New authority truck insurance

The order things happen in

1. Register in Motus. Since May 2026 new USDOT numbers and operating authority applications go through Motus, FMCSA’s new registration system. It verifies your identity: you scan a QR code with a smartphone or tablet, photograph a government-issued ID and scan your face. FMCSA stopped accepting paper transactions on September 30, 2025.
2. Match your paperwork. FMCSA warns that the business name and address in your application must match your pre-registration filings, such as the secretary of state, exactly — any difference delays the grant.
3. Publication. FMCSA publishes a summary of your application in the FMCSA Register.
4. Insurance filing. Your insurer files Form BMC-91 or BMC-91X for you. If it is not on file within 20 days of publication, FMCSA serves a decision that the application will be dismissed unless you comply within 60 days.
5. BOC-3. Your designation of process agents goes to FMCSA on Form BOC-3 — process-agent (“blanket”) companies file it; FMCSA publishes their list.
6. Grant. FMCSA will not grant operating authority until the minimum insurance is on file. After the grant, the insurance and the BOC-3 must stay on file — if they lapse, FMCSA starts revocation proceedings.

Federal law allows for-hire interstate trucking only by a carrier registered for it (49 U.S.C. 13901), so line up your insurance quote before the application is published, not after.

Is the MC number going away?

Not yet. FMCSA’s April 29, 2026 notice about Motus says the USDOT number stays the unique identifier for every registered company, and that the Phase II release of Motus does not eliminate MC and FF docket numbers or change how the BOC-3 is filed. FMCSA says it will take a “measured approach” to those changes in later releases.

The first 18 months: the new entrant program

Every new interstate carrier is monitored for its first 18 months. FMCSA watches roadside inspection results and runs a safety audit within 12 months of the date you begin operations — usually at your principal place of business, once you have been operating long enough to have records (generally at least 3 months, per 49 CFR 385.307).

FMCSA lists violations that fail the audit automatically, including:

• no drug and alcohol testing program, or no random testing;
• using a driver without a valid CDL, or a medically unqualified driver;
• operating without the required level of insurance;
• not requiring drivers to keep hours-of-service records;
• operating a vehicle declared out of service before it is repaired.

A carrier that fails must put a corrective action plan in place; otherwise FMCSA revokes its USDOT registration. If you drive a CDL truck yourself as a one-driver company, the testing rules still apply: you must be in a random pool of two or more drivers (49 CFR 382.103).

The insurance a new authority needs

• Primary auto liability — required. For general freight it is at least $750,000 for vehicles rated 10,001 lbs GVWR or more, or $300,000 below that; certain hazardous materials need $1,000,000 or $5,000,000. See the full chart in our owner-operator guide.
• Motor truck cargo — not required by FMCSA except for household goods, but brokers and shippers can require it by contract. See motor truck cargo insurance.
• Physical damage — for your own truck and trailer; a lender with a lien will require collision and comprehensive.
• Other lines as your operation needs them: general liability, trailer interchange for other companies’ trailers, occupational accident or workers’ compensation.

A brand-new authority has no claims history of its own yet, so the details you can document — who will drive and their records, the equipment, what you haul and where — are what the quote is built on.

Before you ask for quotes

• USDOT number and MC number (or your pending application).
• Every driver’s name, license details and years of experience.
• VINs, year, make and model of each truck and trailer, and the values to insure.
• What you will haul, the states or radius you plan to run, and your first contracts or brokers.
• Loss runs from any insurer that covered you or your trucks before.
• The filings you need: the federal BMC-91X and any state filings (see the state guides).

Also on the list, though not insurance: UCR registration every year (the 2027 fee is $55 for 0–2 vehicles), and IRP plates plus an IFTA license if you run interstate with a power unit over 26,000 lbs, three or more axles, or a combination over 26,000 lbs.