Motor truck cargo insurance for the freight in your care
Motor truck cargo insurance pays for loss or damage to the freight you haul, up to a limit on each truck, when you are legally liable for it. Federal law requires it only for household goods movers, but the Carmack Amendment makes carriers liable for the actual loss, and broker and shipper contracts can require a set limit.
Every coverage, one broker
Liability, cargo, physical damage and more — quoted and placed under one roof.
Insurance + DOT + permitting
Filings, certificates and FMCSA compliance handled in-house.
Simplex Group at a glance
What is motor truck cargo insurance?
Motor truck cargo (MTC) insurance is an inland marine policy that covers property while it moves by truck. IRMI defines it as coverage for loss of property in the course of transit, “either by common carrier or on the insured’s own vehicles, depending on the form used.” The form decides whose loss it pays.
One openly published cargo policy, the IM-7063 Motor Truck Cargo Coverage Form, shows the three versions side by side:
- Trucker’s legal liability: covers “your legal liability as a common or contract carrier under a tariff document, bill of lading or shipping receipt” for the cargo you haul. This is the version for-hire carriers buy to answer cargo claims.
- Trucker’s direct coverage: covers the cargo you carry for others as property, without first requiring that your legal liability be shown.
- Owner’s coverage: covers cargo you own, or have sold and are delivering, on your own vehicles. It fits a manufacturer, distributor, or service business that moves its own goods rather than freight for hire.
Why your auto liability doesn’t cover the load
Auto liability pays for injury and damage you cause to others, not for the freight in your trailer. The federal MCS-90 endorsement states that the public liability it guarantees does not apply to “property transported by the insured, designated as cargo.” General liability excludes it too, as our guide to CGL insurance for truckers explains. Cargo is its own line, and we place it with the rest of your commercial truck insurance.
What does motor truck cargo insurance cover?
It covers direct physical loss to the cargo from an external cause, such as a collision, fire, or theft, unless an exclusion applies. Under a legal liability form, it pays what you are legally liable for, up to the limit shown for each scheduled truck.
In the IM-7063 form, cargo is covered only while it is loaded for shipment and in transit on a described vehicle, or while it is being loaded or unloaded. Every covered truck must be listed on the schedule with its own limit, and a described vehicle includes the trailer or container it pulls. The same form excludes damage to the truck itself; physical damage insurance covers that.
| Extension | What it pays | Limit in the base form |
|---|---|---|
| Freight charges | Freight charges you earned but can’t collect because the cargo was lost | Within the truck’s cargo limit |
| Expediting expenses | Extra labor, fuel, and freight to repair the truck or deliver the cargo another way after a covered loss | $25,000 per occurrence |
| Debris removal | Removing the debris of covered cargo after a covered loss | 25% of the loss paid, plus up to $25,000 more |
| Pollutant cleanup | Extracting pollutants from land or water after a covered peril | $25,000 per location per 12-month period |
| Defense of a suit | Defending you when a cargo owner sues over covered cargo (legal liability form) | Until the limit is paid |
| Replacement and newly acquired trucks | Cargo on trucks you add during the term | 30 days, if you report them and pay the premium |
These extensions are where cargo policies differ most. The insurer endorsement published with the same form removes automatic coverage for replacement and newly acquired trucks, cuts debris removal to $5,000 per loss, and caps all extensions at $25,000 a year. Compare the extension wording, not only the limit, when you compare quotes.
What does motor truck cargo insurance exclude?
Every cargo policy lists property it won’t cover and causes of loss it won’t pay for, and those lists vary more than the coverage itself. The IM-7063 form and the endorsements published with it show what to look for in yours:
| Exclusion | What it removes | How carriers close the gap |
|---|---|---|
| Refrigeration breakdown | Loss from a breakdown or malfunction of the reefer unit, or from a temperature change not caused by a covered peril | Add reefer breakdown coverage, which we place with cargo programs |
| Theft from an unattended vehicle | Covered only if the truck was locked with windows closed and shows visible forced entry; the endorsement caps it at $100,000 | Plan secure parking and record every stop |
| Theft of target goods | The endorsement excludes theft of listed goods such as electronics, appliances, alcohol, tobacco, and new textiles | Tell the underwriter everything you haul before you bind |
| Mysterious disappearance or shortage | A loss with no explained cause | Count, seal, and sign for the load at pickup |
| Dishonest acts | Theft or fraud by you, your employees, or anyone you entrust the cargo to | Screen drivers; the base form still covers dishonesty by a carrier you hire |
| The nature of the goods | Wear and tear, gradual deterioration, inherent defects, insects, delay, and loss of market | Not insurable as cargo; load and protect freight to the shipper’s instructions |
| Excluded property | Money, securities, jewelry, fine arts, live animals, contraband, and intermodal containers unless included in the shipment value | Declare unusual commodities and equipment up front |
| Time and place | Cargo held more than 72 hours at one location, and losses in Mexico, Canada, or Puerto Rico | Ask for storage or territory wording if your lanes need it |
Freight fraud, where someone uses a stolen or fake identity to take a load, is a theft with no break-in, so the dishonest-acts and forced-entry wording in your policy decides whether it is covered. Our guide to spotting and avoiding freight fraud covers how to verify who you hand a load to.
