How much does tow truck insurance cost?

You might be pondering this question: how much does tow truck insurance cost? We’ve talked about how tow truck insurance rates have been on the rise – something that you’ve probably noticed in the course of running your tow truck business.

Your business is unique, which means that your rate depends on several important details about your towing operation. There's a wide range of prices for tow truck businesses, and the price that you'll end up paying for your tow truck insurance depends on several factors.

Type of Business & Approximate Cost*

  • Rural business, minimum limits of coverage
    $1,000/year (One Truck)
  • Metro (city-based) business, recommended limits of coverage
    $6,000/year (One Truck)
  • A business with tickets and accidents
    $20,000/year (One Truck)
  • Over 25% repossessions
    $10,000/year (One Truck)
  • Incidental towing (Towing as a part of another business, like an auto body shop)
    $4,000/year (One Truck)

*Rates may be lower or higher depending on your business.

how much does tow truck insurance cost?

So, what affects the cost of tow truck insurance?

Your drivers

The age and experience of your tow truck drivers can play into your insurance rates. The Motor Vehicle Records (MVRs) of your drivers are also a big influence on your tow truck insurance rates. These basically give an overview of your drivers’ driving records. If your drivers have favorable MVRs, chances are your rates are going to be less expensive.

Accidents and tickets are also a huge determining factor in how expensive your tow truck insurance is going to be. Notice in the table above how much the rates jump for a business that has drivers with many accidents and tickets. This is why it's so important to do background checks and run MVRs on your drivers.

Loss-runs

Loss-runs are essentially a list of the losses that your business has faced. They help insurance companies determine how much of a risk your business is. The more losses (or claims) you have, the more they’re going to see you as a risk. And riskier businesses will have to pay more for their insurance, and they might even face less options for companies that will insure them.

 

Exposures

Your exposures, or risks, are unique to your business. The risks that you face will influence what kind of insurance coverages you need, which impacts your insurance premiums. Do you ever have care, custody, or control of your clients’ cars – for example, do you store their cars on your property? You need to consider garagekeepers coverage. Do you have an auto body shop? Garage liability and garagekeepers might be for you. Do you do repossessions? You might want wrongful repo insurance.

We can help you save on your tow truck insurance.

In summary: what your business does determines your risks. Your risks determine the types of coverage you need and how much you pay for your insurance.

Type of tow trucks you use

From wreckers to rollbacks, the kind of tow trucks that you use and their value can have an impact on your rate. Year, make, and model all have an impact on your rates. If your trucks are more expensive, they’re probably going to cost more to insure because a loss will be higher. Repairing or replacing a bigger, more expensive tow truck likely costs more. That means that the weight of the truck (the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating or GVWR) also plays a part in your insurance rates.

How many tow trucks you have

Of course, the number of tow trucks that you have can also play a part in determining your rates.

The number of tow trucks that you have influences your tow truck insurance rates.

What you haul

Do you typically haul more expensive cars? New cars? Used cars? Or are you only towing disabled vehicles? This all has an impact on the cost of your insurance. If you haul loads that are more expensive, you’re going to pay more for your insurance because the fallout from a loss will be higher.

Where you’re located/radius

Your towing radius also influences your premium, as does your location and whether you cross state lines. Rural tow truck businesses may pay less on their insurance than a metro-based towing business.

How long you’ve been in business

Insurance companies like looking at data and reports. If your business has a good, clean record that extends over a long time, they’ll like their chances more than if you’re a newer company. They like to see that you’re established and that you have a clean loss-run.

We can help you save on your tow truck insurance.

**Based on our past experience, we estimate that we’ll be able to save you about 30%, give or take, on your tow truck insurance. But of course, everything depends on your tow truck business and your situation. To get an idea of how much insuring your towing business will cost, let us get you three free quotes. If you fill out our quote form, we can get the details about your business that will help us provide a more accurate idea of how much your insurance will cost. If you’d prefer to talk on the phone, that’s cool too – give us a call! We’re a friendly bunch.

Leave a Comment