Non-trucking liability insurance for when you’re off dispatch

NTL covers personal use and excludes business use, and the exclusion wording decides where that line falls. The non-trucking policy in the Michigan Supreme Court’s 2014 decision in Hunt v Drielick excluded injury or damage “while a covered ‘auto’ is used to carry property in any business or while a covered ‘auto’ is used in the business of anyone to whom the ‘auto’ is leased or rented.” Some endorsements add a third exclusion for any time a trailer is attached.

Where coverage disputes start

The gray trips are the ones between loads. In Hunt, a driver was bobtailing to pick up a dispatched trailer. The court held that the “carry property” clause excludes coverage only while property is attached to the tractor, so it did not apply. Whether the lessee-business clause applied turned on whether a lease existed, and there was no written lease, so the case went back for more fact-finding.

Repair trips are split. In Assicurazioni Generali v. Ranger (1995), the Fifth Circuit found an owner’s NTL policy covered a driver who had declined dispatch and was bobtailing to fix his brakes, and held both policies primary. It described a Seventh Circuit case that reached the opposite result when the driver still had a load to look after. The stipulated facts about dispatch decided the case, so keep a record of when you go off dispatch and why.

Federal law requires the carrier’s liability insurance, not NTL. A for-hire carrier hauling general freight across state lines needs at least $750,000 in public liability under 49 CFR 387.9, and that requirement sits with the carrier that holds the authority. The rules for owner-operator leases decide who pays for the rest.

Under 49 CFR 376.12, the carrier takes exclusive possession, control, and use of the equipment for the length of the lease and assumes complete responsibility for its operation. On insurance, the lease must:

• State the carrier’s legal obligation to maintain insurance for the protection of the public.
• Say who provides any other insurance for the leased equipment, “such as bobtail insurance.”
• Specify the amount charged back to you, if the carrier bills you for any of that insurance.
• If you buy coverage from or through the carrier, promise you a copy of each policy on request and a certificate showing the insurer, policy number, dates, coverage amounts, your cost, and your deductible.

So NTL becomes required when your lease makes it your job. The limit and the proof of coverage are whatever the lease and the carrier specify, so read that clause before you shop. How a carrier’s own policy treats leased units depends on its covered-auto symbols; our guide to commercial auto symbols explains how.

In no-fault states, check the PIP endorsement too

Where a state requires personal injury protection, an NTL policy can carry that coverage with its own exclusions. The Michigan bobtail policy in Abdulla v Progressive (2024) excluded PIP while the tractor was used in the business of any lessee or to transport cargo of any type.

There is no standard price. NTL covers a narrower use than primary liability, and the premium depends on your truck, your record, and the terms your lease sets. These are the inputs that move a quote:

• The limit your lease requires. A higher limit costs more, and the lease, not the law, usually sets it.
• Your driving record and experience. Violations and accidents on your motor vehicle record raise the rate.
• Where the truck is garaged. Rates vary by state and location.
• What you bundle. Adding physical damage prices your truck’s value into the same policy.

If your carrier offers NTL through its own program, the lease must state the chargeback amount, and the certificate must show your cost and deductible for each coverage. Put those numbers next to a quote before you decide. For the broader rating picture, see how much commercial truck insurance costs.

The rules and figures on this page come from these official sources, checked on September 25, 2026.

• eCFR — 49 CFR 376.12, Lease requirements: Carrier control of leased equipment, and the lease insurance clause: public liability, who provides bobtail insurance, chargebacks, and certificates.
• eCFR — 49 CFR 387.9, Financial responsibility, minimum levels: The $750,000 federal minimum for interstate for-hire general freight.
• Michigan Supreme Court — Hunt v Drielick (2014, PDF): The non-trucking policy’s business-use exclusion, how the “carry property” clause applies, and bobtail and deadhead definitions.
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit — Assicurazioni Generali v. Ranger Ins. Co. (1995, PDF): A non-trucking endorsement’s exclusions and the repair-trip dispute, with both policies held primary.
• Michigan Court of Appeals — Abdulla v Progressive Southeastern Ins Co (2024, PDF): A bobtail policy with non-trucking liability and physical damage, and its PIP exclusion.
• IRMI — Bobtail liability: Definition of bobtail and non-trucking liability, and the CA 23 09 endorsement.
• IRMI — Unladen liability: Unladen liability covers bobtail and deadhead use regardless of dispatch.