Commercial truck insurance in Chicago, built for Illinois rules
Chicago trucks hauling general freight for hire need at least $750,000 in liability, whether they cross state lines or stay in Illinois under an ICC certificate, and for-hire trucks under 10,000 pounds need $300,000 in Illinois. Hazmat needs $1 million to $5 million, and rail-ramp drayage adds the UIIA’s $1 million auto and general liability.
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Simplex Group at a glance
What commercial truck insurance does Illinois require?
Two sets of rules apply, and many Chicago fleets need both. Federal minimums cover interstate work, and the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) sets the minimums for carriers hauling for hire on loads that start and end in Illinois.
| Operation | Set by | Minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Interstate for-hire general freight, 10,001 lb or more | FMCSA | $750,000 |
| Illinois-only for-hire general freight, 10,000 lb GVWR or more | ICC | $750,000 |
| Illinois-only for-hire freight under 10,000 lb GVWR, such as cargo vans and light box trucks | ICC | $300,000 |
| Oil, hazardous waste, and most hazardous materials | FMCSA and ICC | $1,000,000 |
| Bulk hazardous substances in cargo tanks, portable tanks, or hoppers, plus explosives, poison gas, and highway route controlled radioactive loads | FMCSA and ICC | $5,000,000 |
| Illinois-only for-hire cargo | ICC | $5,000 per vehicle, $10,000 per occurrence |
| Any other vehicle registered in Illinois | Illinois Vehicle Code 7-203 | $25,000 / $50,000 / $20,000 |
Hauling for hire inside Illinois takes an ICC Public Carrier Certificate, even if you already hold federal MC authority, and the certificate is valid only while your insurance is on file. The ICC’s insurance requirements also call for cargo coverage, unless you file a waiver affidavit stating you will never carry cargo worth more than $5,000 in any vehicle. Coverage filed with the ICC must come from an insurer admitted in Illinois.
Does Illinois require uninsured motorist coverage on trucks?
Yes. Every auto liability policy on a vehicle registered or principally garaged in Illinois must include uninsured motorist coverage, at least at the $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash minimums. Under Insurance Code section 143a-2, it is included at your full bodily injury limits unless you reject the higher amount in writing, and underinsured motorist coverage must match any uninsured limit above the minimum.
Do Illinois trucking companies need workers’ comp?
Yes, for their employees. The Workers’ Compensation Act lists carriage by land, including loading and unloading, among the “extra hazardous” businesses it covers automatically. Knowingly going without it can bring a work-stop order, fines, and a Class 4 felony charge. Owner-operators who are not employees often look at occupational accident coverage instead, which we place.
What coverage does Chicago freight actually need?
Usually more than the minimum, because of what moves through the region. By CMAP’s count, trucks carried 372,847,000 tons of goods to, from, or within the 13-county Chicago analysis area in 2023, and almost half of it never left that area. Three kinds of work shape the policies Chicago fleets carry:
- Intermodal and rail drayage: CMAP reports that a quarter of all U.S. rail freight starts, ends, or passes through the region, which has all six Class I railroads and 18 rail-truck intermodal terminals. The CREATE Program says nearly half of the nation’s intermodal trains pass through each year. Container and chassis interchange typically runs on the UIIA contract, and its insurance requirements are $1 million in auto liability, $1 million in general liability, the UIIE-1 interchange endorsement, and trailer interchange where the equipment provider requires it. The auto policy must cover any auto, all owned and hired autos, or scheduled and hired autos, which is why your commercial auto symbols matter.
- Fuel and bulk loads: gasoline, fuel oils, and other fossil fuel products are among the five largest groups of truck freight moving within the Chicago area. Hazmat puts you in the $1 million or $5 million rows above, and the federal limits for bulk loads apply to intrastate trips too.
- Local box trucks and dump trucks: CMAP notes that single-unit trucking is mostly local, averaging under 100 miles a day, and box trucks and dump trucks make up 60% of the single-unit trucks registered in Illinois. Our box truck insurance page covers that class.
The minimums protect the public, not your load or your truck. For the freight itself, see motor truck cargo insurance. Our commercial truck insurance page lists every line we place, including physical damage and trailer interchange.
What insurance do tow trucks need in Chicago?
Illinois sets its own limits for tow trucks. Under 625 ILCS 5/12-606, every tow truck operator must file proof with the Illinois Secretary of State of:
- Auto liability: at least $500,000 combined single limit.
- Garagekeepers liability: at least $500,000 combined single limit.
- On-hook or garagekeepers coverage: at least $25,000 for damage to vehicles you tow, and for theft, loss, or damage to vehicles you store.
- Workers’ compensation: for injury to the driver or helper, at the Workers’ Compensation Act minimums.
A certificate of that coverage has to ride in the cab of each tow truck.
Relocation towing in Cook County
Towing trespassing vehicles from private property in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Will, and Winnebago counties is licensed by the ICC. Under 625 ILCS 5/18a-301, a relocator must keep on file at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per crash for bodily injury, $50,000 for other property damage, and $15,000 per vehicle it relocates or stores. Police-ordered tows, disabled-vehicle tows, and repossessions fall outside that law.
What drives the cost of truck insurance in Chicago?
Your operation, more than your ZIP code. Insurers rate what you haul, your radius, your equipment, where the trucks are garaged, your limits, and your safety record. For the full list and benchmarks, see how much commercial truck insurance costs.
A few factors play out in specific ways for Chicago fleets:
- Radius: many local fleets run short city routes and also take regional or long-haul loads. A quote built on the wrong radius prices the wrong risk.
