Physical Damage Truck Insurance: Collision & Comprehensive Coverage
Last reviewed June 2026 by the Trucking Insurance Services team.
Your truck is the most expensive thing you own and the one thing your business cannot run without. Physical damage truck insurance is the coverage that pays to repair or replace it when it is wrecked, stolen, burned, or vandalized. It is built from two parts, collision and comprehensive, and for an owner-operator running a single truck it’s often the difference between a bad week and the end of the business.
We place this coverage every day for owner-operators and small fleets, so the page below is written from how it actually pays a claim, not just what the policy says. The owner here ran her own trucks before she wrote a single policy, and the hard lessons further down come from real claims we have seen.
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Physical damage at a glance
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Key takeaways
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What physical damage truck insurance covers
Physical damage protects the truck itself. It is made up of two coverages that work together, plus a piece most owners do not know is there until they need it.
- Collision. Damage to your truck from hitting another vehicle or object, a rollover, or running off the road, whether or not the accident was your fault.
- Comprehensive. Theft of the truck, vandalism, fire, falling objects, storms, flood, hitting an animal, and glass breakage. In short, the losses that are not a collision.
- Towing and storage. On a covered claim, the bill to tow your disabled truck from the scene and to store it is paid up to the policy limit. Without physical damage you pay that out of pocket, on top of the repair.
One point owner-operators miss: if an uninsured or underinsured driver hits you, some policies only pay for your truck through collision. Drop collision to save money and a wreck that wasn’t even your fault can leave your truck with no coverage at all.
Stated value vs actual cash value: how a total loss really pays
How your policy is written decides how a total loss pays, and most owners never look at it until the truck is already gone. Larger commercial trucks are almost always written on stated value. Cargo vans, sprinter vans, and hotshots are usually written on actual cash value.
| Stated value | Actual cash value | |
|---|---|---|
| Usually used on | Larger commercial trucks | Cargo vans, sprinter vans, hotshots |
| A total loss pays | The stated value, or the truck’s actual value if lower, minus the deductible | The depreciated market value at the time of loss, minus the deductible |
| The catch | Understate the value and that figure caps your payout | Depreciation can drop the payout below what you expect |
This is the part that costs people real money. A stated value policy pays the value you listed, or the truck’s actual value if that is lower, minus your deductible. It doesn’t pay whatever a new truck costs. Put a $10,000 stated value on a truck that is really worth $25,000 to shave the premium, and a total loss pays you $10,000. We see operators insure their trucks for less than they are worth all the time. One claim, and the check won’t get them into a comparable truck.
How much does commercial truck physical damage insurance cost
Physical damage is priced as a percentage of your truck’s total insured value, usually 3% to 12% a year. The percentage moves with your driving record, where and how far you run, your safety scores, and the age and condition of the equipment. Because it is a percentage of value, the same coverage costs more on an expensive truck than a cheap one.
| Truck value (TIV) | Physical damage per year |
|---|---|
| $25,000 | $750 to $3,000 |
| $50,000 | $1,500 to $6,000 |
| $75,000 | $2,250 to $9,000 |
| $100,000 | $3,000 to $12,000 |
| $150,000 | $4,500 to $18,000 |
Choosing a deductible
Most owner-operators carry a $1,000 or $2,500 deductible. Going higher lowers the premium, but only up to a point. Say moving from a $2,500 to a $5,000 deductible saves you $400 a year on a truck. You just took on $2,500 more out-of-pocket risk to save $400, so it takes more than six claim-free years to come out ahead. Standard deductible options are $1,000, $2,500, and $5,000. Pick the one you could actually pay on a bad day, not just the one with the lowest premium.
Equipment age and who will write you
Age also decides which markets will offer physical damage at all. Some stop writing it on trucks roughly 20 to 25 years old. Others will cover an older truck if you send a current inspection from a DOT-certified mechanic. A few will write physical damage regardless of age. If you run older equipment, that’s worth knowing before you shop, because the answer isn’t the same everywhere.
What physical damage does not cover
Physical damage is narrow on purpose. It pays for your truck and nothing else, so these belong on other coverages:
- Your freight. Cargo is covered by motor truck cargo insurance, a separate coverage.
- Damage you do to others. Harm to other people or their property is trucking liability, not physical damage.
- Mechanical breakdown and wear. Worn parts, engine failure, and normal tear are maintenance, not a covered loss.
- Lost income while you are down. A standard policy does not pay for the loads you miss during repairs unless you add a separate downtime or rental option.
- A trailer you do not own, unless it is added to the policy the right way (see below).
