Truckers are under financial pressure these days. While demand is high for trucking services, supply chain issues and difficulties in hiring qualified employees are creating cash flow problems for many trucking businesses.
Many are looking for ways to gain control over their truck insurance costs. Paying the premiums of an annual truck insurance policy up front is not an option for most trucking businesses. That’s why many are looking for no down payment commercial truck insurance option.
While there are no real legitimate “no down payment commercial truck insurance” offerings, there are ways to get your costs — and the timing of your premium payments — under control.
Consider paying for your truck insurance monthly, quarterly, or semiannually rather than annually. It will spread out your payments, so you don’t have to pay total costs up front.
Be aware: When you pay your trucker’s insurance premium monthly, quarterly, or semiannually, the first payment may be higher than subsequent ones, which may seem like it includes a down payment. It really isn’t the case. The first payment is more heavily weighted because insurance companies are concerned that clients could stop paying premiums at any point during the coverage year, and they require a cash cushion in case this happens. Also, policies paid on an annual basis are typically cheaper that those paid quarterly or monthly because insurance companies have learned that policies that pay monthly or quarterly are more likely to cancel, especially after a successful claim. So while you may gain control over your cash flow, you could end up paying more for the coverage overall.
Tip: Be careful if a company offers to sell you trucker insurance with no down payment. It’s likely a scam from an illegitimate operation trying to get your business.
The good news: Most reputable insurers will allow you to pay monthly, quarterly or semiannually for commercial truck insurance. Once you make your first payment, you will receive proof of insurance. After you make that first, larger payment, you can rest assured knowing your subsequent premium payments will stay the same for the rest of the year.
Now, let’s take a look at:
- How to save money on commercial truck insurance
- 5 Cheap Insurance Companies for No Down Payment Commercial Truck Insurance
- Commercial truck insurance down payment assistance
How to save money on commercial truck insurance
There are many things you can do to reduce your trucker’s insurance premiums. Some of the most impactful ones include:
Monitor driving records
The cost of commercial truck insurance is directly tied to your driving record and those of the people who work for you. Tickets and citations will increase rates. Always drive safely and within the speed limit. Train the people who work for you on safe driving habits and incentivize them to follow the rules of the road. Paying them for maintaining clean driving records is much cheaper than paying higher insurance rates.
Improve your credit
Many insurers assign risk scores to customers and prospective ones based on several factors, including age, marital status, and credit score. Insurance companies believe that customers with lower credit ratings tend to be riskier drivers. Many states allow insurers to do this, although some have outlawed it. If it’s a practice in your state, paying your bills on-time can help you to save money on truck insurance.
Lease onto a large carrier
Many truckers value their independence. However, if you want to save on trucker insurance premiums it could make sense to give up on some of that independence and lease on with a large carrier. In most cases, they are able to pass along substantial savings on your truck insurance premiums.
Seek out association rates
Another option for reducing premiums is to join a trucking association that offers members access to discounted group or association insurance rates as a part of being a member. Tip: Before joining an association check whether the savings you get on insurance premiums will offset the membership cost.
Get competitive bids
Don’t make the common mistake of only getting a single commercial trucker insurance quote from one provider. Get three or more and compare coverages and premium prices. That way, you can feel confident that you have the best package for your trucking business.
Only pay for the trucking coverage when you are on the road
If you don’t drive every day for any reason, you don’t need the traditional trucking coverage that you pay every month. You can save a lot of money by opting for pay-per-day trucking coverage. This flexible coverage allows you to only pay for the coverage when you are on the road. You will receive exactly the same benefits as in traditional trucking insurance, you will just pay a lot less. Working with innovative brokers like InsurePro which allows you to buy trucking coverage by days, even just one day, will save you a lot of money and you may not need to pay the usual down payment.
Avoid accidents
Truckers that don’t get into accidents pay less for truck insurance than those who have made claims on their policies. Take proactive steps to avoid accidents by never speeding, tailgating, or driving recklessly. Also, avoid pushing yourself to the limit when driving by getting plenty of sleep and taking a break when you feel fatigued or stressed out. Also, put the cellphone aside while driving. Enforce these same safety practices with the people who work for you. It’s a proven way to gain control over trucker insurance costs.
Hire safe drivers
If you employ other drivers with poor driving records or ones with limited experience, it will increase your insurance rates. You may pay less to have them drive for you, but that savings will be more than offset by higher insurance costs. Even during this time when it can be challenging to find good drivers, it’s smart to hold out and only hire the best and safest people.
Follow rules
United States Department of Transportation (DOT) trucking rules and regulations can impact your insurance rates. Complying with roadside inspections, compliance checks, and safety audits will help save you on your truck premiums. Insurance companies routinely pull compliance data when determining insurance rates. If you and everyone who works for you complies with DOT rules, you’ll pay less for insurance.
Implement a written safety policy
Having a written policy and enforcing it demonstrates to your workers and insurance company that you care about safety. It should include information about avoiding accidents, driving safely, and preventing drinking and substance abuse.
Increase insurance deductibles
The higher the deductible, the lower your premium cost. However, if money is tight, be aware that you must always have enough cash on hand to cover your deductible. If you don’t, you won’t be able to get your vehicle repaired, which will further cut into your livelihood.
Pay your insurance annually in full
As covered in the previous section, paying your truck insurance monthly, quarterly, or semiannually can help you with your cash flow issues. However, it will cost you more over the long term. If you genuinely want to lower costs, pay your premiums once a year.
Take advantage of discounts
Discounts can lower insurance rates significantly. If an insurer doesn’t offer them to you when getting a quote, ask about them.
Bundle your coverage
It’s likely that if your truck insurer provides more of your business coverage, they’ll offer you lower rates than if you only have a single policy with them.
