FMCSA insurance requirements and filings for motor carriers

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration requires for-hire carriers of non-hazardous property in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more to carry at least $750,000 of public liability coverage, with higher minimums for oil, hazardous materials and passenger carriers. The carrier proves it with a Form MCS-90 endorsement on the policy and, for carriers that need operating authority, an insurer's filing of Form BMC-91 or BMC-91X with FMCSA. If the filing lapses, the authority can be revoked, and a gap in coverage is also a violation that carries a civil penalty.

All figures below come from the Code of Federal Regulations as published on eCFR in October 2026. Regulations change, so confirm the current text before relying on any of them.

Minimum levels of financial responsibility

For property carriers, 49 CFR 387.9 sets the schedule. The amounts have been in place since 1985.

Passenger carriers have their own schedule in 49 CFR 387.33: $1,500,000 for vehicles seating 15 or fewer passengers including the driver, and $5,000,000 for vehicles seating 16 or more. For household goods carriers, 49 CFR 387.303(c) adds cargo insurance of $5,000 per vehicle and $10,000 per occurrence.

The required coverage is "public liability," which the regulation defines as legal responsibility for bodily injury or property damage, including liability for environmental restoration (49 CFR 387.5). It does not include cargo for general freight, physical damage to your own equipment, or workers' compensation. See motor truck cargo insurance: how it works and where it stops and trucking insurance: the coverages motor carriers need for those.

Who is covered, and who is not

Under 49 CFR 387.3, the property-carrier rules apply to for-hire carriers operating vehicles in interstate or foreign commerce, and to carriers of hazardous materials, substances and wastes, for-hire or private, in interstate, foreign or intrastate commerce. Two exceptions matter:

• Light vehicles. Vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating under 10,001 pounds are outside the rules unless they haul the high-hazard materials listed in the regulation.
• Intrastate non-bulk hazmat. Intrastate transport of non-bulk oil and hazardous materials is outside the rules, except for highway route controlled quantities of radioactive material.

Private carriers, meaning businesses hauling their own non-hazardous goods, are not subject to the federal minimum. That does not mean they carry no liability insurance. The commercial auto insurance: what it covers and what it leaves out form, state law and contracts still apply. Purely intrastate for-hire carriers answer to the state, and states differ, so check workers' comp and benefits requirements by state and your state's transportation and insurance departments.

The paperwork

Three documents do the work.

1. The MCS-90 endorsement. It is a federally prescribed endorsement the insurer attaches to the liability policy. The carrier must keep proof at its principal place of business, and 49 CFR 387.7(d) allows the proof to be an MCS-90 from an insurer, an MCS-82 surety bond, or an FMCSA decision authorizing self-insurance under 49 CFR 387.309. The endorsement must be issued in the exact name of the motor carrier (49 CFR 387.15). Proof of financial responsibility is public information and has to be produced on reasonable request. The MCS-90 endorsement explained: what it guarantees and what it doesn't explains how it works in a claim.

2. The BMC-91 or BMC-91X filing. Carriers that need operating authority must also have evidence of insurance on file with FMCSA. The insurer files a Form BMC-91 (full limits) or BMC-91X (full coverage or any level of aggregation), which 49 CFR 387.313 describes. The BMC-90 endorsement is used with those filings for coverage not governed by DOT minimums. Carriers that use a surety bond instead file the equivalent BMC-82 or MCS-82. You do not file these yourself: your insurer files them electronically through FMCSA's Licensing and Insurance system, and the public can look up a carrier's authority and insurance status on the FMCSA L&I public site.

3. Cancellation notices. Under 49 CFR 387.7(b), the policy and endorsement must stay in effect until terminated, and the insurer or the carrier must give 35 days' written notice to cancel, counted from the date the notice is sent. Separately, under 49 CFR 387.313(d), an insurance filing cannot be cancelled until 30 days after a Form BMC-35 (for insurance) or BMC-36 (for a surety bond) is filed with FMCSA. A replacement filing ends the retiring insurer's liability on its effective date, once FMCSA accepts it.

