The tow truck is damaged
This is a physical-damage question on the tow truck’s own coverage — collision or comprehensive, subject to the deductible.
Physical damage
Towing insurance guide
On-Hook Towing Insurance: Coverage, Limits, and Common Gaps
On-hook towing coverage is intended to address damage to a customer vehicle while it is being towed. It is different from liability coverage for damage the tow truck causes to another driver, and it is different from physical-damage coverage on the tow truck itself. This guide explains which vehicle is protected, how to think about the limit, and what to confirm in the policy wording.
One accident, three property claims
Which vehicle does on-hook actually protect?
Picture one accident while a customer vehicle is on the truck. It can produce three separate property claims — and they may implicate three different parts of the insurance program.
A guardrail or another vehicle is damaged
Damage the operation causes to other people and their property is a commercial auto liability question.
Commercial auto liability
The customer vehicle on the truck is damaged
The vehicle in your care during the tow is the exposure on-hook coverage is designed for.
On-hook towing coverage
Commercial auto liability primarily addresses liability to third parties arising from use of the insured tow truck. A customer vehicle in the operator’s care may require towing-specific coverage rather than relying on ordinary auto liability — which is the gap on-hook coverage is designed to fill.
Choosing a limit
Size the limit to the worst tow, not the typical one
Start with the highest-value vehicle the company expects to tow — not the average vehicle. An operator towing ordinary passenger cars has a different maximum exposure from one towing luxury vehicles, commercial trucks, buses, or equipment. If the operation is growing into heavier or higher-value work, the limit should grow ahead of the work, not after the first close call.
Rotations and motor-club contracts sometimes specify a minimum on-hook limit. Treat that as a floor: the contract’s number protects the contract, not necessarily the vehicle on your truck.
What affects on-hook underwriting
- Vehicle types being towed
- Light-, medium-, or heavy-duty work
- Operating radius
- Police, auction, salvage, or repossession work
- Driver experience and records
- Requested on-hook limit
- Prior claims
- Storage operations
- Truck type and securement method
Policy wording
Does on-hook apply during loading and unloading?
The answer depends on the policy wording, and this is where on-hook claims get contested. Before relying on the coverage, confirm how the form answers these questions:
When does coverage begin — at hookup, at loading, or when transport starts?
When does coverage end — at drop-off, at release, or when the vehicle is detached?
How are loading and unloading treated?
What happens during temporary stops along the route?
Is a vehicle detached from the truck still covered?
How is subcontracted or brokered towing work treated?
On-hook vs. garagekeepers
Two coverages, one customer vehicle
The same customer vehicle can move between two exposures in a single job: on the truck, and then in your yard.
On-hook
The customer vehicle is being towed.
Damage during the tow — and, depending on the form, during loading and unloading — is the on-hook conversation.
Garagekeepers
The customer vehicle is parked or stored at the business location.
Once vehicles sit in the yard, the exposure becomes the combined value of everything stored — plus security, access, and release procedures.
The exact boundary between the two depends on the applicable policy wording. If the operation stores or impounds vehicles, review both coverages together — the storage section of the Utah towing operator guide walks through what underwriters ask about a yard.
Coverage review
Send the on-hook limit and coverage form for review.
Have an existing quote or policy? Send the on-hook limit, the coverage form, the highest-value vehicle you tow, and any contract requirement, and Redoubt will help you understand what the coverage appears to address.
Start with three quick questions
Step 1 of 425%
What type of towing work do you do?
Frequently asked questions
On-hook coverage FAQ
What is on-hook towing coverage?+
On-hook towing coverage is intended to address damage to a customer vehicle while it is being towed. Availability, limits, exclusions, and when coverage starts and stops depend on the policy form and carrier, so the wording matters as much as the limit.
Does commercial auto liability cover the car being towed?+
Commercial auto liability primarily addresses liability to third parties arising from use of the insured tow truck. A customer vehicle in the operator’s care, custody, and control often needs towing-specific coverage rather than ordinary auto liability — which is exactly the gap on-hook is designed for.
How is on-hook different from garagekeepers?+
On-hook is generally discussed for the customer vehicle while it is being towed; garagekeepers is generally discussed for customer vehicles parked or stored at the business’s premises. The exact boundary depends on the policy wording, so operations that tow and store should review both.
Do I need garagekeepers if I do not store vehicles overnight?+
It depends on whether customer vehicles are ever in your care at your premises — even briefly. If vehicles are always delivered immediately and never held, the exposure is smaller, but “sometimes stored, sometimes not” is an underwriting question worth answering honestly rather than assuming away.
What on-hook limit should a towing company choose?+
Start with the highest-value vehicle the company expects to tow — not the average vehicle. An operator towing ordinary passenger cars has a different maximum exposure from one towing luxury vehicles, commercial trucks, buses, or equipment.
Coverage review
Not sure what your on-hook coverage actually says?
Send Redoubt the quote or policy, the highest-value vehicle you tow, and any contract requirement. We’ll help you understand what the coverage appears to address before you rely on it.