Modify!

Okay, having a 6 year old means watching way too many cartoon movies, but this is relevant to food trucks just wait... If you have not seen the Cars short Tokyo Mater, find it onYouTube. Mater gets a sweet modification upgrade to win a drift race in Tokyo. This made me think about food trucks and their modifications. Commercial auto insurance policies are typically written on an actual cash value basis. This means if your truck is damaged or totaled they will replace it with a similar vehicle at depreciated value and with factory installed parts. If you have put thousands of dollars into a modified kitchen or updated kitchen on your truck, chances are that your auto policy does not cover these additions! You need to have an inland marine property policy or endorsement that picks up your modifications... Do not be fooled by Stated Value coverage on your commercial auto policy. Just because you have a stated amount of say $50,000 on your truck the carriers almost always pay the actual cash value or stated amount at the time of loss, WHICHEVER IS LESS.

The smaller modifications are not covered on an auto policy either. This means that if you put say giant pig ears, sun glasses and a nice snout like this fella (Maximus/Minimus - Seattle), you will not have coverage for them unless the carrier is insuring the modifications or they are added to your property insurance coverage. Your modifications don't have to be this elaborate... you may have stereo system with attached speakers, a generator cage that cost a pretty penny to get made and installed, a service window cover that was added after the manufacture date or a number of different modifications. Don't assume your commercial auto automatically covers these items. The worst time to find out is after a loss. Contact us about this or anything else.