5 Cheap Insurance Companies for No Down Payment Commercial Truck Insurance
The following companies offer payment flexibility and more for truckers experiencing a cash crunch.
- Simply Business: Best for truckers who want to compare several quotes to find the cheapest commercial truck insurance
- Progressive: Best for good discounts on commercial truck insurance
- biBERK: Best for low-cost coverage
- Smart Financial: Best for affordable trucking minimum coverage
- Commercialinsurance.net: Having multiple agents compete for your business with the cheapest quotes
- InsurePro: Best for pay-per-day coverage
Simply Business: Best for truckers who want to compare several quotes to find the cheapest commercial truck insurance
Simply Business is a cutting-edge insurance provider. The firm has developed its own state-of-the-art platform, based on its proprietary algorithms, to ensure it is able to connect truckers with the commercial truck and other business insurance they need at the most reasonable price. The platform allows truckers to get quotes from several providers at once, making it possible to compare coverage and premium prices from highly reputable insurers all on a single screen.
The firm’s experts have used their extensive experience to make sure you only have to input the information needed to generate quick and accurate quotes. The entire process should take less than ten minutes, even for coverage as complex as commercial truck insurance. In some cases, Simply Business should be able to provide you with quotes online. However, trucking insurance can be complicated with nuances that need further clarification. In such cases, they way need to call you to discuss your quote options.
Once you get your quote, Simply Business makes it easy to purchase a commercial truck policy online or through an agent. When you get your commercial truck policy through Simply Business, it’s simple to manage your coverage online, including downloading a certificate of insurance, filing a claim, renewing your insurance, and more. This is especially great for truckers who spend a lot of time out on the road.
Simply Business earns a great consumer satisfaction rating of 4.1 out of 5, which is a lot higher than their insurance provider peers.
Progressive: Best for good discounts on commercial truck insurance
Progressive is famous for its discounts, which could help you save on your commercial truck insurance. You can earn discounts for things like:
- Having significant driving experience
- Earning a CDL certification
- Paying your premium in full rather than monthly or quarterly
- Bundling your commercial truck coverage with other coverage
- Allowing Progressive to electronically monitor your driving habits
- Agreeing to autopay.
Beyond discounts, it’s important to know that Progressive is a reputable company which has been offering vehicle insurance for more than 80 years and is the top commercial vehicle insurer in the United States. That means it’s doing something right. The company is known for its flexibility, great rates, and top-tier service.
Progressive is able to cover anything from a small single truck to a complete fleet of semis and offers flexible payment timing.
biBERK: Best for low-cost coverage
biBERK is a subsidiary of the Berkshire Hathaway, the same parent company with Geico. Even they are a relatively new company, they have good financial backing and good experience in the insurance industry. Being a newer company, they develop an excellent digital experience, allowing customers to get quotes online, buy and manage the policy completely online.
biBERK develops and sells commercial truck insurance product directly to the customers, bypassing agents and brokers. That’s how they can cut costs and offer low-cost commercial truck insurance policies. In fact, biBERK claims that they help their customer save at least 20% on premiums.
If your main goal is to get the most affordable coverage for your truck and your trucking business, you should give biBERK a try. It shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes to get a quote and buy a policy on their website.
Smart Financial: Best for affordable trucking minimum coverage
Smart Financial is an insurance broker, specializing in providing affordable trucking insurance with minimum coverage. They work with several truck insurance companies and are focused on finding the cheapest truck insurance rates with minimum coverage requirements by different states. They are licensed in all 50 states and Washington DC.
If you are a truck owner-operator or a small trucking company and looking for cheap truck insurance satisfying the minimum requirements of your state, you should definitely consider working with Smart Financial to find the cheapest truck insurance.
Commercialinsurance.net: Having multiple agents to compete for your business with the cheapest quote
Commercialinsurance.net is another national broker. They have an intensive network of agents across the country specializing in business insurance in general and trucking businesses in particular. The way it works is that after they get some basic information about your trucking business. They will have their agents compete for your business by providing the best quotes. They usually connect you with 2-3 best agents in their network who are the most knowledgeable about your business and these agents will try to find you the best quote to win your business.
If you are ok with working with agents and let them work hard to win your business by getting you the best quotes. Working with commercialinsurance.net is a great option.
InsurePro: Best for pay-per-day coverage
InsurePro is a newer broker. They offer innovative business insurance coverage, which they call insurance on-demand or pay-per-day coverage. This means that you have the flexibility of buying trucking coverage for a short period of time, even just a day.
This is perfect for part-time truckers or trucking businesses that may not haul every day of the month. Buying trucking coverage for a few days when you are on the road will help you save a lot of money since you don’t pay for the coverage when you are not on the road.
InsurePro also offer one of the best digital experiences. You can get quotes and buy the policy directly on their website, which only takes about 10-15 minutes. After buying the policy, you can manage your policy online using their dashboard with many useful features.
>>MORE: The Cheapest Commercial Truck Insurance Companies
Commercial truck insurance down payment assistance
When you just started out your trucking business, the startup cost is expensive, and commercial truck insurance down payment is usually a large expense amount. Most trucking insurance companies or commercial truck insurance brokers usually require a 20-30% down payment on an annual policy, which usually costs around $11,000 to $15,000 per year.
That can get in the way of getting your new venture going. You are probably wondering if there is any down payment assistance program available. The short answer is yes, but it doesn’t come unconditionally. In our intensive research, most truck insurance down payment assistance programs come from invoice factoring companies. If you are working with a factoring company already, you may want to ask them if they are offering this service. Some factoring companies offer you to defer 50% of your truck insurance down payment with no interest or fees. So you only need. to pay 50% of your truck insurance down payment requirements upfront and pay the remaining 50% afterward. This can help a bit if you are really right on cash flow.
