About car transport insurance

What-Are-the-Types-of-Insurance

What Are the Types of Insurance?

There are three basic types of vehicle transport insurance. You will need to know how all of these kinds of insurance work related to your car’s transportation process.

This is the insurance that you have on your car. You will have to have this policy in place when you ship a car. This is regardless of what other coverages you decide to add during the trip. This is the basic insurance policy that you have in place that protects you when you are driving your car. Additionally, it’ll have an extension within it that helps with replacement costs. This is in case your car is damaged or totaled during the time the vehicle transport company has it.

This is the insurance that you have on your car. You will have to have this policy in place when you ship a car. This is regardless of what other coverages you decide to add during the trip. This is the basic insurance policy that you have in place that protects you when you are driving your car. Additionally, it’ll have an extension within it that helps with replacement costs. This is in case your car is damaged or totaled during the time the vehicle transport company has it.

This is the insurance that the carrier has that also covers damage or losses that involve your car. You should make sure that any car shipping company you are working with has this insurance in place. It is a big red flag if they do not and you should never consider working with a company that will not share their insurance information with you before you commit to having them take your car for you to your new location.

Brokers are middlemen who facilitate contracts between drivers and customers. Yet, they are not the owners of the companies that haul these vehicles. Also, they will not be able to help with any of your auto shipping insurance needs.

You will find that broker insurance is not really their own insurance. Although, they might sell supplemental policies that are provided by a third-party insurance company. This might not apply to your needs during your car’s transport and you should be wary of using a brokerage for your car transport needs or for any supplemental coverages that they might offer you.

This is an additional portion of the insurance coverage that is extended to your car when you use a transport company for your vehicle transport needs. This part of the insurance covers actual losses to your car itself. For many car transport companies, this part of their insurance policy will cover up to $350,000 in damages. This might vary from state to state, but this is a common limit.

It is important to know that this coverage will be split up across all of the vehicles that are on the trailer at the time of an accident. If all eight cars are damaged, you will only get 1/8 of this coverage amount applied to your loss. Many people think that the $350,000 of coverage is extended to each car on the trailer. However, this is not the case.

The liability portion of the policy will not be handled in this way. However, the cargo insurance part of the policy is split between the cars on the trailer when the accident happened. You should always ask how many cars will be hauled on the trailer during your car’s transit. This is to know how much coverage is available for your car in case there’s significant damage or total loss.

Brokers are not insurance companies and they are not the owners of the truck that is transporting your vehicle. They might sell policies on behalf of insurance companies or facilitate the transport that you have booked. However, they are not the actual company driving your vehicle to your new home.

Always remember this if you use a broker for your car shipping insurance needs. You will always have to run claims through the actual insurance company that holds the policy and you will need to deal with the actual car transport company that is hauling your car for any concerns that you might have.

How Does Vehicle Transport Insurance Work?

Car Transport Insurance is an Important Part of Your Contract

In the case that your car is damaged during transit, you will need to file a claim. The kind of insurance that is protecting your car during the transport will affect how you submit this claim.

Carrier Insurance

Carrier responsibility is a bit limited in some ways. Their policy will cover instances where there is an accident based on the value of your car at the time that it was put on the trailer. Acts of God will not be covered such as weather events or things like earthquakes. Other items that will not be covered are terrorism events or accidents that occur due to civil unrest.
In all cases that your car is damaged while with a carrier, you should be able to reach out to the carrier and start a claim. The coverage for most carriers is around $350,000 of cargo insurance and $1,000,000 of liability insurance. The carrier and their insurance entity should handle your claim, but your own personal auto policy might have to be involved as well in some instances.

Broker Insurance

In the case that a broker has extended insurance for your car transport needs, you will have a different process than when dealing directly with the carrier for your claim. Brokers are supposed to make sure that the carriers that they work with have proper insurance, but this may not always be the case.
As stated above, carriers will have around $350,000 of coverage for losses to the car itself. However, a broker might also add some supplemental coverage in rare instances. This will almost always be secondary insurance to the carrier’s insurance. Besides, you need to be aware that the carrier’s policy is the primary coverage for the accident and losses associated with it.
You can see that broker insurance might be both beneficial and not helpful to you if the carrier that you are transporting your vehicle with is not properly insured. Trusting a broker to vet carriers can be a time-saver. Nevertheless, you might also find in some instances, that the insurance part of their vetting process was not done correctly.

Some Ways to Protect Yourself From Auto Insurance Issues

Ask For Proof of Car Transport Insurance

You should never skip this step when you are working with a vehicle transport company. Companies who do this kind of work should be able to provide a valid certificate that states what their coverage is and which company it is through. You will need this information if you need to file a claim. Thus, having it on hand takes care of two birds with one stone.

Make Sure Things Are in Writing

Handshake deals and verbal agreements are never a good idea. You should always make sure that the insurance information that you were quoted is listed and detailed in your contract. Do not sign anything that does not include insurance information.

Pre-Possession Inspection

This is the process that the car transport company does before they take over control of your vehicle. They will look at any existing damage to your vehicle and note it in their documentation. You can also take pictures of your vehicle before the company takes it from you. This is so that you can prove the condition of the vehicle before it was transported if need be.

Bill of Lading

This is the condition report you’re given when you get your car at the end of the transport process. You should make sure that you look your car over thoroughly before you sign off on this bill of lading. Any damage to the engine, undercarriage, interior, paint or other parts of your car that was not present when you handed your car off to the transport company will need to be addressed before you sign anything. You will include the damage that you see on the bill of lading. Also, you can call the transport carrier or broker to determine how you can get reimbursed for these damages. Be careful not to sign off on a bill of lading if you aren’t sure that your vehicle is in the condition that you handed it over to the company. You will not be able to seek reimbursement after a signed bill of lading that does not mention damages.

Reviews

So glad I contacted Lisca. There's a reason they are so highly rated. Older car or brand new car, any distance, I'd recommend them to anyone. They transported my old Rover from Oregon to Colorado fast and without a scratch. Thanks so much for the fantastic service and communication!
Ted Reade
Ted Reade
Transporting an expensive motorcycle is nerve racking. I researched a lot of companies, perhaps close to 20. I was bombarded with emails and texts from all these companies. I found out that Google and TrustPilot reviews are not to be trusted as they can be manipulated. I researched on Yelp and Found LISCA. Albert from the initial phone call, took time to explain the process and established a trust promising
A Stranger Abroad
A Stranger Abroad
It was a smooth transaction and my car arrived safely from Southern CA to Houston, TX. Kudos to the truck driver Gabriel and of course to Lisca Auto Transportation for a job well done. We'll definitely using this company again.
LB Carl
LB Carl
From beginning to end, they were very professional and told me step-by-step how the process works and delivered my vehicle just like they promised. I would highly recommend this company. The prices are fair and the service is great.
Arkady Grigoryan
Arkady Grigoryan

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We love our customers, so feel free to visit during normal business hours.

Lisc auto transport

10043 Forbes Avenue, North Hills, California 91343, United States

747-444-8760

USDOT Number: 3945638
MC Number: 1466737