Does Montana set its own trucking insurance minimums?

The stored record marks state and federal minimums as different. Review the operation-specific rows and source notes; the difference does not establish one amount for every carrier.

Do federal insurance minimums still apply to a Montana carrier?

Federal insurance requirements depend on the vehicle, commodity and operation. Review the federal table and its cited regulation alongside the applicable state requirements; state location alone does not settle coverage or filing scope.

What insurance does a new Montana carrier line up first?

Review the liability, cargo and filing requirements for your operation before comparing coverage. The source notes identify the stored state and federal scope; insurer and contractual requirements need their own check.

Where do these figures come from?

The tables show stored amounts with their recorded sources. A field marked "Not confirmed" is a verification gap. Review its note; that label does not establish that the agency publishes no amount or that no requirement applies.

Montana Trucking Insurance Requirements (2026)

By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Sep 28, 2026

What Montana requires

These are the state-level rules attached to Montana intrastate operating authority. A field reading "Not confirmed" means this guide has not confirmed that value. The note explains the gap; unknown is not evidence of absence.

Liability minimum: Montana sets no single dollar liability minimum for intrastate general freight. ARM 18.8.1502(2)(b) applies the federal 49 CFR 387.7 and 387.9 minimums only to for-hire carriers in interstate or foreign commerce and to hazardous materials carriers, and names Mont. Code Ann. 61-6-103 as the minimum for for-hire carriers hauling nonhazardous material intrastate: $25,000 bodily injury to one person, $50,000 for two or more people and $20,000 property damage per accident. PSC-certificated Class A and D freight carriers must carry more under ARM 38.3.706: $500,000, or $100,000 for a cargo vehicle of 10,000 pounds GVWR or less.
Cargo minimum: $10,000 (ARM 38.3.703 requires each Class A intrastate carrier to file evidence of cargo insurance, and the PSC's MV-2 cargo endorsement limits the insurer's liability to $10,000 per loss at one time and place or per vehicle ($1,000 for cargo in a vehicle designed for seven passengers or fewer).)
Differs from federal: Yes

Minimum liability by operation type

Review the operation-specific scope and source notes before relying on a coverage amount.

Montana minimum liability coverage by operation type
Operation type	Minimum liability	Set by	Notes
For-hire nonhazardous freight in intrastate commerce (no PSC certificate)	See note	Mont. Code Ann. 61-6-103	Split limits under Mont. Code Ann. 61-6-103: $25,000 bodily injury per person, $50,000 per accident, $20,000 property damage, as named by ARM 18.8.1502(2)(b).
PSC Class A or D carrier, nonhazardous freight in a cargo vehicle of 10,000 pounds GVWR or less, or a vehicle for seven passengers or fewer	$100,000	ARM 38.3.706(2)(a)(v)
PSC Class A or D carrier, nonhazardous freight in all other vehicles	$500,000	ARM 38.3.706(2)(a)(vi)
PSC passenger carrier, 8 to 15 passengers	$500,000	ARM 38.3.706(2)(a)(ii)
PSC passenger carrier, 16 to 26 passengers	$750,000	ARM 38.3.706(2)(a)(iii)
Hazardous materials (interstate or intrastate)	See note	ARM 18.8.1502(2)(b)	ARM 18.8.1502(2)(b) applies the federal 49 CFR 387.9 minimums to hazardous materials carriers, and the PSC MV-4 endorsement uses the federal hazardous materials limits for certificated carriers; the dollar rows are the federal schedule, not a Montana figure.

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Who files the proof of insurance

The rows identify stored proof-of-coverage filings. Confirm which filing applies to your authority and who submits it before requesting a form.

Liability proof: Form E, with Casualty Insurance Endorsement MV-4
Household goods cargo: Form H, with Cargo Insurance Endorsement MV-2
Cancellation: Form K; the MV-4 endorsement requires 30 days' written notice to the PSC before cancellation

Applies only to PSC Class A, D and E certificate holders (Class E files Form T with endorsement MV-TNC).

The federal minimums, for contrast

Federal financial-responsibility requirements depend on the operation, vehicle and commodity. Review the rows and exclusions in 49 CFR Part 387 (property carriers 387.303, brokers and freight forwarders 387.307, endorsements 387.15), as displayed on FMCSA's insurance filing requirements page; the filing mechanics live in our BMC-91 and BMC-34 insurance filings guide.

Federal minimum public liability levels by operation (49 CFR Part 387)
Operation	Vehicle	Liability minimum
For-hire property carrier, non-hazardous	GVWR under 10,001 lb	$300,000
For-hire property carrier, non-hazardous (general freight)	GVWR 10,001 lb or more	$750,000
For-hire carrier of certain hazardous materials	Any	$1,000,000
For-hire and private carriers of explosives, poison gas, or radioactive materials	Any	$5,000,000
For-hire carrier of household goods	GVWR 10,001 lb or more	$750,000
For-hire carrier of passengers	15 or fewer passengers	$1,500,000
For-hire carrier of passengers	16 or more passengers	$5,000,000
Broker of property or household goods	None	None
Freight forwarder of property	None	None
Freight forwarder of household goods	None	None

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Where insurance fits in the Montana launch

Coverage sits early in the sequence: the federal filing sequence needs your insurer's proof of coverage on file before authority activates, and the state rules above attach to the credential covered on the Montana intrastate authority page. For the full order of operations, work through start a trucking company in Montana.