How much liability insurance does FMCSA require?

$750,000 for general freight in a vehicle rated 10,001 pounds or more. It rises to $1,000,000 for oil and most hazardous materials, and $5,000,000 for bulk hazardous substances in the specified divisions — that $5,000,000 applies even to vehicles under 10,001 pounds when they carry those materials. Passenger carriers are $5,000,000 at 16 seats or more and $1,500,000 at 15 or fewer, counting the driver.

What is a BMC-91X and who files it?

It is the form that proves to FMCSA you carry the required liability cover, and your insurance company files it — you cannot file it yourself. The BMC-91 and BMC-91X do the same job in slightly different ways, and which one is used depends on how the insurer structures the coverage. What matters to you is that it has been transmitted and shows as active.

What is a BOC-3 and do I need one?

Yes, if you want the authority to activate. It designates a process agent in every state where you operate — somebody who can legally be served court papers on your behalf. It is filed once by a process agent service, it is inexpensive, and authority does not go active without it. It is the single most common reason an application sits waiting when the applicant believes everything is done.

Do I need cargo insurance to get authority?

Not for general freight. Federal cargo filings apply to household goods movers rather than to freight generally, so the government will grant your authority without it. In the real world you will not move a load without it, because the broker or shipper requires it in their contract — typically $100,000, and more for high-value commodities.

Can I get insurance before my authority is granted?

Yes, and you have to. The insurance goes on file first; the authority activates after. So the sequence is to get quoted and bound, have the insurer transmit the filing, and wait for FMCSA to process it. You can be insured and not yet legal to haul for hire, and that gap is currently longer than it used to be.

What is the MCS-90 and does it protect me?

It protects the public, not you. It is an endorsement that obliges your insurer to pay a judgment up to the federal minimum even where the policy itself would not have responded, and it then allows the insurer to recover that money from you. Treat it as the government making sure an injured party gets paid, rather than as extra coverage you own.

Why do brokers ask for $1,000,000 when the law says $750,000?

Because the federal figure is a floor set in 1985 and never indexed, and no serious broker will accept it. $1,000,000 combined single limit is the working standard, and a shipper contract can ask for more on top. Buy to what will actually get you loaded rather than to what makes you legal.

Does my state require more than this?

Often, yes, for work performed inside the state. Federal limits govern interstate commerce; intrastate rules are set by the state and several are well above the federal number — New Jersey raised its minimum to $1.5 million on 1 July 2024 for vehicles rated 26,001 pounds or more. Check the page for the state you are based in and any state you run intrastate work in.

How much insurance do I need for my trucking authority?

For most trucks, $750,000. That is general freight, nothing hazardous, in a truck rated over 10,001 pounds. Haul fuel or chemicals and it goes up. Carry people and it goes up. Your insurance company files it with FMCSA for you, and you also need a BOC-3 on file — without both, your authority never switches on. Work out your own number with the tool below.

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Do federal rules apply to you, and what is your limit?

Plenty of businesses that run trucks file nothing with FMCSA. These questions find out whether you are one of them before they give you a number.

What are you hauling?

The detail

For-hire carriers of non-hazardous property in interstate commerce, in a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,001 pounds or more, must maintain $750,000 of public liability coverage.
49 CFR 387.9, Schedule of Limits — Public Liability
Oil, hazardous waste and most hazardous materials raise the minimum to $1,000,000, and bulk hazardous substances in the specified divisions raise it to $5,000,000 — a figure that catches even a vehicle rated below 10,001 pounds when it carries them, which is the one place the weight threshold stops applying.
49 CFR 387.9, Schedule of Limits — Public Liability
For-hire passenger carriers must maintain $5,000,000 for any vehicle seating 16 or more including the driver, and $1,500,000 for 15 or fewer including the driver.
49 CFR 387.33, Schedule of Limits — Public Liability
Operating authority is not granted until evidence of financial responsibility and the BOC-3 process agent designation are on file with FMCSA.
FMCSA, Insurance Filing Requirements
A carrier granted new operating authority is subject to the New Entrant Safety Assurance Program, including a safety audit within the first year of operation.
FMCSA, New Entrant Safety Assurance Program

What this means for you

Your insurer makes the filing, not you and not us. The BMC-91 or BMC-91X is submitted by the insurance company, which is why buying a policy and getting a filing on file are two different events with a gap between them. Ask for confirmation the filing has been transmitted rather than assuming the binder did it.
$750,000 is the legal floor and almost nobody operates there. Freight brokers and shippers routinely require $1,000,000 combined single limit before they will load you, and many require higher. Buying to the federal minimum makes you legal and unhireable at the same time.
The MCS-90 is an endorsement on your policy, not a separate purchase. It is the guarantee that the public gets paid up to the federal limit even if the insurer would otherwise have a defense to the claim, and the insurer can then come after you for what it paid. It is protection for the public, not for you, and it is worth understanding as exactly that.
Cargo insurance is not a federal requirement for general freight, which surprises people. Federal cargo filings apply to household goods movers. For everybody else, cargo cover is required by the shipper or the broker rather than by the government — which does not make it optional in practice, because you will not get loads without it.
Do not let the filing lapse for a day. FMCSA is notified when a filing is cancelled, and the authority is revoked after the notice period. Getting it back is slower and more expensive than keeping it, and a gap in filings is a question every future underwriter will ask about.
The safety audit comes within the first year, and it is not the same thing as insurance. New entrants are audited on the whole compliance picture — driver qualification files, hours of service, drug and alcohol testing, maintenance records. Failing it puts the authority at risk regardless of how good the policy is.

/ Then your state

Federal is the floor. Your state can require more.

Everything above is the federal minimum and applies wherever you run. States set their own rules on top of it for intrastate work, and several are well above the federal number — New Jersey is double it. Pick yours.

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