Bill Would Boost Carriers’ Insurance Minimums Nearly 500%
A House bill would increase the minimum liability insurance trucking companies must have to $4,422,000, from the current $750,000, which hasn’t changed in 33 years.
The bill, introduced Friday, is meant to protect the public and highway users by ensuring that carriers have enough insurance to cover the costs of crashes they cause, said Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.), sponsor of the legislation.
“This is a matter of public safety,” Cartwright said in a Friday statement. “This legislation is essential to protecting our nation’s highways and ensuring that victims receive the proper amount of compensation for their losses.”
The $4,422,000 proposed level reflects increases in costs of medical care and would cover the same amount of care as $750,000 did in 1980, he said.
Six representatives, all Democrats, have signed on as co-sponsors of the bill, Cartwright said.
