Georgia truck insurance

Hauling across state lines

Interstate for-hire freight needs the federal set: USDOT number, operating authority (MC), BMC-91 or BMC-91X filed with FMCSA by your insurer, a BOC-3 and at least $750,000 of liability for general freight in vehicles rated 10,001 lbs GVWR or more. See the new authority guide.

Hauling inside Georgia: GIMC registration

DPS says motor carriers operating commercial motor vehicles in intrastate commerce must register under the Georgia Intrastate Motor Carrier (GIMC) program. Here a commercial motor vehicle is one used in a commercial enterprise that is rated or weighs 10,001 lbs or more, is designed or used to carry more than 10 passengers including the driver, or carries placarded hazardous materials. Carriers operating “lightweight commercial vehicles” register too — for example a lighter vehicle used to haul property for compensation, or a wrecker or tow truck.

Exempt, among others: carriers registered under the Unified Carrier Registration program, covered farm vehicles, school buses and government vehicles. DPS asks for:

• the GIMC application, with the VIN of each vehicle that runs only inside Georgia;
• for-hire carriers: a Form E — your insurance company, not your agent, files evidence of public liability and property damage insurance, and it must match the application;
• proof that the applicant completed, within the preceding 12 months, a seminar on motor carrier operations and safety regulations authorized by the Commissioner of Public Safety;
• a notarized Georgia Security and Immigration Act (GSICA) affidavit and a copy of a secure and verifiable ID;
• the fee: $5 per vehicle for new applicants or before January 1, $25 per vehicle after January 1.

Private carriers file the same package without the Form E. Registrations run from January 1 to December 31, and a GIMC registration is not active until all documents are in and the fees are paid.

Insurance: what Georgia sets — and what it doesn’t

DPS’s GIMC instructions require the Form E but do not print a dollar minimum for general freight, and the DPS rulebook says it does not intend to impose the federal financial responsibility limits on intrastate carriers that are not otherwise subject to 49 CFR Part 387 (DPS Rule 1-387.1). Ask DPS or your agent which limit your Form E must show before you buy.

Where Georgia does publish amounts:

Household goods movers (Class B certificate)

Form E: $100,000 per person, $300,000 per accident, $50,000 property damage; Form H cargo: $25,000 per vehicle and $50,000 per occurrence

Non-consent towing permit

$100,000 / $300,000 / $50,000 on every vehicle used in intrastate commerce, plus garage keeper’s legal liability of at least $50,000

Carriers subject to Part 387

The federal minimums — for example $750,000 for interstate for-hire general freight in vehicles rated 10,001 lbs GVWR or more

For DPS certificates and permits, insurance must come from a company authorized to do business in Georgia, in your full business name, with 30 days’ notice to DPS before a cancellation.

Safety rules, USDOT and marking

DPS applies the federal safety rules — 49 CFR Parts 350, 365, 376, 382, 383, 385, 386, 387 and 390–397 — to for-hire and private carriers in interstate and intrastate commerce, with its own amendments. Intrastate carriers register with FMCSA for a USDOT number and update it on the federal schedule, and carriers that run only inside Georgia show the number followed by “GA” — for example “USDOT 000000 GA” (DPS Rules 1-1, 1-390.19, 1-390.21).

Getting truck insurance quotes in Georgia

• USDOT number, MC number if you haul interstate, and your GIMC status.
• For-hire or private — for-hire carriers need the Form E.
• For each truck: VIN, year, make, model and GVWR.
• Household goods or non-consent towing? Those come with their own DPS certificates and insurance amounts.
• Drivers’ license details and experience, and loss runs from recent insurers.

Towing in Georgia? See the tow truck guide.