About $245 a month
Commercial auto, national
Insureon average for its small-business customers, 2026; no Montana-only figure is published
Montana · state requirements
Commercial auto insurance in Montana
For Montana businesses running work trucks, vans and in-state rigs: the liability floor, uninsured motorist rules, what happens without proof of insurance and what coverage costs.
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Get commercial auto quotes in Montana
What similar businesses pay
- Commercial auto, national
- About $245 a month
- Most common price band
- $200–$400 a month
- Full annual range
- Under $375 to over $16,000 a year
Published benchmarks, not quotes. Your price depends on underwriting.
Cost
What commercial auto insurance in Montana costs
$200–$400 a month
Most common price band
Paid by 49% of Insureon small-business customers; 40% pay under $200, 2026
Under $375 to over $16,000 a year
Full annual range
Insureon commercial auto premium range, 2026
No Montana agency or major marketplace publishes a state-only commercial auto median, so these figures are national. Insureon reports an average of about $245 a month for its small-business customers in 2026, with 40% paying under $200 and 49% paying $200 to $400. The top of its range, over $16,000 a year, belongs to heavy trucks, long radiuses and high limits. A contractor with one or two pickups insured above the 25/50/20 floor usually sits near the middle; an interstate for-hire truck, which needs federal limits, costs far more.
What moves your price
- The limits you buy above Montana’s 25/50/20 floor, often set by customer contracts
- Vehicle type and weight: pickups and vans rate far below trucks over 26,000 pounds
- Whether you haul for hire across state lines, which brings federal minimums
- Radius and roads: long rural highway miles and winter mountain passes
- Each driver’s record, including any license suspension
- Physical damage on newer or financed vehicles and the deductible you choose
Montana
What’s different in Montana
25/50/20 leaves $20,000 for the damage you cause
Montana Code 61-6-103 sets the floor at $25,000 per injured person, $50,000 per crash and $20,000 for property damage, for each vehicle. A loaded work truck that hits a newer pickup or a storefront can pass $20,000 quickly, and whatever the policy does not pay becomes a claim against your business.
Uninsured motorist cover stays on unless you reject it
Under Montana Code 33-23-201, every liability policy on a vehicle registered and garaged in Montana includes uninsured motorist cover at the 25/50 bodily injury floor unless the named insured rejects it. Once rejected, the insurer need not add it back at renewal unless you ask in writing. Underinsured motorist cover is not required by that statute, so ask for it.
Business policies are not in the state’s online check
The Montana Insurance Verification System confirms personal policies in real time, but the Motor Vehicle Division says it does not hold commercially insured vehicles. Montana Code 61-6-302 requires a card or electronic proof in every vehicle, marked “commercially insured” or “fleet” for a business policy.
The owner can be charged for an employee’s stop
When a driver who is not the owner is stopped without proof, Montana Code 61-6-302 lets the officer charge the owner instead. Fines under 61-6-304 run $250 to $500 for a first offense, and a second conviction within 5 years means surrendering the plates for the vehicle involved.
In-state freight runs on the car floor, not $750,000
ARM 18.8.1502 applies the federal limits in 49 CFR 387.9 to interstate for-hire carriers and hazardous materials haulers. For-hire carriers hauling non-hazardous freight only inside Montana answer to the 25/50/20 floor in 61-6-103, which is far below what most shippers and general contractors will accept.
A driver’s suspension can end the policy mid-term
Montana Code 33-23-211 limits mid-term cancellation of a policy in force 60 days or more to unpaid premium or a suspended or revoked license or registration for the named insured or a driver who regularly uses an insured vehicle. One driver’s suspension can put the whole policy at risk.
Coverage
Coverage Montana businesses need
Commercial auto liability
Pays for injuries and property damage your vehicles cause to others. Montana requires at least 25/50/20 per vehicle, valid in the United States and Canada.
How commercial auto works →Uninsured and underinsured motorist
Pays for your drivers’ injuries when the at-fault driver has no insurance or too little. Uninsured cover is on the policy unless you reject it; underinsured cover is an add-on you request.
How commercial auto works →Physical damage
Collision and comprehensive for your own vehicles, including hail, theft and winter slide-offs. Lenders normally require it on financed vehicles.
How commercial auto works →Hired and non-owned auto
Covers your business when employees drive their own or rented vehicles on company errands.
How commercial auto works →Workers’ compensation
Montana Code 61-6-103 lets an auto policy exclude injuries to your own employees on the job, so a driver hurt in a work crash is a workers’ comp claim, not an auto claim.
How workers’ compensation works →Umbrella or excess
Adds limits above your auto liability when a contract calls for more than your primary policy carries.