Check who the policy lets drive
Some cargo forms tie coverage to who operates the truck. In Morey v. Western American Specialized Transportation Services (Fifth Circuit, 1992), a cargo policy excluded losses unless the trucks were operated by the insured’s own full-time employees or by owner-operators leased for 30 days or more. The insurer denied six claims on leased trucks driven by non-owner drivers, and the court held the policy covered them, but only after a lawsuit. If you run leased owner-operators or their drivers, make sure the wording fits how you dispatch.
Is motor truck cargo insurance required?
Not for most carriers. FMCSA’s insurance filing requirements list a $0 cargo requirement for for-hire carriers of general freight and of hazardous materials. The federal requirement falls on household goods carriers:
- Interstate household goods movers: $5,000 for loss or damage on any one vehicle and $10,000 for losses at any one time and place, under 49 CFR 387.303T(c), filed with FMCSA on Form BMC-34 or BMC-83. Household goods freight forwarders also file $5,000 in cargo coverage.
- Texas-only movers: TxDMV applies the same $5,000 and $10,000 amounts to intrastate household goods carriers; our Texas commercial truck insurance page covers those filings.
The filing amounts sit well below a mover’s real exposure. Under 49 CFR 375.201, a mover’s normal liability is full value protection: the replacement value of the goods, up to the shipment’s declared value, unless the shipper waives it in writing.
Your liability for general freight comes from the Carmack Amendment
No required filing does not mean no liability. Under the Carmack Amendment, 49 U.S.C. 14706, an interstate carrier is liable for “the actual loss or injury to the property.” The shipper shows the goods were handed to you in good condition, arrived damaged or not at all, and the amount of the loss. You then have to prove you were not negligent and that the loss came from an act of God, the public enemy, the shipper’s own act, public authority, or the nature of the goods, as the Eleventh Circuit summarized in A.I.G. Uruguay v. AAA Cooper Transportation (2003). In that case, three pallets of cell phones vanished without explanation while in the carrier’s hands, and the carrier owed their full $126,000 value.
You can limit that liability only in writing. Carmack lets a carrier set rates that cap its liability at a value the shipper declares or agrees to in writing, if that value is reasonable. A written contract can also go further: under 49 U.S.C. 14101(b), a carrier and shipper can expressly waive Carmack rights and remedies. Read the cargo liability clause in every broker and shipper agreement, because that clause, not a federal minimum, sets the limit you need.
How much cargo coverage do you need, and what does it cost?
Enough to cover your most valuable load on any one truck, and at least what your contracts require. The limit on the schedule applies per vehicle, and it is the most the policy pays for a loss on that truck.
The IM-7063 form pays the smallest of four amounts: the value on the tariff, bill of lading, or shipping receipt; the invoice cost, or actual cash value if there is no invoice; the cost to repair or replace; or the limit. A limit below the value of the load leaves the difference with you, while a released value on the bill of lading can hold both your liability and the payout below the limit.
There is no standard price for cargo coverage. A quote is built on the details underwriters ask for:
- Commodities: what you haul, whether it is refrigerated, and whether it is a common theft target.
- Limits: the per-truck limit your contracts require and the deductible you choose.
- Units: the trucks and trailers on your schedule, each with its own limit.
- Radius and lanes: where the freight runs and where it sits overnight.
- Loss history: three to five years of loss runs, including past cargo claims.
For the full rating picture, see how much commercial truck insurance costs.
How does a cargo claim work?
The cargo owner files a written claim with you, and your insurer handles it under the policy’s conditions. Federal rules set the timeline for interstate carriers:
- Filing window: a carrier can’t give shippers less than 9 months to file a claim, or less than 2 years to sue counted from a written denial (49 U.S.C. 14706(e)).
- What counts as a claim: a written demand that identifies the shipment, asserts liability, and asks for a specified or determinable amount. A damage notation on a delivery receipt is not a claim on its own (49 CFR 370.3).
- Your deadlines: acknowledge the claim in writing within 30 days, then pay, decline, or make a firm settlement offer within 120 days, with a written status update every 60 days after that (49 CFR 370.5 and 370.9).
Your policy adds its own duties. The IM-7063 form bars you from admitting liability or settling without the insurer’s written consent. Its endorsement requires prompt written notice, a police report when the loss may involve a crime, and a sworn proof of loss within 91 days of the insurer’s request.