Federal law ties the registration to the security. Under 49 U.S.C. 13906, FMCSA may register a motor carrier only if it files the required bond, policy or other security, and the registration stays in effect only while the carrier keeps it in place.

Brokers and freight forwarders

Property brokers do not carry the public liability minimum, because they do not operate the trucks, but they must have a $75,000 surety bond (Form BMC-84) or trust fund (Form BMC-85) in effect under 49 CFR 387.307, and FMCSA will not register a broker until the full amount is in place. This is a financial security for shippers and carriers, not insurance. It is a separate subject from surety bonds explained: how they differ from insurance.

What happens if coverage lapses

• FMCSA can revoke operating authority when the filing is cancelled and not replaced, and the carrier cannot lawfully run.
• Brokers, shippers and customers who check the public database will see the lapse.
• Civil penalties apply. Violations of Part 387 are subject to a maximum penalty of $21,114, and each day of a continuing violation is a separate offense, per the penalty schedule in 49 CFR Part 386, Appendix B and 49 CFR 387.17 (eCFR, October 2026). FMCSA weighs the seriousness of the violation, prior violations and ability to pay.
• State authorities may take separate action for intrastate operations.
• Your contracts and lender may be in default, because most require continuous insurance.

Getting compliant: a checklist

1. Register with FMCSA for a USDOT number and, if you haul for hire in interstate commerce, operating authority. FMCSA's registration pages explain the current process, which has changed in recent years.
2. Decide which category you are in: non-hazardous property, hazmat or passengers, and the weight of the vehicles.
3. Ask your broker for a quote that meets the minimum for your category, but compare it with your contracts' limits.
4. Make sure the policy names the carrier exactly as it is registered with FMCSA.
5. Have the insurer attach the MCS-90 and file the BMC-91X.
6. Confirm the filing shows on the FMCSA L&I site before you start hauling.
7. Keep a copy of the MCS-90 at the principal place of business.
8. Calendar renewals and the premium finance schedule, because non-payment cancellations produce a lapse. See policy cancellation and nonrenewal: notice periods and your rights.
9. If you change insurers, make sure the new filing is effective before the old one ends.
10. If you use owner-operators, understand who the insured is on each leased unit. See owner-operator insurance: leased vs independent authority.

A hypothetical lapse

Say a three-truck carrier finances its premium and misses an installment. The finance company cancels the policy, and the insurer sends the cancellation notices. A broker checking carrier status on a load board sees the lapse and cancels the load, and the carrier's authority is flagged. The carrier pays to reinstate the policy and refile, and the cargo insurer may contest claims for loads hauled during the gap. None of that required an accident. The fix is the calendar: a missed payment costs much more than the installment.

What the minimum does not do

The $750,000 limit is a floor for injured members of the public. It is not a recommendation, and it does not reflect the cost of serious crashes. How CSA scores and safety ratings affect trucking insurance describes how safety data affects price, and why commercial auto insurance keeps getting more expensive shows why many carriers buy more. Note also that the standard business auto form's out-of-state extension, which raises limits to meet another state's financial responsibility law, expressly does not apply to limits set by laws governing motor carriers of property or passengers (CA 00 01 10 13, Section II.A.2.b). A motor carrier's required limit has to be written into the policy itself and proved by the MCS-90.

Key takeaways

• For-hire carriers of non-hazardous freight in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more must carry at least $750,000. Oil and certain hazardous materials require $1 million or $5 million, and passenger carriers $1.5 million or $5 million.
• Proof is the MCS-90 endorsement, the insurer's BMC-91 or BMC-91X filing with FMCSA, and for brokers a $75,000 bond or trust fund.
• Cancellation requires written notice: 35 days under the endorsement rules and 30 days after a BMC-35 is filed. A lapse can cost you your authority.
• Violations of Part 387 can bring civil penalties of up to $21,114, each day counting separately (eCFR, October 2026).
• Federal minimums are a floor. State rules, customer contracts and severity exposure usually justify higher limits.