Certificate of Insurance (COI)

A certificate of insurance is a standardized document issued by an insurance company or its authorized agent that verifies a motor carrier has active insurance coverage. The COI summarizes the types of coverage in force, the coverage limits, the policy effective dates, and the named insured. In freight transportation, COIs are required documents in the carrier qualification process and must be maintained current throughout the business relationship.

For refrigerated freight operations, brokers and shippers typically require carriers to carry minimum insurance coverage including auto liability insurance of at least $1 million, cargo insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence, and general liability insurance of at least $1 million. Some shippers with high-value refrigerated products require cargo insurance minimums of $250,000 or more to ensure adequate coverage for their loads.

Verification and Monitoring

It is not sufficient to collect a COI during the initial carrier onboarding process and never check it again. Insurance policies can lapse, be canceled, or have their coverage limits reduced at any time. Responsible brokers and shippers implement ongoing insurance monitoring programs that verify coverage status before each load is tendered, using automated systems that receive real-time notifications from insurance companies when a carrier's policy changes or is canceled.

The COI should name the broker or shipper as a certificate holder and include a provision requiring the insurance company to provide advance notice before canceling or reducing coverage. This notification provision gives the broker or shipper time to stop tendering loads to a carrier whose insurance is about to lapse, preventing the exposure of shipping uninsured freight with an inadequately covered carrier.