Fleet Insurance

Commercial auto liability is the core of a fleet program; coverage for the vehicles themselves is a separate, optional part.

Premium follows how each vehicle is used, the radius it travels, the drivers' records and the limits chosen. The underwriter reads the loss history of the fleet as a whole rather than one vehicle at a time.

A business auto policy treats anyone using a covered vehicle with your permission as an insured, subject to the covered-auto symbols and exceptions on the declarations page, and California allows a named-driver exclusion only by written agreement. That suits companies whose vehicles change hands between drivers every day. Which minimum limit applies depends on the operation, and we confirm it before quoting.

If you're not sure whether a vehicle you use qualifies for coverage under a fleet policy (for example, you have a privately owned vehicle that's also used for business purposes), talk with us. We walk through whether it belongs on the commercial policy or under hired and non-owned auto coverage.

Once vehicles are rated as a fleet rather than individually, driver records and use patterns drive the premium for operations across the industries we work in.

What counts as a fleet for commercial auto insurance in California?

California law does not define a fleet for insurance purposes. Under the ISO commercial auto rating rules most carriers use, a fleet is five or more self-propelled vehicles under one ownership, and trailers do not count toward the five. Carriers may apply their own threshold, so we confirm the count before quoting. Fleet status changes how the business auto policy is rated, not what it covers, and it is a rating classification rather than a separate product. Insurance Code section 660 also keeps any policy insuring more than four vehicles out of the private passenger definition, which is why Proposition 103's rating factors do not govern a fleet.

What is the minimum liability insurance for business vehicles in California?

For vehicles not operated as a motor carrier of property, the same minimum as any California vehicle. Since 1 January 2025 Vehicle Code section 16056 requires $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $15,000 for property damage, with a further step-up on 1 January 2035. Higher minimums apply to motor carriers of property and to interstate for-hire carriers, covered below. Most business auto policies are written with a combined single limit rather than split limits, and the limit a contract or customer demands is usually far above any statutory floor.

Do I need a Motor Carrier Permit, and how much insurance does it require?

A Motor Carrier Permit from the DMV is required before a motor carrier of property operates a commercial motor vehicle on a California highway. Under Vehicle Code section 34601 that includes any vehicle used to transport property for compensation and any motor truck of two or more axles with a GVWR over 10,000 pounds. Pickups and personal-use vehicles are exempt. The permit requires proof of liability insurance filed with the DMV. Under section 34631.5 the minimum is $750,000 combined single limit, or $300,000 if the carrier operates only vehicles under 10,001 pounds GVWR, with higher amounts for petroleum and hazardous materials. The insurer files a certificate with the DMV and cannot cancel it on less than 30 days' written notice. If coverage lapses, the permit is suspended.

Does the federal $750,000 minimum apply to my California fleet?

Only if you are a for-hire carrier transporting property in interstate or foreign commerce with vehicles of 10,001 pounds GVWR or more, or you haul certain hazardous materials. 49 CFR 387.9 then sets $750,000 for non-hazardous property, $1,000,000 for oil and most hazardous materials, and $5,000,000 for the highest-risk hazardous materials. Vehicles under 10,001 pounds carrying non-hazardous property are outside the federal rule. A California-only carrier is governed by the state Motor Carrier Permit minimums instead, and the Highway Patrol rather than the federal agency inspects its terminals.

What does the CHP require of a business that runs regulated trucks?

Fixed compliance duties that come before any rating advantage. Motor trucks over 10,000 pounds GVWR with three or more axles, truck tractors, vehicles of 26,001 pounds GVWR or more, placarded hazmat vehicles and certain combinations fall under Vehicle Code section 34500. Carriers of those vehicles hold a CHP carrier identification number, which requires a US DOT number first. Each regulated vehicle must be inspected at least every 90 days for brakes, steering, suspension, tires and connecting devices, with records kept for two years under section 34505.5. The CHP selects terminals for its Basic Inspection of Terminals on a performance basis and reinspects an unsatisfactory terminal within 120 days. An unsatisfactory rating is a ground for permit suspension and a question every underwriter asks.

Do I have to enroll my drivers in the DMV Employer Pull Notice program?

Yes, if any driver operates a vehicle that requires a Class A or Class B license, a Class C license with a hazmat, passenger or tank endorsement, or certain passenger-carrier certificates. Vehicle Code section 1808.1 requires the employer to obtain a driver record before hiring and to enroll the driver in the pull-notice system. The system returns a record at least every 12 months and whenever a conviction, accident, failure to appear or suspension is posted. Employers whose drivers are not in a mandatory category may enroll them voluntarily with the driver's written consent. Insurers ask for driver lists and motor vehicle records at every renewal, and an enrolled account is the simplest way to keep them current.

Which of my drivers need a commercial driver license?

Anyone operating a commercial motor vehicle. A Class A license covers combinations where the towed unit is above 10,000 pounds GVWR. A Class B license covers a single vehicle above 26,000 pounds GVWR, and buses. A Class C license covers two-axle vehicles of 26,000 pounds or less, and needs an endorsement for tank vehicles, passenger vehicles, double trailers or placarded hazardous materials under Vehicle Code section 15278. Commercial license holders driving vehicles at 26,001 pounds or more, 16 or more passengers, or placarded hazmat are also subject to federal drug and alcohol testing under 49 CFR Part 382, including in intrastate operation.

Who is covered when an employee drives a company vehicle, and what about employees' own cars?

On a standard business auto policy, an insured includes anyone using a covered vehicle you own, hire or borrow with your permission, subject to listed exceptions. Insurance Code section 11580.1 requires that permissive-user coverage on California auto liability policies and allows a named-driver exclusion only by written agreement. Which vehicles are covered depends on the symbols on the declarations page, so a policy limited to specifically described vehicles covers only the listed ones. An employee's own car used on company errands is not an owned auto under the company policy; that exposure is addressed by hired and non-owned auto coverage. The employee's personal policy generally still responds for a private passenger car, pickup or van used in business, but it excludes livery use and the auto business.

Are my drivers employees, and do I need workers' compensation?

Every California employer must secure workers' compensation from the first employee under Labor Code section 3700. Under Labor Code section 2775 a driver is presumed an employee unless the business proves three things. The driver must be free from its control, do work outside its usual course of business, and run an independently established trade. A business whose usual work involves the driving will rarely satisfy the second test for its own drivers, and the construction trucking exemption applied only to work performed before 1 January 2025. Workers' compensation for drivers is rated by the classification of the work, not the vehicle. A business hauling customers' goods under contract is generally class 7219, while a business delivering its own product usually keeps its governing classification for its drivers.

How do you get a fleet quote from us?

Start a commercial auto quote and send us the vehicle list with GVWRs and uses, and the driver roster with motor vehicle records. Add your Motor Carrier Permit and CHP number if you hold them, and the insurance section of any customer contract. Some fleets we can write directly and quickly. Others go to underwriting for approval, or need a wholesale market, and those take longer. Either way you know before you decide. For-hire trucking operations should read our commercial auto page for the motor carrier rules in more depth.

Statutory and regulatory figures current as of September 2026 and specific to California; the federal figures apply only to interstate for-hire operations. Form descriptions refer to standard ISO wording; no form text is reproduced.