- Commodity: fuel and other placarded loads carry higher required limits and higher premiums than general freight.
- Contract limits: rail-ramp work under the UIIA adds general liability and trailer interchange to the auto policy.
- Uninsured motorist limits: Illinois includes the coverage at your bodily injury limits unless you reject the excess in writing, so make that choice on purpose.
- Safety record: roadside inspections and crashes feed the scores underwriters read, as our guide to CSA scores and truck insurance explains.
Which insurance filings keep a Chicago carrier running?
Up to three, and your insurer or agent files each one. Buying the policy is not enough.
- FMCSA (interstate authority): after you apply for MC authority, your insurer files proof of liability, usually on a BMC-91 or BMC-91X. If it is not filed within 20 days of publication in the FMCSA Register, FMCSA notifies you that the application will be dismissed unless you comply within 60 days.
- ICC (Illinois-only authority): your insurer files Form E for liability and Form H for cargo. If proof of continuous coverage lapses, the ICC can suspend your certificate by mail, and you cannot operate until new proof is filed, according to the ICC’s motor carrier FAQ.
- UIIA (rail and port drayage): your agent submits one online ACORD 22 certificate showing your limits, the interchange endorsement, and each equipment provider as an additional insured.
Illinois-only carriers also buy an ICC cab card for each truck before January 1, at $5 per vehicle. Carriers that pay Unified Carrier Registration are exempt from the cab card.
Inside the city, oversize and overweight moves on City streets take a CDOT truck travel permit through the City of Chicago permit portal, which links your company’s licenses and insurance on file to your permits.
How to get a commercial truck insurance quote in Chicago
Step 1: Describe your freight and routes
Tell us what you haul, whether it is placarded, your split of local, regional, and long-haul work, and where the trucks are garaged. Tell us too if you tow or pull intermodal containers.
Step 2: Gather your records
Your USDOT, MC, or ICC numbers, three to five years of loss runs, a driver list with motor vehicle records, and a unit schedule with VINs and values.
Step 3: List the limits your contracts require
Your UIIA status and equipment providers, plus any shipper, broker, or lender limits above the legal minimum.
Step 4: Request your quote
A licensed agent follows up with options and handles the filings. We also cover DOT compliance in Chicago, so your authority and your insurance stay in step.
Sources
The rules and figures on this page come from these official sources, checked on September 25, 2026.
- eCFR: 49 CFR 387.9, Financial responsibility, minimum levels: Federal liability minimums ($750,000, $1 million, $5 million) and when they reach intrastate hazmat.
- FMCSA: Insurance Filing Requirements: BMC-91/91X filings for operating authority and the 20-day and 60-day deadlines.
- Illinois Commerce Commission: Insurance Requirements for Public Carrier Certificate: Illinois-only for-hire liability and cargo minimums, Forms E and H, and the cargo waiver affidavit.
- Illinois Commerce Commission: Motor Carriers of Property FAQ: Who needs a Public Carrier Certificate, cab cards and UCR, and suspension for lapsed insurance.
- Illinois Administrative Code: 92 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1425: ICC financial responsibility rules: licenses conditioned on insurance, admitted insurers, and the cargo waiver.
- Illinois Vehicle Code: 625 ILCS 5/12-606: Tow truck auto liability, garagekeepers, on-hook, and workers’ compensation requirements.
- CMAP: The Freight Landscape (October 2025): Truck tonnage, intra-regional commodities, and single-unit truck patterns in the Chicago region.
- Intermodal Association of North America: UIIA Insurance Requirements: UIIA auto and general liability, acceptable auto symbols, interchange endorsement, trailer interchange, and ACORD 22.
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Frequently asked questions
How much is commercial truck insurance in Chicago?+
There is no single Chicago price. Your premium depends on what you haul, your radius, equipment, garaging, limits, and safety record, so the reliable way to know is a quote built on your operation.
What truck insurance does Illinois require?+
For-hire carriers need at least $750,000 in liability for trucks of 10,000 pounds or more, whether they run interstate under FMCSA or only in Illinois under the ICC, and $1 million to $5 million for hazmat. Illinois-only for-hire carriers also file cargo coverage of $5,000 per vehicle and $10,000 per occurrence, unless they file a waiver.
What insurance does a box truck or cargo van need in Illinois?+
A for-hire cargo van or box truck under 10,000 pounds GVWR that runs only in Illinois needs at least $300,000 in liability filed with the ICC, plus cargo coverage or a waiver. Heavier for-hire box trucks need $750,000.
What insurance does a tow truck need in Illinois?+
At least $500,000 in auto liability, $500,000 in garagekeepers liability, $25,000 in on-hook or garagekeepers coverage, and workers’ compensation, with proof filed with the Secretary of State. Relocation towers in Cook County also file ICC limits of $100,000 per person, $300,000 per crash, $50,000 for property damage, and $15,000 per vehicle.
Do truck drivers need workers' comp in Illinois?+
Yes. Trucking companies must cover their employees, because the Workers’ Compensation Act lists carriage by land as extra hazardous and applies to it automatically. Insurers price it on your operation, so there is no fixed Chicago price.
Do I need an ICC certificate if I already have MC authority?+
Yes, if you haul for hire on loads that start and end in Illinois. The ICC says federal authority does not replace its Public Carrier Certificate for intrastate work.
Is Simplex Group an insurance company?+
No. We are a broker: we quote and place commercial truck insurance with insurance companies, so you get market options rather than one quote, and we handle the filings.
Other services
Simplex Group is a full-service trucking partner — insurance is one piece of a much larger toolkit.