Bobtail Insurance Cost: Average Rates & What Drives Them

Bobtailing means driving a tractor without a trailer attached. Bobtail insurance is liability cover for that situation, and it matters most to owner-operators who are leased to a carrier. The carrier's policy covers the truck while it is hauling a load, so the gap shows up in the moments between loads.

The product is cheap compared with the rest of a trucker's insurance bill, but the name causes confusion. Bobtail and non-trucking liability are related, and insurers do not always draw the line between them in the same place. This page prices both and explains where they overlap.

FreightWaves publishes bobtail prices at two limit levels, in monthly and annual form. The monthly view is below and the annual figure appears in the comparison further down.

The standard limit comes to $30 – $60/mo. Higher limits cost more, at $45 – $85/mo. Paying the full year at once may lower the total compared with monthly billing, so ask the carrier whether it offers a pay-in-full discount.

Bobtail and non-trucking liability (NTL) both cover you when you are not hauling freight, but they are not the same policy.

AtoB describes bobtail as cover when you drive the commercial truck without a trailer, regardless of dispatch status, and NTL as cover for personal use of the truck when you are not under dispatch. FreightWaves frames NTL as liability when a leased driver is not under dispatch. Insurers draw these lines differently, and the terms "business use" and "under dispatch" are defined by each policy. Read the wording closely and ask the agent to explain how a trip home or a trip to the shop would be treated.

Both policies can sit on the same truck. Many leased owner-operators carry both for complete protection, according to AtoB, and some carriers sell them as a bundle.

There are two independent sources here, and their ranges overlap only partly.

FreightWaves quotes $360 – $720/yr for a standard limit. AtoB lists a lower range of $350 – $480/yr for bobtail alone. Part of the gap probably comes from limits, since the FreightWaves figure assumes a standard liability limit and the AtoB range does not say. Driver record, truck value, location, and the carrier's underwriting may also matter. AtoB lists the same range for bobtail and for NTL, so its table gives no way to tell the two apart on price.

FreightWaves appears twice in the annual table, once for bobtail and once for NTL from a different article on its site. Those entries come from one publisher and are not independent confirmation of each other.

Leased owner-operators are the usual buyers. Many carrier leases require some form of non-trucking cover, and the lease terms decide which. Owner-operators running under their own authority carry primary liability, so ask your agent whether a separate bobtail product adds anything for you. Ask which policy would respond if the truck had an accident with no trailer attached.

The lease may also say who pays for what. Do not assume the carrier's coverage extends past dispatch.

• Driving record. Violations and at-fault crashes raise it.
• Location. Premiums are higher in some states than others.
• Truck value. A newer tractor costs more to insure.
• Limit. The higher liability limit costs more, as the table shows.
• Carrier. Underwriting differs, so quotes for the same driver can vary.
• Bundling. Combining bobtail with NTL, physical damage, and cargo can reduce the combined cost, though discounts differ by carrier.

Ask whether the policy is bobtail, NTL, or both, and what each one covers. Ask how the policy defines "under dispatch." Ask whether it covers the truck itself or only liability to others, since liability policies generally do not repair your own tractor. Ask whether the carrier lease sets minimum limits. A licensed insurance agent or broker who works with truckers can answer these for your situation.