Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Commercial Truck Insurance - How Your Premiums Are Calculated

By Ray Baker

How commercial truck insurance premiums are determined depends on a large number of different contributing factors.

These contributing factors can vary from one insurer to another but the general consensus is that in order to properly determine the risk factors associated with a commercial truck fleet, the age of the drivers, all of the drivers experience and employment history as well as any previous commercial truck insurance the company has had.

Of course there are also many other factors associated with the vehicles themselves, but all in all, in order to determine commercial truck insurance premiums, the fleet as well as the drivers are taken in to account on a business wide scale and not just independently.

Drivers under 35 or over the age of 65 are much more likely to get involved in a road traffic accident according to the statistics. This can be a difficult area for a company to manage, but there are some steps that can be taken to minimize any risks in this department.

Obviously the more experience each of the companys drivers have the less of a risk they will be and therefore driver experience play a crucial role in the determination of COMMERCIAL TRUCK INSURANCE premiums. Along with this experience factor the employment history of each driver will also need to be accounted for as well as any accident history any of the drivers may or may not have.

The insurer will want to know about any previous commercial truck insurance coverage as this will help reduce the costs of the premiums. Just like in a passenger car, a history of maintaining insurance on a vehicle means a reduction in costs where as in the case where there is not history you may even find your company paying almost double in the cost of premiums.

Your insurance company will also look at the area your fleet is operated in when determining your premiums. Rural and out of town areas have less traffic and less accidents, and suffer less crime, so you will pay less if you operate here rather than a big city. The type of cargo you cover will affect what you pay as well - there's less risk with cargo such as lumber for instance than there is with chemicals.

When deciding commercial truck insurance premiums, your insurance company will be interested in your vehicles age and its maintenance history. They will also look at the company's DOT record and they will consider the amount of deductible you are willing to pay. - 15224

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