Physical damage on trailers
Physical damage can cover a trailer, but it depends on how the trailer sits on the policy. There are three situations, and mixing them up leaves a gap exactly when a borrowed or swapped trailer gets damaged:
- A trailer you own. List it on the policy as scheduled equipment and it is covered like your truck.
- A trailer you pull but do not own. This needs non-owned trailer physical damage added to the policy.
- A trailer you swap under a written interchange agreement. This is trailer interchange coverage.
We will break each one down on its own page soon. For now, tell us how you run and we will make sure the trailer is covered the right way instead of finding the gap after a loss.
Who needs physical damage truck insurance
Physical damage isn’t legally required the way liability is, but two groups should treat it as non-negotiable:
- Anyone with a loan or lease on the truck. The lender requires physical damage with the lienholder or finance company named as loss payee, so a total loss helps pay off the equipment.
- Any owner-operator whose truck is the business. If losing the truck for a month would end your income, this coverage is doing exactly what it is for.
We had a client delete physical damage to save a little money. Two weeks later the truck was vandalized and parts were stripped off it, thousands of dollars in damage, far more than he had been paying for the coverage. He couldn’t cover the repair, and that one loss closed his business. For a single-truck operator under their own authority, physical damage can be the difference between staying on the road and shutting down.
How to lower your physical damage cost
- Insure the truck for what it is actually worth. Understating value to cut the premium just caps your own payout.
- Pick the deductible that pencils out. Match it to what you could pay out of pocket, not just the lowest premium.
- Keep the equipment maintained and inspected. Newer, well-kept, inspected trucks are easier and cheaper to place.
- Run clean. A good MVR, strong safety scores, dash cams, and telematics all pull the rate down.
- Bundle it. Writing physical damage with your liability and cargo on one policy is usually cheaper than piecing it together.
Frequently asked questions
What is physical damage insurance for trucks?
It is the coverage that pays to repair or replace your own truck after a covered loss. It is made up of two parts, collision and comprehensive, and it applies to the truck itself, not your freight or your liability to others.
What two coverages make up physical damage coverage?
Collision and comprehensive. Collision covers hitting another vehicle or object, a rollover, or running off the road. Comprehensive covers everything else that can damage a parked or moving truck, like theft, fire, vandalism, storms, and animals.
Does physical damage insurance cover towing?
Yes, on a covered claim. If your truck is disabled in a covered loss, the policy pays to tow it from the scene and to store it, up to the towing and storage limit. For a tow after a breakdown rather than a covered accident, you need roadside assistance instead. Without physical damage, those bills are yours.
How much does semi truck physical damage insurance cost?
Usually 3% to 12% of the truck’s insured value per year. On a $50,000 tractor that is about $1,500 to $6,000 a year. Your record, radius, safety scores, and the truck’s age move it within that range.
What is the difference between stated value and actual cash value?
Stated value is the figure you put on the policy and is used on larger commercial trucks. Actual cash value is the truck’s depreciated market value at the time of loss and is common on cargo vans, sprinter vans, and hotshots. A stated value policy pays the stated figure, or the actual value if it is lower, minus the deductible.
Does physical damage cover my trailer?
It can. A trailer you own is covered when you schedule it on the policy. A trailer you pull but do not own needs non-owned trailer physical damage, and a trailer you swap under an interchange agreement needs trailer interchange coverage.
Do I need physical damage if my truck is paid off?
It isn’t required once there is no lienholder, but it is still how you protect the asset. If you couldn’t write a check to replace the truck tomorrow, dropping it is a big risk for a small monthly saving.
Does physical damage pay if another driver hits me?
If the other driver is uninsured or underinsured, some policies only cover your truck through collision. That is why dropping collision to save money is risky even for careful drivers. A wreck that isn’t your fault can otherwise leave your truck with no coverage.
Why choose Trucking Insurance Services
We are a trucking agency first, so we know how physical damage is priced, which markets will write older equipment, and how a claim actually pays. The owner ran her own fleet before she wrote a single policy, and our team has placed coverage for owner-operators and small fleets for years, the same faces year after year. Physical damage is one piece of a full commercial truck insurance policy, so we look at how you run, set the stated value where it should be, and build it together with your liability and cargo so there are no gaps when you need it most.
Trucking Insurance Services — 380 Dahlonega St, Cumming, GA 30040 — 855-281-2924
Get your free quote → or call 855-281-2924 for a same-day rate on physical damage built around how you actually run.
Figures are estimates based on the policies we place and current market rates, for general guidance only. Your actual premium depends on your record, equipment, value, radius, and limits. Get a quote for an exact number.