Progressive commercial auto insurance

Our take

Progressive, the nation's number one commercial auto insurance company in terms of market share, is a financially stable company with fewer customer complaints than other insurers. Its rates are a little higher, but it offers a bevy of discounts that can help small businesses save on their monthly premiums. In addition, Progressive, unlike some other commercial insurers, offers commercial auto insurance in all 50 states, making its policies readily accessible.

Understanding commercial auto insurance

Commercial auto insurance covers claims involving company-owned vehicles, including cars, trucks and vans. Depending on the policy, it pays for injuries and damages to people and property, including your employees, passengers and business-owned vehicles. A personal insurance policy, on the other hand, won’t cover claims that happen while the vehicle is operating for business purposes. 

A basic policy includes bodily injury liability and property damage liability, which pay for damage you or your drivers cause to others during an accident. Each state has different required liability limits, and your policy should have at least the limits required by state law. Consider higher limits for better protection.

Businesses can also sign on for additional coverage, such as comprehensive and collision insurance. Comprehensive covers damage to your vehicles from non-collision events, such as theft and natural disasters. Collision covers damage from impacts with other vehicles or objects. More details about your policy options follow.

Progressive commercial auto insurance coverage

There are five areas that most Progressive commercial auto insurance policies cover:

• Liability: This pays for injuries to others as well as damage to other cars or property when your driver is at fault for the accident.
• Collision: This pays to repair or replace your vehicle if it strikes another object, overturns, rolls or is in a collision with another vehicle where your driver is at fault for the accident.
• Comprehensive: This pays to repair or replace the vehicle if it is damaged by something other than collision, such as vandalism, fire or storm damage. 
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM): This helps pay for damage and injuries associated with an accident that wasn’t your fault when the other party doesn’t have any or enough insurance to cover the loss. 
• Medical payments: This protects your driver and passengers and helps pay for injuries they incur in an at-fault accident.

Progressive commercial car insurance may also include extras such as towing and roadside assistance, as well as rental car coverage if another vehicle is needed for business operations while yours is being repaired.  

Types of commercial vehicles Progressive insures

Progressive covers a wide range of vehicles, including:

• Business autos: This category includes all cars, light trucks, SUVs and vans. 
• Trucks: Progressive covers a variety of trucks, including dump trucks and tractor trailers.
• Trailers: This category includes pickup truck utility trailers, dump body trailers and tractor trailers. 

Progressive commercial auto insurance benefits

Progressive is the largest commercial auto insurance company by market share, controlling more than 15% of the market, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the standard-setting and regulatory support organization overseen by the country’s top insurance regulators. Its closest competitors are Travelers, which has a 5.4% market share, and Liberty Mutual, with a 4.2% share of the market.

Progressive says it offers many services that business customers may find beneficial, including:

• Around the clock policy service over the phone or online.
• The ability to adjust your coverages at any time.
• Flexible billing and payment options.
• Highly trained commercial claims adjusters.

A business may not think about the ability to handle claims when deciding which insurance company to go with, but if a company-owned vehicle is ever involved in an accident a good claims-handling operation can save a business a lot of headaches and frustrations.

“It’s important to consider a provider’s claims handling reputation,” says M. Denzell Moton, a personal injury attorney in Atlanta. “Some handle claims efficiently while others tend to deny valid claims or delay payments.” In other words, if you pay insurance for the claims experience and coverage, your carrier should stand behind their policies. 

How Progressive stacks up against other commercial auto insurance companies

A major criteria for judging insurance companies is the NAIC’s complaint index.

The NAIC’s complaint index is based on the number of complaints filed against the company with state insurance regulators compared to that company’s market share. A score of 1.0 means it received a number of complaints proportionate to its market share, while a score higher than 1.0 means it received a higher-than-expected number of complaints for its market share. 

Like many insurance companies, there are many parts to Progressive. We identified five Progressive subsidiaries writing commercial auto policies, including:

• Progressive Express Insurance Co., with a 0.1656 complaint index
• Progressive County Mutual Insurance Co., with a 0.569 complaint index
• Progressive Casualty Insurance Co., with a 1.107 complaint index
• Artisan and Truckers Casualty Co., with a  1.164 complaint index
• Drive New Jersey Insurance Co., with a 0.5941 complaint index

Taking an average of these five complaint indices, weighted by the underwriting companies annual premiums written, we came up with an average NAIC complaint index of 0.60 for Progressive commercial auto.

Another consideration when selecting an insurer is its financial stability. After all, you want your insurance company to be on a strong financial footing should you even need to file a claim. 

AM Best, a ratings agency that measures financial strength, gives Progressive an A+, one of its highest ratings, which indicates the company is in a great position to meet its financial obligations. 

How does Progressive commercial auto insurance pricing compare with the competition?

Progressive may not always be the cheapest commercial auto insurance policy you can get. 

The cost of any commercial car insurance coverage depends on several factors, such as location, coverage options, vehicle, driving history and the business you're in.

The national monthly average in 2023 for commercial auto insurance through Progressive ranged between $257 for contractor autos to $1,041 for for-hire transport trucks, according to the company.

Taking a wider look, Insureon, a small-business insurance agency,  says the average cost for a commercial auto policy is about $150 per month.

Tips to save on Progressive commercial auto insurance 

Progressive commercial auto insurance offers many ways to help you save money on your commercial auto insurance:

• Commercial driver’s license discount: Those with a CDL that’s valid for at least two years can get a discount.
• Business experience discount: If you’ve been in business for at least three years, you can get a discount. 
• Prior insurance savings: Those who can prove continuous coverage over the past 12 months can get a discount. 
• Package discount: Bundle your policy with a general liability or business owners policy to get a discount. 
• Paid in full discount: You can save up to 15% if you pay your premium in full at the start of the policy period. 
• Pay by electronic funds transfer (EFT): Having payments automatically deducted from a checking account makes you eligible for a discount. 
• Insure your personal vehicles with Progressive: Customers who also have personal autos with Progressive can get a discount.
• Smart Haul Program: Use an electronic logging device to save an average of $984 annually. 
• Snapshot ProView: Get 5% off your policy when enrolling in the company’s Snapshot usage-based insurance program.

Another good way to save is to hire drivers with good driving records to ensure you get the best rates. 

How to get the deductible waived by Progressive

Progressive offers what it calls a disappearing deductible. If you don’t file a claim against your policy for a set period of time, the deductible goes down and is eventually waived. The time period for deductibles to go down starts at six months and drops again at one year. It continues to go down at each policy renewal until it reaches zero. 

How to buy Progressive commercial vehicle insurance

Progressive works directly with consumers to provide commercial vehicle insurance. Quotes are available online or by calling 1-888-806-9598. Either way, it takes just a few minutes to get a quote. You can also work with an independent agent who contracts with Progressive.

When contacting Progressive for a quote, you’ll want to have all pertinent information available to ensure that the quote is accurate. You’ll need the  year, make, model and VIN for all vehicles. You’ll also need employees' driver's license numbers so Progressive can properly rate the drivers. 

Also, consider what coverage you want. You can choose to get a liability-only policy to meet state minimum requirements; however, this will not protect the vehicle if you are at fault for an accident. Talk to the representative about deductible options to help you save money while getting the protection you want. 

Once the representative has all the information, they’ll provide you with a quote for approval. From there, you just need to pay the initial premium to start the policy. 

Bottom line: Why go with Progressive for commercial auto insurance?

Progressive has a good reputation as an insurer. Progressive has fewer customer complaints than its competitors and the company is strong and stable. And while Progressive isn’t always the cheapest, it does offer discounts that can help small business owners get the most for their money.