As of June 17, 2020, the House of Representatives approved an amendment that would raise the minimum insurance requirements for motor carriers transporting property from $750,000 to $2,000,000.
This new update comes as an amendment to the proposed Highway Funding bill.
Lawmakers are hoping the increased insurance requirement will help cover costs of larger accidents that involved the larger commercial trucks.
As a trucking company; what do you need to understand about this amendment?
There is a lot of talk within the industry to how this affects the trucking businesses, but let’s boil down what you need to know right now.
- You don’t need to adjust your coverage yet.
This is just one amendment as part of a larger bill and that has not been ratified yet. The INVEST Act still needs to pass in the House and Senate before the amendment could go into effect.
- Some industry players and political officials see it as an attempt to make the trucking industry safer.
There is a considerable amount of outrage over this but keep in mind, the reasoning provided is two fold; 1) the limit has never been assessed since 1980 so this is to keep up with inflation over last 30 years, 2) with rising costs of claims and medical costs, this is to protect families and those involved in truck crashes with more complete coverage.
- If it does pass, don’t panic. Just to contact your insurance broker/provider and assess an additional cost and go from there.
Many insurance providers can up your limits to $2,000,000 but you need to discuss with your insurance broker. They can help you with any amendments.
RSI Insurance Brokers will keep you updated as this develops to make sure all our trucking insurance clients are fully aware of what is required of them and we make sure you are compliant.
*For reference to the actual bill, check out the link below:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/3781/all-info?r=1&s=1
