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Maryland trucking

Maryland trucking insurance requirements

What Maryland requires in trucking insurance before it grants intrastate operating authority: the liability minimums the state publishes, the cargo coverage rules, and the forms your insurer files, shown next to the federal minimums so you can see where the state differs. Every figure carries its official source.

By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 27, 2026

What Maryland requires

These are the state-level rules attached to Maryland intrastate operating authority. A field reading "Not confirmed" means the agency publishes no figure; the note explains what the agency does say.

Liability minimum
$750,000 (Maryland adopts the federal minimum levels of financial responsibility for motor carriers by incorporating 49 CFR 387 with no amendments or exemptions (COMAR 11.21.01.04-5), so the federal schedule in 49 CFR 387.303 applies: $750,000 for freight vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more GVWR carrying non-hazardous property, $300,000 for small freight fleets under 10,001 pounds GVWR, $1,000,000 for oil and listed hazardous materials, and $5,000,000 for the bulk explosives and high-risk classes. Scope caution: under COMAR 11.21.01.03, the incorporated federal rules apply in full to intrastate carriers only when they transport placardable hazardous materials or operate vehicles designed for 16 or more passengers including the driver; other intrastate carriers are covered by the chapter with the amendments and exemptions in its regulations .05 through .08 and .11 through .14. Separately, Maryland vehicle registration (including IRP registration) requires proof of Maryland insurance at $30,000/$60,000 public liability and $15,000 property damage.)
Cargo minimum
No cargo insurance floor for Maryland intrastate freight appears in COMAR 11.21.01, the SHA pages or the MVA IRP Manual, so no amount is recorded rather than guessed.
Differs from federal
No

The federal minimums, for contrast

Cross a state line for hire and the federal financial-responsibility levels take over, filed with FMCSA by your insurer. The amounts below render from 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)
OperationVehicleLiability minimum
For-hire property carrier, non-hazardousGVWR 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 materialsAny$1,000,000
For-hire and private carriers of explosives, poison gas, or radioactive materialsAny$5,000,000
For-hire carrier of household goodsGVWR 10,001 lb or more$750,000
For-hire carrier of passengers15 or fewer passengers$1,500,000
For-hire carrier of passengers16 or more passengers$5,000,000
Broker of property or household goodsNoneNone
Freight forwarder of propertyNoneNone
Freight forwarder of household goodsNoneNone

Scroll sideways to see every column.

Where insurance fits in the Maryland 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 Maryland intrastate authority page. For the full order of operations, work through start a trucking company in Maryland.

Frequently asked questions

Does Maryland set its own trucking insurance minimums?

Maryland's published pages do not confirm a standalone intrastate minimum for every case. Where the state publishes no figure, this page says so instead of guessing, and the note beside each field explains what the state does require.

Do federal insurance minimums still apply to a Maryland carrier?

Interstate operations file proof of coverage with FMCSA under 49 CFR Part 387 no matter which state the carrier is based in. The state rules on this page govern intrastate-only operations; the federal table shows the levels an interstate filing must meet.

What insurance does a new Maryland carrier line up first?

Primary liability comes first: the state and federal filings both ride on an active liability policy. Cargo coverage follows where the state or your shippers require it, and physical damage on the truck is a lender requirement rather than a state rule.

Where do these figures come from?

Every dollar amount renders from the state agency publication or statute cited beside it, or from the federal regulation for the contrast table. When an agency publishes no figure, the field reads "Not confirmed" with a note on what the agency does say.

Haul Handbook publishes educational information about trucking registration and compliance requirements. This is not legal, financial, or tax advice. Rules, fees, and deadlines change; confirm with the agency before you file or pay.