At a glance
- What it covers
- Covers physical damage to a trailer you don’t own while it’s in your care under a written trailer interchange agreement.
- Who needs it
- Intermodal and drop-and-hook carriers pulling other companies’ trailers.
When You Need Trailer Interchange Coverage
As you no doubt know, some truckers run regular routes, from, let’s say for example, New York City to Chicago. If a particular trailer-full of goods is going from New York to Omaha, one trucker might haul the trailer to Chicago, drop the trailer there for a different trucker to complete the haul to Omaha, and pick up another trailer for the return to New York. In most cases the trailers will not belong to the driver. Trailer interchange insurance covers the driver for any damage to such a trailer while it is under his control.
What You Need to Know
Perhaps first and foremost, understand that trailer interchange insurance DOES NOT cover the goods in the trailer; to cover the goods you need trucker’s cargo liability insurance (see separate article). Trailer interchange insurance covers only the trailer itself, for damages suffered from occurrences such as collision, fire, theft, and vandalism.
Second, trailer interchange insurance is necessary when the businesses or individual truckers involved in hauling the particular trailer(s) have an interchange agreement, which is essentially a subcontracting agreement, in this case subcontracting to haul goods in a trailer. In cases when there is no interchange agreement, non-owned trailer insurance is likely more appropriate (see separate article).
Deductibles and Limits
Limits of coverage, which is the maximum amount the insurer will pay in case of a loss, are typically in the range of $20,000 to $30,000 for trailers. Deductibles, which are the amount that you must pay before the insurer begins to pay, are typically about $1,000.
