Coverage guide

Non-trucking and bobtail liability insurance

For owner-operators leased to a motor carrier: what covers your truck when you are off dispatch, what it costs, how bobtail differs and what your lease must spell out.

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What similar businesses pay

Non-trucking liability: $300–$800 a year
Full truck policy (for comparison): $734–$926 a month

Published benchmarks, not quotes. Your price depends on underwriting.

Cost

What non-trucking and bobtail liability insurance costs

$300–$800 a year

Non-trucking liability

FreightWaves Checkpoint typical range for leased drivers, March 2026

$734–$926 a month

Full truck policy (for comparison)

Progressive Commercial national averages for specialty and transport truckers, 2025

Non-trucking liability is one of the cheapest lines in a trucking program because it only responds when the truck is not working. FreightWaves Checkpoint puts the typical cost at about $300 to $800 a year, or roughly $25 to $70 a month, for leased drivers. Compare that with Progressive Commercial’s 2025 national averages of $734 to $926 a month for a full commercial truck policy. Progressive notes that leasing onto a carrier is usually cheaper than running under your own authority because the carrier typically covers primary liability while you are under dispatch. Your price still depends on where the truck is garaged, your driving record, the limit your lease requires and whether you add physical damage on the same policy.

What moves your price

Garaging ZIP code and how far you drive off duty
Your motor vehicle record, claims history and years with a CDL
The limit your lease requires, often up to $1 million combined single limit
Truck type, age and value
Whether you add uninsured motorist, medical payments or PIP where available
Whether you bundle physical damage or pay the premium in full

Who it’s for

Who needs non-trucking and bobtail liability insurance

You sign a permanent lease with a motor carrier

The carrier’s primary liability covers your truck while you work for it, but Progressive notes it does not include personal use. That is why carriers often make non-trucking liability a condition of the lease.

You drive the tractor home after a drop

Insureon lists taking a truck home for the night and driving to a truck stop as the kind of off-duty trips non-trucking liability is built for. A crash on that drive, once you are off dispatch, falls to your policy rather than the carrier’s.

An errand on your day off

Progressive’s examples are a trip to the movies or the grocery store in the truck. If you hit another car or injure someone, non-trucking liability pays their medical bills, repairs and your legal costs up to the limit.

Fueling, maintenance or a terminal run

FreightWaves Checkpoint warns that many policies treat fueling, maintenance, inspections and terminal runs as business use even when you are off the clock. Ask the insurer how it classifies these trips before you buy.

Running without a trailer between loads

Driving to pick up your next load is business use, so non-trucking liability will not respond. OOIDA describes bobtail liability as covering a tractor without a trailer whether dispatched or not, and unladen liability as also covering an empty trailer.

Coverage

What non-trucking and bobtail liability insurance covers

Bodily injury liability

Pays medical bills and related costs for other drivers, passengers or pedestrians you injure on a personal trip, according to Progressive.

Property damage liability

Pays to repair or replace another person’s vehicle or property you damage, such as a car, fence or building.

Legal defense

Progressive includes attorney fees, court costs and other legal expenses that follow a covered claim.

Bobtail liability

Covers the tractor while it runs without a trailer. OOIDA’s version applies whether or not you are dispatched, while The Hartford and Insureon describe bobtail as on-duty cover between loads.

Unladen liability

OOIDA describes it as covering the truck with an empty trailer or no trailer, dispatched or not, which closes more of the gap than bobtail alone.

Uninsured motorist, med pay and PIP

Treatment varies: The Hartford lists these within its non-trucking coverage, while Progressive sells them separately. FreightWaves Checkpoint notes many carriers ask for uninsured motorist limits of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident where available.

Physical damage

Not part of non-trucking liability. Progressive notes motor carriers do not include it, and it is usually written on the same policy to cover collision, theft and weather damage to your truck.

What it doesn’t cover

Trips under dispatch or while hauling a load for the carrier
Carrying property for pay in any business, including a side load your carrier did not dispatch
Driving for another trucking company or under a trailer interchange agreement
Business errands such as fueling, maintenance or terminal runs on many policies
Damage to your own truck, which needs physical damage coverage
The cargo you transport
Your own injuries, which need workers’ comp or occupational accident coverage
Uninsured motorist, medical payments and PIP on some policies unless added

Rules

Requirements and filings

No federal rule makes an owner-operator buy non-trucking liability. The requirement comes from your lease, and federal leasing rules in 49 CFR 376.12 control what that lease must say about insurance.

