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Car hauling looks simple from the outside: load the vehicles, strap them down, deliver them. The insurance behind it is less simple. The cargo is unusually valuable, every unit on the trailer has its own price, and the customer might be a dealer moving dozens of units a month or a private owner shipping one car to another state. A sound program starts with the legal minimums and then turns on cargo terms that many operators first read after a claim.
A car hauler moving other people's vehicles for pay in interstate commerce is a for-hire carrier of property. Under 49 CFR 387.9, the minimum public liability for for-hire carriage of nonhazardous property in interstate or foreign commerce, with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,001 pounds or more, is $750,000. FMCSA's insurance filing chart lists $300,000 for the same type of carrier with vehicles under 10,001 pounds, filed on a BMC-91, BMC-91X or BMC-82.
The same chart shows no federal cargo insurance requirement for general freight carriers. Among motor carriers of property, the federal cargo filing applies only to household goods carriers, at $5,000. For a car hauler, cargo coverage is driven by contracts and customers, not by an FMCSA filing.
These are floors. Dealers, auctions and brokers may ask for more, and a loaded trailer can carry vehicles worth far more than any minimum. For a pickup pulling a wedge trailer, the vehicle's weight rating decides which federal amount applies, so confirm it before quoting. Many car haulers are also new authorities, where underwriters weigh experience and equipment heavily; the new venture truck insurance page covers that stage.
The federal cargo securement rules include commodity-specific sections, and 49 CFR 393.128 covers automobiles, light trucks and vans that individually weigh 10,000 pounds or less. Each vehicle must be restrained at both the front and the rear against lateral, forward, rearward and vertical movement, using at least two tiedowns.
The section adds three details that matter on a car hauler:
A vehicle that individually weighs more than 10,000 pounds falls under section 393.130 instead, which covers heavy vehicles and equipment. That section requires at least four tiedowns, placed as close as practicable to the front and rear or at designed mounting points, and requires articulated vehicles to be restrained so they cannot articulate in transit.
Following the rule does more than satisfy an inspector. When a vehicle arrives with strap marks, a scraped bumper or suspension damage, how and where it was tied down becomes part of the claim file.
For interstate shipments, a motor carrier's liability for cargo loss and damage comes from the Carmack Amendment, 49 U.S.C. § 14706. It requires the carrier to issue a receipt or bill of lading and makes the carrier liable to the person entitled to recover under it for the actual loss or injury to the property. Failing to issue a bill of lading does not remove that liability.
The statute lets a carrier limit its liability for property other than household goods to a value set by the shipper's written or electronic declaration, or by written agreement between carrier and shipper, if that value is reasonable under the circumstances. A carrier that does not file its tariff must give the shipper, on request, a copy of the rates, rules and practices a shipment's rate is based on. Whether a particular limitation holds up is a legal question, so have the bill of lading and rate terms reviewed rather than borrowed from another company's paperwork.
Carmack also sets minimum time frames. A carrier may not give a claimant less than 9 months to file a claim, or less than 2 years to sue, with the 2 years running from the date the carrier gives written notice that it has disallowed any part of the claim. An offer of compromise is not a disallowance unless the carrier states in writing that part of the claim is disallowed and gives reasons. A letter from the carrier's insurer counts only if it says so, gives reasons, and states that the insurer is acting for the carrier.
Because no federal filing sets the cargo terms, their shape comes from the insurer and from what customers demand. Two limits usually matter most:
Both have to fit the freight. A full open trailer of late-model vehicles and an enclosed trailer carrying one high-value car call for very different numbers. Ask how the policy values a damaged vehicle, whether the deductible applies per vehicle or per occurrence, and whether anything is excluded, such as certain types of vehicles, damage while driving units onto or off the trailer, or damage reported after delivery without an exception noted at drop-off.
Most disputes over a damaged vehicle come down to one question: was the damage there before pickup? A careful condition report at pickup, with dated photos of every panel, the wheels, the glass and the interior, is the best answer. Repeat it at delivery and have the customer sign it, with any damage noted as an exception on the paperwork.
Dealers and auctions moving many units often run their own inspection process. Learn it before the first load, because their inspector will compare notes against yours. Private owners are more likely to find a scratch days later, which is why a signed delivery report without exceptions matters.
Keep securement records with the photos: which tiedown points and straps were used, where each vehicle sat on the trailer, and when the load was checked on the road. When a claim reaches your cargo insurer, that file is what the adjuster works from.
Is cargo insurance legally required for car haulers?
FMCSA's filing chart shows no federal cargo insurance requirement for for-hire general property carriers; the federal cargo filing applies to household goods carriers. Brokers, dealers and shippers often require cargo coverage by contract, so most car haulers carry it anyway.
How many tiedowns does a car need on a car hauler?
Under 49 CFR 393.128, a vehicle weighing 10,000 pounds or less must be restrained at the front and rear with at least two tiedowns, using its designed mounting points or wheel restraints that hold it in every direction. Heavier vehicles fall under the four-tiedown rule for heavy vehicles and equipment.
How long does a customer have to file a damage claim?
Under the Carmack Amendment, a carrier cannot set a period shorter than 9 months to file a claim, or shorter than 2 years to sue after a written disallowance. The bill of lading may allow more time than that minimum.
Can a car hauler limit what it pays for a damaged vehicle?
The Carmack Amendment allows a carrier to limit its liability to a value the shipper declares in writing or electronically, or agrees to in writing, if that value is reasonable under the circumstances. A transportation lawyer should review those terms before you rely on them.
Truscott's commercial truck insurance page explains the full program for car haulers and other carriers. Send your trailer type, typical load values and customer requirements through the commercial trucking application, and a licensed agent will review liability and cargo options together.
Sources checked September 24, 2026. This article is general information, not legal advice; verify the current state and federal rules for the actual truck, trailer and operation before relying on it.
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