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Anyone who has a driver’s license knows that to be able to drive a car, you must have car insurance. However, many people do not know that there are many differences between traditional car insurance and commercial car insurance. Traditional or personal car insurance is the type of insurance you get when you use your car for leisure. If you use your vehicle for work—such as to transport clients from one place to another, to transport your goods from place to place, or to travel to different job sites, then you need commercial auto insurance.
1. Covers Multiple Employees
If you are a business owner and have more than one employee driving your business vehicle, the good news is that your commercial auto insurance can cover every employee with a valid driver’s license. This means that every employee who is covered under this insurance will be able to drive your company cars and be covered should they get into an accident or have any other incident involving your company car. This is good news both for you and your employees, as neither of you will have to pay out of pocket for any vehicle-related expenses!
2. Damage and Collision Protection
As mentioned previously, if you or your covered employee are in an accident with another car involving your company vehicle and it is deemed your fault, you may end up having to pay for damages not just for your own car but for the other person’s as well. These costs can quickly add up and may even bankrupt you if you don’t have the right insurance. If you do have commercial car insurance, however, your policy may be able to cover your repair costs and the costs of the other vehicle.
3. Medical Bills
Another benefit of having commercial car insurance is that it can help cover the cost of expensive medical bills for anyone involved in an accident while driving a work car. In fact, some policies can even go as far as to cover lost wages and any legal expenses if a lawsuit is brought against you. Without the right insurance, you may be left to fend for yourself regarding these medical bills and legal fees that are sure to be substantial. Therefore, be sure you have the right insurance when driving a business car.
4. More Coverage Than Traditional Insurance
One of the biggest differences between personal car insurance and commercial car insurance is that most personal car insurance may not provide enough coverage for any accidents that were to happen while you or your employees were out driving company cars. This would include things like going to pick up supplies, dropping off clients, transporting goods from one place to another, making deliveries, and so forth. Again, without commercial car insurance, the business owner would be left to pay for damages and medical bills out of pocket.
5. Other Damages
While commercial car insurance is mostly used to help pay for things like damages and medical bills, it can also help in other instances. For instance, if your work car gets vandalized or stolen, commercial car insurance can help pay for any of the damages. It can also cover damages caused to your work car by floods and fires. Typically, your personal car insurance may not be able to cover this much damage done to a car. It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to your insurance, so be sure to get commercial car insurance for all of your work vehicles.
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