Hotshot Trucking Insurance: Required Coverage and Premium Drivers

Insurance is one of the first big bills a new hotshot operator sees, and the quotes are hard to compare because two policies can both be “legal” and still cover very different things. This guide splits the question in two: what the federal rules require, which is fixed and written down, and what drives the price, which is up to the insurer. We are a dispatch company, not an insurer or an agency, so nothing here is a quote. The rules below were read from the electronic Code of Federal Regulations on November 2, 2026. If you are new to the hotshot model itself, our hotshot trucking overview covers the weight lines and the startup filings.

The federal minimum depends on your weight rating

The minimum levels of financial responsibility are in 49 CFR 387.9, and the amounts a for-hire carrier must file to hold operating authority are in 49 CFR 387.303T. For a hotshot carrier hauling non-hazardous freight, two lines matter:

Your equipment	Freight	Federal minimum
Freight vehicles of 10,001 lb GVWR or more	Non-hazardous property	$750,000
Fleet with only vehicles under 10,001 lb GVWR	Non-hazardous property	$300,000

Hazardous materials raise the floor. The same section sets $1,000,000 for oil and hazardous materials outside the top tier on vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more, and $5,000,000 for the specific bulk and high-hazard materials it lists. If you plan to haul anything placarded, read the full table before you buy the policy, not after.

One detail is easy to miss with a pickup and trailer. Section 387.305 says that for these filings a tractor drawing a trailer, and a truck and trailer that together bear a single load, are each regarded as one motor vehicle. The rule does not spell out how a pickup towing a gooseneck is rated under it, so do not guess which line you fall on. Ask the insurer which limit it is filing for your rig and check the number on the filing.

What the minimum covers, and what it doesn’t

The federal minimum is public liability: injury to other people and damage to their property caused by your truck. It is not cargo coverage, and it does not pay to fix your own truck or trailer.

Cargo is where operators get confused. The only cargo minimum in the authority rules, in 387.303T(c), is for household goods movers: $5,000 per vehicle and $10,000 per occurrence. Federal rules do not set a cargo minimum for a hotshot hauling general freight. That does not mean you can run without it. Brokers and shippers set their own requirements in their carrier packets, and you usually find out what they want when the packet asks for your certificate.

Some platforms publish their own numbers. Bungii’s driver page, for example, asks box truck drivers for $750,000 liability and $50,000 cargo. Those are one company’s terms for its own network, not a rule, and each broker you work with can ask for something different.

Own authority or leased on: who carries which policy

The split between your policies and a carrier’s depends on whose authority the load moves under. GEICO’s guide to truck insurance cost lays it out this way:

Coverage	Own authority	Leased on (typical)
Commercial auto liability	You	Carrier
Cargo	You	Carrier
Physical damage to your truck and trailer	You	You
General liability	You	Not in GEICO’s list
Occupational accident or workers’ comp	You	You, unless the carrier provides it
Non-trucking liability	Not in GEICO’s list	You

Non-trucking liability covers the truck when it is not under dispatch, because the carrier’s policy applies only while you are. The word “typical” matters too: your lease agreement decides what the carrier actually covers, so read it before you drop a policy.

Paperwork the rules require

Buying the policy is half of it. Under 49 CFR 387.301T, a for-hire carrier’s authority is not issued, and does not stay in force, unless proof of insurance in the 387.303T amounts has been filed with and accepted by FMCSA. Your insurer makes that filing. Under 49 CFR 387.7:

• You may not operate the vehicle until the coverage is in effect.
• Proof, usually the MCS-90 endorsement from your insurer, is kept at your principal place of business.
• The policy stays in effect until cancelled, and cancellation by either side takes 35 days’ written notice.

If you switch insurers, line up the new filing before the old one ends. A gap in the filing is a gap in your authority.

What drives the premium

The federal number is a floor. The premium is the insurer’s call. GEICO lists the rating factors it may use, and they map onto a hotshot operation like this:

• Your USDOT compliance and safety record. Violations count against you. Our post on how brokers and insurers read CSA scores covers which categories matter.
• Your driving record. Even small past accidents can show up in the price.
• The cargo you haul. Higher value and higher theft risk cost more. So the freight on your deck is part of the price.
• Truck type and condition. Older, poorly maintained trucks tend to cost more to insure.
• Where you run. Rates vary by state and region.
• How far you run. Long-haul routes typically cost more than local or regional work.
• Years in business. A new authority with no history usually pays more than an established one.
• Financial factors. Credit, payment terms and the deductible you choose.

Several of these are fixed on the day you apply. Radius, cargo type and deductible are choices. For how an underwriter weighs the file as a whole, see what underwriters pull when they price an owner-operator.

Cargo coverage per load

A low cargo limit can shut you out of a high-value load. One option exists inside the load board itself: DAT’s hotshot cargo insurance page says you can buy per-load cargo insurance through its partner Loadsure right from the DAT load board. Before you rely on any per-load product, check that the broker accepts it in place of an annual cargo certificate.

Before you ask for quotes

• Your truck’s and trailer’s GVWR, from the door sticker and the trailer tag.
• Whether you will run under your own authority or leased on.
• The freight you plan to haul, and whether any of it is hazardous.
• Your planned radius and home base.
• The cargo limit the brokers in your lanes ask for, taken from real carrier packets.

Then compare quotes line by line: liability limit, cargo limit, physical damage value, deductibles and exclusions. A cheaper policy that leaves out the cargo you haul is not cheaper.

Frequently asked questions

How much liability insurance does a hotshot truck need?

For for-hire interstate general freight in a vehicle of 10,001 pounds GVWR or more, the federal minimum is $750,000 under 49 CFR 387.9. A fleet with only vehicles under 10,001 pounds GVWR has a $300,000 minimum under 387.303T. Some hazardous materials raise the minimum.

Is cargo insurance required for hotshot trucking?

Not by federal rule for general freight. The only cargo minimum in the authority rules is for household goods movers. Brokers and shippers can still require cargo coverage before they give you a load.

Does a leased-on hotshot driver need their own insurance?

Usually yes, for part of it. GEICO’s guide says the carrier typically provides primary liability and cargo, while the driver keeps physical damage, non-trucking liability and occupational accident cover. Your lease decides the split.

What makes hotshot insurance cost more?

The insurer’s rating factors: violations and driving record, cargo value and theft risk, truck age and condition, state and region, long-haul radius, a new authority with no history, and credit and deductible choices.

What happens if my insurance is cancelled?

Under 49 CFR 387.7, cancellation takes 35 days’ written notice, and you may not operate without the required coverage in effect. For-hire authority depends on the filing staying in force, so replace the coverage before the old policy ends.