Commercial Auto Insurance in Florida: Requirements and When You Need It

Polk County runs on trucks. Distribution centers line I-4 and the Polk Parkway, contractors haul trailers between Lakeland, Winter Haven and Bartow, and service businesses keep vans moving across the county all day. Every one of those vehicles needs insurance that matches how it’s really used.

This guide covers when a Florida business needs commercial auto rather than personal auto, the state’s minimum requirements as of October 2026, and the coverages and driver practices carriers look at when they quote.

When does a Florida business need commercial auto instead of personal auto?

You generally need commercial auto when a vehicle is owned or titled by the business, is a heavier truck, or is used in ways a personal policy excludes. Light business use of a personal car, such as driving to a client meeting, is often fine on a personal policy, but the details depend on the carrier.

Personal auto policies are written for household driving. Many of them exclude or limit coverage for:

• Vehicles titled to a corporation or LLC rather than an individual.
• Trucks above certain weight classes, or vehicles with heavy equipment mounted on them.
• Carrying people or goods for a fee, such as delivery or ride-hail work (rideshare and delivery have their own rules and endorsements).
• Vehicles driven regularly by employees who aren’t household members.
• Hauling trailers or equipment for a business.

The safest approach is to describe exactly how each vehicle is used, who drives it and whose name is on the title. If any of those point to the business, a commercial auto policy is usually the right fit. A gap here tends to surface only after a claim, which is the worst time to find it.

What are Florida’s minimum insurance requirements for business vehicles?

Every vehicle with four or more wheels registered in Florida needs at least $10,000 of personal injury protection (PIP) and $10,000 of property damage liability (PDL). Commercial motor vehicles add combined liability minimums based on gross vehicle weight.

PIP pays 80 percent of reasonable medical expenses up to $10,000 for covered injuries regardless of fault, under section 627.736. PDL pays for damage you cause to other people’s property, under section 324.022. Bodily injury liability isn’t part of the base registration requirement for most vehicles, but almost every business carries it because injuries are where serious lawsuits come from.

On top of PIP and PDL, section 627.7415, Florida Statutes, sets these minimums as of October 2026:

Gross vehicle weight	Minimum combined bodily injury and property damage liability
26,000 to under 35,000 pounds	$50,000 per occurrence
35,000 to under 44,000 pounds	$100,000 per occurrence
44,000 pounds or more	$300,000 per occurrence
Vehicles subject to federal motor carrier rules (49 C.F.R. part 387)	The federal minimum for that operation

The statute applies to commercial motor vehicles as defined in section 320.01 and qualified motor vehicles as defined in section 207.002. Federal financial responsibility rules apply to many motor carriers, especially those hauling for hire across state lines, and they set their own minimum amounts. If you have a USDOT number, ask your agent which federal filing applies to you.

Some vehicles have their own rules. For example, FLHSMV states that vehicles registered as taxis must carry bodily injury liability of $125,000 per person and $250,000 per occurrence, plus $50,000 of property damage liability.

Why the minimum is rarely the right limit

These numbers are what the state requires to put a vehicle on the road, not what a serious crash costs. A loaded box truck on I-4 can cause injuries and damage well past $300,000. Higher limits, such as $500,000 or $1 million combined single limits, are widely available, and contracts, shippers and property managers often require a specific limit. A licensed agent can walk you through the options and what higher limits cost for your vehicles.

What does a business auto policy cover?

A business auto policy usually combines liability, PIP, uninsured motorist and physical damage coverage, with each piece applied to the vehicles you choose.

• Liability. Bodily injury and property damage you cause to others, usually written as one combined single limit per accident.
• PIP. Florida’s required no-fault medical and wage-loss benefit.
• Uninsured motorist (UM). Under section 627.727, a Florida policy with bodily injury liability must include UM at the same limits unless a named insured rejects it, or chooses lower limits, in writing on an approved form.
• Comprehensive and collision. Damage to your own vehicles from theft, fire, flood, hail, falling objects or crashes. Lenders and lessors usually require both.
• Medical payments, rental reimbursement and towing. Optional additions that vary by carrier.

Policies often use numbered “covered auto symbols” to show which vehicles each coverage applies to. On the widely used standard form, symbol 1 means any auto, symbol 7 means only vehicles listed on the policy, symbol 8 means hired autos and symbol 9 means non-owned autos. Ask your agent to explain the symbols on your declarations page, because they decide whether a newly bought truck or a rented van is covered.

What is hired and non-owned auto coverage?

Hired and non-owned auto (HNOA) coverage protects your business when someone drives a vehicle the business doesn’t own for business purposes. It doesn’t cover damage to that vehicle unless you add physical damage for hired autos.

Two everyday examples:

1. An office manager drives her own car to the bank for a deposit and rear-ends someone. Her personal policy usually pays first, but if the injured person sues your business too, non-owned auto coverage can respond above her policy.
2. You rent a cargo van to move inventory to a trade show in Orlando. Hired auto coverage can provide liability coverage for the business while you’re using it.

HNOA can be added to a business auto policy. Some carriers also offer it on a general liability or businessowners policy for companies that don’t own any vehicles. If employees ever run errands in their own cars, it’s worth asking about.

Fleets and drivers: what carriers look at

For commercial auto, carriers often care as much about who’s driving as what’s being driven. Driver records, vehicle use and radius of operation are core rating factors.

Driver motor vehicle records

Carriers pull a motor vehicle record (MVR) on each listed driver. Recent at-fault crashes, speeding tickets and major violations like DUI can raise premiums or make a driver ineligible. A good practice is to check MVRs before hiring anyone who will drive, then review them each year, with each driver’s written consent. Put it in a written driver policy that also covers cell phone use, who may use company vehicles and what happens after a violation.

Fleet considerations

As your vehicle count grows, ask about:

• Scheduling vs. auto-adding vehicles. Know how quickly a new truck is covered after you buy it, and whether you must report it.
• Garaging and radius. Where vehicles are kept overnight and how far they travel both affect rating.
• Telematics and dash cameras. Some carriers offer programs that use them, and footage can help when fault is disputed.
• Safety programs. Documented training, inspections and maintenance logs help in underwriting and in defending claims.

Our commercial auto and fleet insurance page covers fleet programs in more detail.

What to have ready before you request a quote

Gather these before you request a quote:

1. Business name, FEIN, years in business and a description of operations.
2. Each vehicle’s year, make, model, VIN, gross vehicle weight, garaging address and who holds the title.
3. How each vehicle is used (service calls, hauling, delivery, sales) and typical radius of travel.
4. Every driver’s name, date of birth and driver license number, and whether they’re employees.
5. Current policy declarations and three to five years of loss runs.
6. Any limits required by contracts, lenders, lessors or a USDOT filing.
7. Whether employees use their own vehicles for errands, and whether you rent vehicles.

If your trucks belong to a contracting business, our guide to contractor insurance in Florida covers the licensing and workers’ comp side. When you’re ready, you can request a commercial auto quote and a licensed agent will follow up.