How umbrella / excess works →Rules
Montana requirements
Every vehicle registered and driven in Montana needs liability insurance under Montana Code 61-6-301. Interstate trucking adds federal limits, and customer contracts often ask for more than either.
| Requirement | Applies to | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum liability | Every motor vehicle registered and operated in Montana | $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident for injuries and $20,000 for property damage, per vehicle, under Montana Code 61-6-103 and 61-6-301. |
| Uninsured motorist cover | Liability policies on vehicles registered and principally garaged in Montana | Included at no less than the 25/50 bodily injury limits unless the named insured rejects it, under Montana Code 33-23-201. |
| Proof in the vehicle | Every owner and operator | A card or electronic proof from the insurer, marked “commercially insured” or “fleet” for business policies, shown on demand, under Montana Code 61-6-302. |
| Penalties for no insurance | Owners and drivers | $250–$500 first offense; $350 and plate surrender for a second; $500, up to 10 days in jail or both for a third; license surrender on a fourth within 5 years, under Montana Code 61-6-304. |
| Federal minimum liability | For-hire interstate carriers and hazardous materials carriers | 49 CFR 387.7 and 387.9, adopted by ARM 18.8.1502; $750,000 for general freight in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more. |
| Intrastate for-hire freight | For-hire carriers hauling non-hazardous material only inside Montana | The 25/50/20 floor in Montana Code 61-6-103 sets the minimum, per ARM 18.8.1502(2)(b). |
| USDOT number with MT suffix | Intrastate carriers with commercial vehicles of 26,001 pounds or more, other than farm vehicles used only in Montana | MDT assigns the number, marked on each truck with “MT” after it; file form MCS-150 before operating and every 24 months, under ARM 18.8.1502. |
| Winter traction devices | Trucks of 26,001 pounds or more towing a trailer | October 1 to April 30, carry approved traction devices wherever chains may be required; four-wheel-drive vehicles excepted, per MDT’s 2026 trucker’s handbook. |
| Out-of-state registered trucks | Commercial vehicles registered or apportioned in Montana and another state | Exempt from Montana’s mandate if insured under a policy meeting the other state’s law, under Montana Code 61-6-303. |
Compare commercial auto options in Montana.
One application, quotes from several insurers, reviewed by a licensed agent. Start with your email and finish later if you need to.
Pay less
How to lower the cost
- Put a current card marked “commercially insured” or “fleet” in every cab; a missing card is its own offense under Montana Code 61-6-302.
- Check each driver’s motor vehicle record before hiring and every year, since one suspension can be grounds to cancel the policy.
- Keep coverage continuous: a second conviction within 5 years costs the plates and limits the vehicle to work use for 90 days.
- Raise physical damage deductibles on older vehicles, or drop collision on low-value units.
- Use a hired and non-owned auto endorsement if employees only occasionally drive their own cars for work.
- Compare quotes at renewal; Florin is an independent broker that compares options from several insurers.
Before you start
What underwriters ask for
- USDOT number, with the MT suffix if you run only in-state
- Vehicle list with VINs, weights, values, garaging addresses and any lienholder
- Driver list with license numbers, dates of birth and years of experience
- Your radius and whether you cross state lines or into Canada
- What you haul or carry, and whether it is for hire
- Loss runs from your current and prior insurers
- Current limits and your uninsured and underinsured motorist selections
- The limits your customers require on certificates
Common questions
Commercial auto insurance in Montana: questions
What is the minimum commercial auto insurance in Montana?
The same 25/50/20 floor as any vehicle: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for injuries and $20,000 for property damage, under Montana Code 61-6-103. Interstate for-hire carriers and hazmat haulers need the higher federal limits.
Do I have to buy uninsured motorist coverage in Montana?
It is on the policy by default at no less than 25/50, but the named insured can reject it under Montana Code 33-23-201. If you reject it, it stays off at renewal unless you ask for it in writing.
Why does the deputy’s system not show my business policy?
The Motor Vehicle Division says the Montana Insurance Verification System does not hold commercially insured vehicles. Carry the card marked “commercially insured” or “fleet”; under Montana Code 61-6-302, you cannot be convicted once you show the policy was in force at the time.
Does an in-state hauling business need $750,000 in Montana?
Not by state law. ARM 18.8.1502 applies federal limits to interstate for-hire carriers and hazmat haulers, while in-state non-hazardous for-hire freight follows the 25/50/20 floor. Shippers and contractors commonly require $750,000 or $1 million anyway.
Can I add up uninsured motorist limits across my fleet?
Usually not. Montana Code 33-23-203 bars adding limits across vehicles or policies from the same insurer when premiums reflect separate limits and the rates are filed with the commissioner; the limits of the vehicle in the crash apply.
Does my Montana policy cover trips into Canada?
Montana Code 61-6-103 requires the minimum liability to apply in the United States and Canada. Confirm with your insurer how physical damage and any higher limits apply across the border.
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Sources (13)
- Montana Code 61-6-103: motor vehicle liability policy minimum limits (2025)
- Montana Code 61-6-301: required motor vehicle insurance (2025)
- Montana Code 61-6-302: proof of compliance (2025)
- Montana Code 61-6-303: exempt vehicles (2025)
- Montana Code 61-6-304: penalties (2025)
- Montana Code 33-23-201: uninsured motorist coverage (2025)
- Montana Code 33-23-203: limitation of liability (2025)
- Montana Code 33-23-204: definitions (2025)
- Montana Code 33-23-211: limitations on cancellation (2025)
- Montana MVD: vehicle insurance and verification (MTIVS)
- ARM 18.8.1502: federal motor carrier safety rules and state modifications
- MDT: 2026 Montana trucker’s handbook
- Insureon: commercial auto insurance cost (2026)
Figures are published third-party estimates, not quotes. Coverage depends on policy terms and underwriting, and rules vary by state. Updated November 2026.