Keep the paperwork that proves the loss
A legal liability policy pays only when your liability is shown. In Esco Transportation v. General Insurance Company of America (Fifth Circuit, 2003, unpublished), a carrier’s trailer of clothing valued at $372,088.80 was stolen, and the coverage suit failed because the record held no bill of lading or other document showing the carrier’s liability, the cargo’s value, or its owner. Keep signed bills of lading, seal numbers, and delivery receipts for every load; our guide to documenting damaged cargo covers what to record at delivery.
How to get motor truck cargo insurance
Step 1: List what you haul
Your commodities, your most valuable typical load, whether any of it is refrigerated, and whether you ever haul your own goods rather than freight for hire.
Step 2: Read your contracts
Note the cargo limit, deductible, and certificate wording each broker and shipper agreement requires. Household goods movers also need the BMC-34 filing.
Step 3: Gather your records
Your USDOT and MC numbers, a unit schedule with VINs, your radius and lanes, and three to five years of loss runs.
Step 4: Request your quote
Tell us what you haul and where. A licensed agent follows up with options, handles the filings and certificates, and can quote cargo together with liability and physical damage. Leased to a carrier? Our owner-operator truck insurance page covers how your coverage fits with the carrier’s.
Sources
The rules and figures on this page come from these official sources, checked on September 25, 2026.
- eCFR — 49 CFR 387.303T, Minimum limits: Household goods cargo security: $5,000 per vehicle and $10,000 at any one time and place.
- FMCSA — Insurance Filing Requirements: $0 cargo requirement for general freight and hazmat carriers, $5,000 for household goods, and Forms BMC-34 and BMC-83.
- 49 U.S.C. 14706 — Carmack Amendment (U.S. Code): Carrier liability for the actual loss, written released-value limits, and the 9-month and 2-year claim periods.
- eCFR — 49 CFR Part 370, Loss and damage claims: What counts as a claim, the 30-day acknowledgment, and the 120-day disposition rule.
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit — A.I.G. Uruguay v. AAA Cooper Transportation (2003, PDF): The Carmack prima facie case, the carrier’s five defenses, and full-value liability for an unexplained loss.
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit — Esco Transportation v. General Insurance Co. of America (2003, PDF): A legal liability cargo policy, its unattended trailer exclusion, and a claim lost for lack of proof of liability.
- IRMI — Motor truck cargo: Definition of motor truck cargo as an inland marine form for property in transit.
Not just a quote form that disappears
You get a real broker who knows trucking and handles the whole lifecycle — quote, bind, filings, renewals.
25+ years, 10,000+ trucking companies
A book built over decades — carriers pick up when we call, and you get real market options, not one quote.
One broker for everything
Insurance, DOT compliance, and permitting under one roof — not four vendors and a spreadsheet.
Real agents, fast quotes
Give us the basics once; a licensed agent comes back with real numbers — not a call-center loop.
Annual reviews, always
Your business changes and grows — we recommend a yearly policy review so you're never paying for coverage that no longer fits your operation.
Frequently asked questions
What is motor truck cargo insurance?+
It is inland marine coverage for freight while it moves by truck. The trucker’s form covers your legal liability as a carrier for cargo you haul under a bill of lading, up to the limit set for each scheduled truck.
What does motor truck cargo insurance cover?+
It covers direct physical loss to cargo from an external cause, such as a collision, fire, or theft, while the cargo is loaded, in transit, or being loaded or unloaded on a scheduled truck. Common exclusions include reefer breakdown, unattended-vehicle theft without forced entry, mysterious disappearance, and damage from the nature of the goods.
Is cargo insurance required for truckers?+
Federal law requires it only for household goods carriers, at $5,000 per vehicle and $10,000 for losses at any one time and place. FMCSA lists no cargo requirement for general freight, but brokers and shippers can require a cargo limit in their contracts.
How much cargo insurance is needed for household goods?+
The federal minimum is $5,000 for any one vehicle and $10,000 for losses at one time and place, filed on Form BMC-34 or BMC-83. A mover’s liability under full value protection is the replacement value of the goods up to the declared value, so the minimum can fall well short.
Does a business that hauls its own products need motor truck cargo insurance?+
A trucker’s legal liability form covers goods you haul for others, so it does not fit your own products. An owner’s cargo form covers property you own, or have sold and are delivering, while it moves on your vehicles.
Does motor truck cargo insurance cover reefer breakdown?+
Check the form. The published IM-7063 cargo form excludes loss from a refrigeration unit breakdown and from temperature changes not caused by a covered peril, so refrigerated carriers add reefer breakdown coverage.
Is cargo insurance part of commercial auto liability?+
No. Auto liability pays for injury and damage you cause to others, and the federal MCS-90 endorsement excludes property transported as cargo. Motor truck cargo insurance is the policy that pays for the freight in your care.
Other services
Simplex Group is a full-service trucking partner — insurance is one piece of a much larger toolkit.