss.

Miscellaneous Equipment Coverage: Provides coverage in the event of a covered loss for items used in the daily course of work such as tarps, chains and binders, but that are not included in the value of the trailer.

Deductibles may apply and limits and coverage terms will vary by insurance company. To learn more or to request a quote, call us today at (800) 596-TRUCK (8782.) All of us at the Navigator Truck Insurance Agency work hard at being accessible, helpful and result oriented.

Until next month,

Jeffery A. Moss

President