ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Nov. 28 published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on increasing the minimum insurance levels for carriers and brokers.

EBE Technologies said it has created an insurance-enrollment program for carriers hiring owner operators and independent drivers.

Some of the nation’s largest trucking companies are joining forces to oppose the Obama administration’s plan to eliminate a self-insurance option for motor carriers.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said it plans to raise the required $750,000 insurance minimum for interstate motor carriers because the amount is not adequate to cover the cost of some serious crashes.

The current financial responsibility minimum of $750,000 for motor carriers is inadequate to meet the costs of some crashes, according to a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration report released April 18.

The minimum injury and property damage insurance level for trucking companies would rise nearly 500% to $4.4 million from the current $750,000 under a measure proposed by a congressman who said the current level is insufficient to protect crash victims.

The move by Rep. Matt Cartwright to force all motor carriers to increase their minimum injury and property damage insurance coverage by almost 500% is a misguided solution in search of a problem.

In speaking with hundreds of trucking company executives over the course of my career, I’ve noticed two distinctly different mentalities when discussing insurance: There are those who buy insurance, and there are those who manage risk.