Paying for Someone Else’s Wreck: Why Rates Keep Climbing
Want to Know Why Trucking Rates Are So High?
Let’s Look at This Weekend’s Accidents
People keep asking why trucking insurance costs so much.
You want the truth? It’s not your agent. It’s not your carrier.
It’s weekends like this one.
Georgia – Fatal Crash in Lee County
A 2025 Volvo tractor-trailer went off the road and hit a power pole. The driver didn’t make it.
One crash. One payout. And it still drives up loss ratios for everyone in the pool.
Missouri – Wrong-Way Box Truck on I-49
A box truck went the wrong way down I-49 and hit multiple rigs. The driver was killed, two others hurt, and traffic backed up for miles.
That’s the kind of loss that makes reinsurers twitch. Those numbers get baked right into renewal math before the wreckage even cools.
Ohio – I-90 Roll-Over in Cleveland
A semi flipped near Dead Man’s Curve. No one was hurt, but the bill still stacks up: towing, cleanup, lost loads, maybe a fuel spill.
None of that comes cheap. Even “no injury” claims hit the books hard.
North Carolina – FedEx Fire on I-540
A FedEx tractor-trailer went off an overpass near Knightdale and caught fire. The driver was hurt, more than a hundred packages burned.
One crash, four coverages triggered: auto liability, cargo, physical damage, and comp. Even self-insured giants feed the same data pool that sets national rates.
North Carolina’s Weekend Wreck List
Raleigh, Zebulon, Apex, Princeton — it felt like every corner of the state took a hit.
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Raleigh: A moving truck wedged under the Peace Street bridge again.
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Zebulon: A Carolina Concrete mixer rolled on US 64, blocking a lane for hours.
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Apex: A tractor-trailer dumped a bulk load across the Triangle Expressway.
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Raleigh again: A dump truck hit the I-540 underpass on Capital Boulevard.
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Princeton: Two semis tangled on US 70, shutting both directions.
Add them up and you’ve got millions in claims, downtime, and lost freight.
Why It Matters
Underwriters don’t price off feelings. They price off data.
Every time a truck tips, burns, or wedges itself under a bridge, that loss becomes part of the dataset that defines “average risk.”
So when your clean record still gets a rate bump, this is what’s behind it.
Truck U Take
People blame the market, the carriers, or “greedy insurers.” The answer is much more complicated. Let's not forget, one of the real drivers is sitting behind the wheel in these headlines.
Until the industry stops stacking loss after loss, the rates won’t drop.
Safety and coverage aren’t separate conversations. They’re the same one.
Need help checking your coverage or safety score before renewal?
Call 254-294-7798 or email info@trucku.biz.
We’ll walk you through what’s spiking your premium and the steps to pull it back before renewal season blindsides you.
Disclosure:
This post is for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, insurance advice, or a substitute for calling your agent. Truck U is good, but we’re not psychic. Policies vary, laws change, and courtrooms get weird. Don’t make decisions based solely on something you read online, unless it’s from us, in writing, with your name on it.
All opinions are our own and do not represent the views of any carrier, employer, or underwriting department that occasionally wishes we were quieter on LinkedIn.
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