Trailer Interchange Insurance

Trailer interchange insurance covers physical damage to a trailer or chassis owned by someone else while it is in your possession under a written trailer interchange agreement. Under that agreement, the motor carrier taking the trailer agrees to be responsible for any damage until it is returned.

It is common in intermodal drayage, where carriers pull containers on chassis owned by railroads, steamship lines and leasing pools, and in power-only work where a carrier swaps trailers with another company. The coverage pays up to its limit, so the limit should match the most valuable trailer you expect to pull.

Physical damage on your own units does not extend to a trailer you do not own unless the policy adds that coverage, and liability does not cover damage to property in your care. Without trailer interchange or a similar endorsement, the repair bill under the agreement is yours.

Not the Same as Non-Owned Trailer Physical Damage

Trailer interchange applies when a written interchange agreement makes you responsible for the trailer. Non-owned trailer coverage is for trailers you borrow or rent without that kind of agreement.

Example

A drayage carrier picks up a chassis from a rail yard under the intermodal interchange agreement and it is damaged in a yard collision. The agreement makes the carrier responsible, and trailer interchange coverage pays the repair up to its limit, less the deductible.