Trucking insurance in Wyoming

Wyoming intrastate trucking insurance requirements

When you pick up and deliver loads within Wyoming and never cross a state line, that's intrastate hauling. Hauling passengers or goods for money on state highways, hot shot work included, makes you a contract motor carrier. The state's official proof of liability coverage is Form E, and your insurer must send it to the WYDOT Regulatory Section.

For the state application, type the $750,000 combined single limit in Form E's upper left corner; $500,000 appears in older Chapter 3 insurance rules. With a combined single limit, both property damage and injuries from a crash come out of 1 total dollar pool. When a tractor pulls nothing but a trailer, it counts as 1 vehicle. An agent who writes truck insurance can check that your Form E follows WYDOT rules.

Coverage type	Minimum limit	Filing form
Wyoming liability, application	$750,000	Form E
Wyoming liability, Chapter 3	$500,000	Form E
Wyoming general cargo	$10,000	Form H
Wyoming mobile home cargo	$5,000 per unit	Form MC-61E
Interstate fleet under 10,001 lbs	$300,000	BMC-91 or BMC-91X
Interstate non-hazmat, 10,001 lbs+	$750,000	BMC-91 or BMC-91X
Interstate oil or placarded hazmat	$1,000,000	BMC-91 or BMC-91X
Interstate explosives or bulk hazmat	$5,000,000	BMC-91 or BMC-91X
Broker standard, C.H. Robinson	$1,000,000 liability / $100,000 cargo	Certificate

Filing your Wyoming trucking insurance with WYDOT

Written permission from the state to haul for pay is called operating authority. You can mail or email your application and $50 fee to the Regulatory Section, or call (307) 777-4850 (credit card payments add a $2.50 Vital Check handling fee). After approval, each power unit must carry a copy of the letter of authority, and you must keep required records for 3 years or more.

Only insurers authorized under Title 26 in Wyoming get their filings approved by WYDOT. File your forms in triplicate, using your full legal name. WYDOT rules do accept faxed forms while signed originals are pending, but only for up to 15 days. Name mistakes that hold up authority are easier to avoid with an experienced trucking agent's help.

• Both common and contract carriers must hold $10,000 of cargo insurance on Form H.
• For mobile home or house trailer haulers, Form MC-61E must show $5,000 per unit, covering collision, contents, and other physical damage to the unit.
• Low-salvage loads, such as dirt, rock, gravel, non-pneumatic sand, and raw crops (not livestock), don't call for Form H.

Who needs Wyoming commercial truck insurance?

If you're a contract carrier above 26,000 lbs gross vehicle weight, your state application must include a USDOT number. Intrastate vehicles at 26,001 lbs or more, combinations above 26,000 lbs, and power units with 3 or more axles all fall under the Wyoming Highway Patrol. Wyoming Statute Title 31 says a commercial power unit with 2 axles exceeds 26,000 lbs; W.S. controls registration. 31-18-201.

A company that runs trucks over 26,000 lbs to carry its own property or employees without pay must get a $50 private carrier permit. The Wyoming operating authority manual frees private-only carriers from having to make insurance filings. The Commercial Vehicle Act exempts private carriers weighing 26,000 lbs or under (hazmat rules aside), and also loads moved solely on nonstate highways. A truck agent can tell you which of these rules fit your operation.

When you cross state lines, do federal limits apply?

Federal rules kick in for vehicles rated 10,001 lbs or more once you cross state lines. On non-hazardous freight, your insurer files a BMC-82 bond, BMC-91X, or Form BMC-91 with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for at least $750,000. Fleets under 10,001 lbs need only $300,000. Wyoming doesn't belong to the UCR, so interstate carriers register through a member state.

Although federal minimums activate your authority, freight brokers such as C.H. Robinson request $1,000,000 of auto liability and cargo coverage at $100,000. Brokers look for a $1,000,000 policy; an agent who specializes in truck insurance can weigh that against the cost of state minimums.

Questions people ask