Policy Giving You the Splits?

Should You Split Physical Damage From Your Main Trucking Policy?

We get asked this a lot: “Should I move my physical damage off my trucking policy to keep my liability rates down?”

On paper, it sounds smart. Keep the cracked windshields, deer hits, and body shop bills off the same policy that underwriters use to price your liability and cargo.

But in the real world, splitting coverage usually causes more headaches than it solves.

Why People Think It Helps

The idea is simple. If you file a bunch of small physical damage claims, they won’t show up on your liability loss run. That way, underwriters don’t use them as ammo to push your premiums higher.

The Reality

Moving physical damage somewhere else doesn’t make those losses disappear. It just moves them around.

And when your policies are not bundled, you lose leverage at renewal.

You give up package pricing.
You make it harder for one carrier to see the full picture of your operation.
You end up managing two different policies, two billing cycles, and two service headaches.
Any DOT-reportable crash is listed in DOT data and will always be asked about. There is no hiding it. If it was a physical damage claim, your agent has those loss runs and “forgets” to include them with the quote submission, they are lying. Period.
Loss runs are coded. Every carrier can see the difference between getting hit while parked versus rear-ending a four-wheeler. Splitting coverage does not erase the facts.
Stand-alone cargo or physical damage policies often end up in the excess and surplus lines market. Those carriers may or may not be A-rated.

Here’s the other truth: most agents and underwriters talk to far more motor carriers than you talk to agents. We’ve seen every angle on the “Can I get a stand-alone physical damage quote?” request.

Most of the time, that question comes from the belief that separating coverage hides physical damage losses. Word spreads fast in trucking, and a lot of carriers think that keeping those claims off the main policy will protect their liability rates.

It doesn’t always work that way.

Remember, most trucking-only carriers see “no physical damage,” especially on newer equipment, as a red flag. Skipping coverage that protects your livelihood is counterproductive. They may ask why there is no physical damage or if it has been placed with another carrier. Again, we want to answer these questions truthfully.

If the answer is unclear, that makes the account look riskier, not safer.

Don’t Try to Hide Losses

Let’s be super clear. Knowingly withholding information or documents from your insurance carrier is a material misrepresentation.

Material Misrepresentation (Insurance Definition):

When an insured knowingly withholds, hides, or gives false information that would affect the insurance company’s decision to issue, renew, or pay a claim on a policy.

In trucking terms, if you leave out losses, drivers, or equipment on purpose, that is a material misrepresentation. The carrier can cancel your policy or deny a claim because the information they based their decision on was not true.

That is not just bad practice, it is grounds for your policy to be canceled or a claim to be denied.

Losses follow you no matter how you structure your coverage. Trying to shuffle policies around to bury a claim is not only pointless, it crosses into fraud.

The Deductible Trap

Here is what most people don’t realize. If you split coverage and one accident triggers multiple lines of coverage, like cargo and physical damage, you are paying both deductibles.

Same wreck, two checks out of your pocket.

When everything is bundled, you only have one deductible to worry about.

Why We Don’t Recommend Splitting

We would rather see everything together. When liability, cargo, and physical damage are bundled, you have one carrier who understands your whole operation. One claims department handling claims.

That carrier can weigh a couple of deer strikes against an otherwise spotless driving record and still see the value in keeping your liability rates competitive.

When you split it, you strip that context away. Now your liability carrier sees exposure and not the full story.

Our Take

Do not overthink it. Small physical damage claims are not the monster everyone makes them out to be.

Liability and cargo losses are what really drive your premiums.

Keeping everything under one roof gives you better pricing power, stronger relationships with underwriters, and fewer administrative headaches.

Bottom Line

Splitting physical damage from your main trucking policy is like trying to hide your truck in plain sight.

Underwriters will find the losses anyway. And when loss runs already show if you were hit while parked or caused the wreck, there is no spinning the story.

Add in multiple deductibles and the risk of winding up with a non-A-rated E&S carrier, and you are giving up more than you gain.

Keep it together, protect your leverage, and save yourself the trouble.

Call Us Before You Split Coverage

Got questions about physical damage and liability on your policy? We’ll walk you through what makes sense for your operation and where carriers really draw the line.

Call us at 254-294-7798 or shoot us an email at info@trucku.biz to review your setup.

Disclosure

This post is for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, insurance advice, or a substitute for calling your agent. We’re good, but we’re not psychic. Policies vary, laws change, and courtrooms get weird. Don’t make decisions based solely on something you read on the internet, 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.