Owner-operators fall into two coverage worlds, and the fastest way to end up with a gap is to carry the wrong list for your model. Here are two checklists in one: what to carry leased-on to a motor carrier, what to carry on your own authority, the items that apply to both, and the gaps that catch owners most.
If you are leased on to a carrier
Under a lease, the motor carrier generally provides the primary liability and often the cargo coverage while you are under dispatch. That leaves the hours and exposures the carrier’s policy does not touch, and that is your list.
- Non-trucking liability or bobtail, for the times you run off dispatch. The carrier’s liability generally applies only under dispatch, so the gap is when you are not.
- Physical damage on your own tractor and trailer. The carrier rarely covers damage to your equipment, and a lender will require it on a financed truck.
- Occupational accident or personal health coverage, because a leased owner-operator is often not covered by the carrier’s workers comp.
Read your lease closely. The exact split between what the carrier covers and what you carry is written there, and assuming instead of reading is where owners get caught.
If you run on your own authority
On your own authority, there is no carrier’s policy behind you. You carry the full program the motor carrier used to provide.
- Primary liability with the FMCSA financial-responsibility filing, the BMC-91 or 91X, that keeps your authority active.
- Motor truck cargo, with a limit that matches the freight you actually haul and the contracts you want.
- Physical damage on your equipment.
- Truckers general liability for loading, unloading, and premises exposure.
- Occupational accident or workers comp for yourself and any drivers, depending on your structure and state.
This is a bigger stack, with higher limits, because you now carry the exposures a carrier used to absorb for you.
The items that apply to both
Some coverages travel with the truck regardless of model. Physical damage protects your equipment either way. Occupational accident or health coverage protects your income whether you are leased or independent. And in both models you want your radius and commodity reported accurately, because misreporting is a common reason claims get questioned no matter who holds the liability policy.
The gaps to close
The gaps almost always sit between what you carry and what you assume. The classic one is a leased owner-operator with no non-trucking liability, exposed the moment the truck moves off dispatch. Another is physical damage set too low to actually replace the truck. A third is switching from leased-on to your own authority without rebuilding the program, so you run active with cargo limits or filings that fit the old model, not the new one. Any change in operating model is a reason to remap the whole list.
Questions to ask your advisor
- Which checklist am I on right now, leased-on or my own authority?
- Does my lease actually cover what I think it covers, and only under dispatch?
- Do I have non-trucking liability or bobtail for the hours off dispatch?
- Is my physical damage limit enough to replace my truck?
- Do I have occupational accident or workers comp that fits my structure?
- If I change models, has my whole program been rebuilt for it?
A coverage review maps your stack to your operating model and flags the gaps before one becomes a claim.
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