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- Written by: Shelly Campbell
- Category: Commercial Auto
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Commercial insurers offer policies for business-use only, business and personal, or a personal-use only vehicles on a Commercial Auto policy. Sometimes mixing the use of the cars makes sense, and sometimes it doesn’t.
Take a contractor, for example, with a newer truck and full coverage. If the contractor uses the vehicle for their contracting business but insures it on a personal policy, all drivers in the household will be partially rated, even though they don’t drive it. So, let’s assume a young driver lives in the house, and the contractor swears the teenager will never get behind the wheel of his new truck. The company can’t exclude the youthful operator and must add him, driving up the insurance cost.
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Putting that truck on a Commercial Auto insurance policy lets the contractor insulate themselves from the added cost of an inexperienced driver. But remember, that young operator cannot drive that pickup… ever! If they do, the company may not cover the accident.
Another example is a sales representative. If they make no deliveries but simply visit different locations during the day, a Commercial Auto insurance policy might be less expensive, and their Personal Auto insurance policy might deny coverage based on business use of the vehicle, especially if they have commercial signage on the car.
If you have a Commercial Auto insurance policy, add your private-use vehicle to it for the multi-car discount. Identify it as personal use only and list all drivers on your policy. Commercial Auto policies do not require all household members like a Personal Auto policy, but they insist all regular and occasional drivers be included. Be sure to name your spouse or other household members who drive the vehicles listed on your Commercial Auto policy.
Most people think that Commercial Auto insurance policies are more expensive than Personal Auto insurance policies, but that isn’t always the case. If you are self-employed, talk to your agent or call us at 503-489-3143 to discuss your options.