Drayage insurance the UIIA will accept.
Auto liability, general liability, trailer interchange and cargo for drayage companies and owner-operators who pull containers from ports and rail ramps, set up to match UIIA and equipment provider rules.
By Sam Alishahi · CA Insurance License #4348151 · Reviewed October 2026 · How this page is researched
You haul boxes you don’t own
Drayage trucks pull containers on chassis that belong to steamship lines, chassis pools and railroads. Before they hand you that equipment, they want proof of insurance that meets the UIIA, the interchange agreement run by the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA).
A certificate that is missing one endorsement or one additional insured can hold up your UIIA account and keep you out of the terminal. I check each piece against the UIIA’s published requirements and your equipment providers’ limits, then shop it with carriers that write intermodal truckers.
- Auto liabilityInjuries and damage your trucks cause to others. The UIIA asks for at least $1 million.
- General liabilityClaims that don’t involve driving. The UIIA asks for $1 million per occurrence.
- Trailer interchangePhysical damage to chassis, containers and trailers you don’t own while they’re in your care.
- CargoFreight inside the container. Most equipment providers set their own limit.
What underwriters will ask
Having these ready means I can go to market on the first call. The quote form asks for the same things, and anything you don’t know yet can wait.
- UIIA status: signed up, pending or not yet, plus the equipment providers you work with.
- Ports and ramps: the terminals and rail ramps you serve.
- Trucks: year, make, value and port registry status.
- Drivers: names, license numbers, CDL experience and TWIC status.
- Authority: USDOT, MC and CA numbers, if you have them.
- Current policy: declarations, endorsements and loss runs.
Intermodal and drayage insurance, answered
What are the UIIA insurance requirements?
IANA’s published requirements for motor carriers include commercial auto liability of at least $1 million combined single limit, written as Any Auto, Scheduled and Hired, or All Owned and Hired. They also include general liability of $1 million per occurrence and the UIIE-1 endorsement (or CA 23 17 or TE 23 17B) on the auto policy. Most equipment providers also require trailer interchange and cargo, with limits that vary by provider, and some require workers’ comp and employer’s liability.
What is trailer interchange insurance?
It covers physical damage to a trailer, chassis or container you don’t own while it is in your care, custody or control under an interchange agreement. The UIIA says it must include comprehensive and collision, plus fire and theft.
What affects the cost of drayage insurance?
Carriers look at driver records and experience, claims history, the number and value of trucks, where you run, what’s in the containers, years in business, and the limits your equipment providers require. Clean drivers and a clean loss history help the most.
Do drayage drivers need a TWIC card?
Workers who need access to secure areas of port facilities need a TWIC under the Maritime Transportation Security Act. TSA issues the card, and it is good for five years.
What do trucks need to work the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach?
Every truck entering a marine terminal must be on the Ports Drayage Truck Registry. At the Port of Los Angeles, motor carriers making regular calls also need an approved concession agreement, and the application includes insurance certificates. New registry entries since October 1, 2018 must be model year 2014 or newer.
Does California require zero-emission drayage trucks?
Not right now. CARB says no new regulations currently apply to drayage trucks, and it encourages zero-emission trucks on a voluntary basis. Port registry and concession rules still apply.
Do leased-on owner-operators need their own insurance?
In most lease setups, the drayage company’s auto liability applies while you’re under its dispatch, so check your lease. You still need physical damage on your own truck, and often non-trucking liability. With your own authority, you carry your own liability, your own filings and your own UIIA account.
Do you offer intermodal and drayage insurance outside California?
Yes. Clients across the country send the same quote form. California policies are placed directly; outside California the request is handled together with a partner agency in your state, and the shopping across carriers works the same way. Rules, minimums and markets differ by state — see insurance requirements by state.
Send your trucks and your UIIA list. I’ll shop it.
Truck list, driver list and your current declarations page are enough to start.
Alishahi Insurance · Saman Alishahi, independent insurance broker, California License #4348151. General information, not a quote or a promise of coverage; coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.
Tell me how to reach you. I’ll take it from there.
Takes about 30 seconds. I review every request personally and call you back, usually the same day.
(424) 552-4545Answered 24/7 · CA License #4348151
Get a reminder before your renewal.
Tell me when your policy renews and I’ll email you about six weeks before, when it’s worth comparing. One email, no calls.