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The typical insurance package needed by a food truck business should include commercial auto liability, general liability, business and personal property insurance, workers compensation, unemployment insurance, umbrella liability or excess liability, and additional insured certificates if the owner of the food truck plans on joining food truck events regardless if hosted by a private events planner or a local government agency.
Many insurance companies have an insurance package for food truck owners. The cost of insuring your food truck business would depend on several factors such as:
- Your annual gross sales
- Value of your business personal property
- Type of food truck
The insurance could cost as low as $300 or go much higher depending on the value of your equipment, number of employees, location, and gross sales.
Insurance Difference for Food Trailers and Food Trucks
There is a difference in insurance requirements for trailers and trucks. This is because the trailer needs a vehicle to tow it while a truck doesn’t. Thus, a trailer insurance will not be acceptable for a food truck operation and assuming that a trailer is automatically covered by the insurance of the vehicle towing is would be wrong especially if the trailer is to be used for business purposes.
Using a trailer for your food truck business is best covered by a commercial auto policy and the policy should be treated as a business insurance policy. However, if you plan on using your personal car to tow the trailer, it is imperative that you inform the insurance provider so they can increase your liability and add it as a business use endorsement. Otherwise, you risk being denied any claim should it ever get to this point. For commercial auto liability, the minimum limit is $1,000,000 unlike personal coverage which can be booked for much lower.
Another benefit to having a commercial auto policy is the option to buy Excess Liability which is demanded by some parties who rent out private or public land for events. This kind of coverage is not available under a personal auto policy.