Requirement	Applies to	What it means
Carrier control during the lease	Authorized carriers leasing trucks from owner-operators	The carrier has exclusive possession, control and use of the truck and assumes complete responsibility for its operation for the lease term, under 49 CFR 376.12(c)(1).
Lease names who buys bobtail cover	Every written equipment lease	49 CFR 376.12(j)(1) requires the lease to state the carrier’s duty to carry public liability insurance and who provides other coverage, such as bobtail insurance.
Insurance charge-backs	Carriers that bill owner-operators for coverage	If the carrier charges you for any of this insurance, the lease must state the amount, under 49 CFR 376.12(j)(1).
Policy copy and certificate	Owner-operators buying coverage through the carrier	You can request a copy of each policy and must get a certificate showing the insurer, policy number, dates, limits, your cost and deductible, under 49 CFR 376.12(j)(2).
Primary liability	The carrier whose authority you run under	OOIDA notes that carrier must carry primary liability on your truck. Progressive puts the FMCSA minimum for federal filings at $750,000 or $1 million, depending on cargo and vehicle type.
Registration and tags	Leased owner-operators registering a truck	OOIDA says most states require proof of primary auto liability, so bobtail or non-trucking cover usually will not get you tags.
Own authority or state filings	Operators with their own authority	Progressive does not offer non-trucking liability if you need a federal or state filing, and OOIDA says you do not need bobtail if primary liability is in your name.

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Pay less

How to lower the cost

Read the insurance section of your lease first and buy the type and limit it requires, not more by default.
Compare the carrier’s stated charge-back with a quote on your own; OOIDA notes carriers can charge you and urges reviewing lease fees before signing.
Write non-trucking liability and physical damage on one policy, and ask about paying in full, which Insureon says may save money.
Keep your motor vehicle record clean and stay loss-free; OOIDA says that is the main route to better rates.
Keep off-duty logs and dispatch records, which FreightWaves Checkpoint says help prove a trip was personal when you file a claim.
Compare quotes at renewal; Florin is an independent broker that compares options from several insurers.

Before you start

What underwriters ask for

A copy of your lease, including the insurance section and required limits
The motor carrier’s name and USDOT number for the certificate
Your CDL, years of experience and motor vehicle record
Truck VIN, year, make, value and any lienholder
Garaging address and where you park off duty
How often and how far you use the truck for personal trips
Loss runs or claims history from prior insurers
Whether you pull a trailer under a trailer interchange agreement

Common questions

Non-trucking and bobtail liability insurance: questions

Is bobtail insurance the same as non-trucking liability?

Not always, and the terms are used loosely. The Hartford describes bobtail as covering a tractor without its trailer for work and non-trucking liability as covering personal use; OOIDA sells bobtail that applies without a trailer whether dispatched or not. Read the policy trigger, not the name.

Do I need non-trucking liability if I have my own authority?

Usually not. OOIDA says you do not need bobtail cover when primary liability is in your name, and Progressive does not offer non-trucking liability to drivers who need a federal or state filing.

Does non-trucking liability cover driving to pick up a load?

No. FreightWaves Checkpoint lists driving to pick up a load, returning from a delivery and deadheading between jobs at the carrier’s direction as business use, which the carrier’s primary liability should cover.

Can my motor carrier charge me for bobtail insurance?

Yes, if the lease states the amount. Under 49 CFR 376.12(j), the lease must list any insurance charge-back, and if you buy through the carrier you are entitled to a certificate showing your cost and deductible.

Can I use non-trucking liability to register my truck?

Usually not. OOIDA says most states require proof of primary auto liability for tags, which a leased owner-operator normally gets through the motor carrier.

What limit of non-trucking liability do I need?

The one your lease requires. FreightWaves Checkpoint says many policies are written with limits up to $1 million combined single limit, and many carriers also ask for uninsured motorist limits of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident where available.

Does non-trucking liability pay to fix my truck after a personal-trip crash?

No. It is liability-only, so Progressive and Insureon both point to separate physical damage coverage for your own truck.

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Sources (10)

Figures are published third-party estimates, not quotes. Coverage depends on policy terms and underwriting, and rules vary by state. Updated October 2026.