A personal auto policy covers your commute. It doesn't cover your business.
The minute a vehicle is used for work — deliveries, job sites, hauling, paid client visits — a personal auto policy's business-use exclusion can leave a claim denied and the business exposed to the whole loss. Commercial auto is built for it: higher liability limits, physical damage on the vehicles you own, and coverage for the rental you took and the employee who ran an errand in their own car. National General writes small-business commercial auto on Allstate-group A+ paper, and because we're independent, we run it against our other commercial markets.
The short answer
Commercial auto covers the vehicles your business uses for work — the use a personal auto policy excludes. National General writes it for small-business auto and light fleets, with business liability (higher limits than personal), physical damage on your owned vehicles, medical payments and uninsured/underinsured motorist, plus hired auto for vehicles you rent and non-owned auto for when employees use their own cars for business. It's the only commercial line on our National General contract, it's Allstate Insurance Group A+ paper, and because we're independent, we run it against our other commercial markets to fit your operation.
"Business use" is where a personal policy stops.
Every personal auto policy has a business-use exclusion. Most owners never read it — until a work-related accident turns it into the most important sentence in the contract.
exposed business where personal auto stops
Cause an accident while using the vehicle for business, and a personal policy can deny the claim. The lawsuit doesn't go away — it just lands on the business, and its limited personal limits weren't built for a commercial loss.
A commercial loss is bigger than a personal policy is built for.
Business driving carries more exposure: more miles, heavier or specialized vehicles, cargo, employees behind the wheel, and the deeper pockets a plaintiff's attorney goes looking for when a company is involved. A personal auto policy's limits and terms simply weren't designed for that.
Commercial auto is. It brings higher liability limits, covers the vehicles titled to or used by the business, and — crucially — reaches the two exposures owners forget: the vehicle you rented for a job and the employee who used their own car for work. Getting a work vehicle onto the right policy isn't paperwork; it's the difference between a covered claim and a closed business.
The pieces a business vehicle needs.
Business Liability
Bodily-injury and property-damage liability you cause with a business vehicle — typically at higher limits than a personal policy, because a commercial claim runs bigger.
Physical Damage
Comprehensive and collision on the trucks, vans and cars your business owns — repair or replacement after a covered accident, theft or weather loss.
Hired Auto
Covers vehicles your business rents, leases or borrows — the box truck you grabbed for a big delivery week, the loaner while a work van's in the shop.
Non-Owned Auto
Protects the business when an employee drives their personal vehicle for work and causes an accident — the gap that surprises almost every owner.
Medical & UM/UIM
Medical payments for injuries in a covered accident, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage for when the at-fault driver has too little insurance — or none.
Tailored Endorsements
Combined single limits, added drivers and vehicles as you grow, and DynamicDrive telematics — the policy flexes with the business.
Your employee's car, your company's lawsuit.
Ask a business owner what happens when an employee runs to the supply house in their own truck and causes a wreck, and most assume the employee's personal insurance handles it. It might — up to the employee's limits. After that, the plaintiff looks for the business that sent them, and finds it.
Owning zero vehicles doesn't mean zero auto exposure.
A business can be sued over an accident in a vehicle it doesn't own and didn't insure, simply because the driver was working for it at the time. Hired and non-owned auto is the coverage that answers that — for the vehicles you rent and the employees who drive their own. If your team ever runs errands, makes deliveries, or drives to a job in a personal vehicle, this is the exposure to close, and it's often inexpensive to add. We'll flag it whether or not the business owns a single vehicle.
The businesses driving the region's growth.
Northwest Arkansas runs on small businesses with vehicles: the trades building out Bentonville and Rogers — electricians, plumbers, HVAC, landscapers, general contractors — plus delivery and courier operations, real estate and inspection pros, mobile services of every kind, and the countless suppliers and vendors in the ecosystem around the region's major employers. If a vehicle carries tools, product, or a paid employee, it's a commercial exposure. National General's program fits local-to-intermediate-radius operations well.
If your operation is bigger or different — long-haul, for-hire trucking, or specialized vehicles — tell us. That's a different appetite, and being independent means we place it with the market built for it rather than forcing a fit. Either way, the conversation starts the same: what do you drive, who drives it, and how far.
Commercial auto covers your vehicles — not your whole business.
This is the clarification that saves a dangerous assumption: a commercial auto policy insures the driving, and only the driving.
You almost certainly need more than one policy.
Commercial auto is not general liability (claims arising from your work and premises), not workers' compensation (employee injuries — required in Arkansas for most employers), and not commercial property (your building, tools and inventory). Most businesses need those alongside their auto coverage. As an independent agency, we build the whole program — placing each line with the right market so nothing overlaps and nothing's left uncovered. The National General piece handles the vehicles; we handle the rest of the picture with you.
The pieces we'll talk through.
Priced on the fleet and the work.
No two operations price alike, so a planning number would mislead — this isn't a quote or a guarantee. Commercial auto premiums are generally a deductible business expense; check with a tax professional. What actually moves it:
Strong balance sheet, honest caveats.
On August 28, 2025, AM Best affirmed the members of Allstate Insurance Group — the companies behind National General's US commercial auto policies — at a Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior), stable outlook.
Where National General is strong on commercial auto
- Built for small business. Coverage for small-business auto and light fleets across a variety of trades and services.
- It closes the real gaps. Higher liability limits, physical damage on owned vehicles, and hired-and-non-owned for the exposures owners miss.
- A+ (Superior) Allstate-group paper, with DynamicDrive telematics for businesses that want to reward safe driving.
- Independent-agency distribution, so we run it against our other commercial markets and build the whole program around it.
What we'll tell you honestly
- It's auto only. You likely also need general liability and workers' comp — we place those with the right markets so the program is complete.
- The appetite is local-to-intermediate. Long-haul or for-hire is a different market, and we'll route it there rather than force a fit.
- Non-owned is the gap to close. Even a business that owns no vehicles can be sued over an employee's driving — don't skip it.
- Personal use of a business vehicle needs the right structure, we don't adjust your claim, and we'll say plainly if another market fits better.
The personal lines we place alongside it.
National General commercial auto questions.
Why can't I just use my personal auto policy for a work vehicle?
Because personal auto policies contain a business-use exclusion. When a vehicle is being used for business — deliveries, job sites, hauling, paid client work — a personal policy can deny the claim, and a serious accident then lands directly on the business.
Commercial auto is written for that use, with the higher liability limits a business exposure needs. If a vehicle earns money for your business, it needs commercial coverage, not a personal policy that quietly excludes the very thing it's doing.
What does National General commercial auto insurance cover?
The core pieces of a business auto policy: liability for bodily injury and property damage you cause (typically at higher limits than personal auto), physical damage — comprehensive and collision — on the vehicles your business owns, medical payments and uninsured/underinsured motorist, plus hired auto for vehicles you rent or lease and non-owned auto for when employees use their own cars for business.
National General writes it for small-business auto and light fleets, with DynamicDrive telematics available.
What is hired and non-owned auto coverage, and do I need it?
It's the coverage business owners most often miss. Hired auto covers vehicles your business rents, leases or borrows. Non-owned auto covers the liability your business faces when an employee drives their own car for work — running to the supply house, making a delivery, meeting a client.
If that employee causes an accident on business time, your business can be pulled into the lawsuit even though it doesn't own the car. Hired and non-owned coverage is what stands between your business and that claim. Most businesses with any employees need it.
Does commercial auto cover everything my business needs?
No — it covers your vehicles, not your whole business. Commercial auto handles auto liability and physical damage. It is not general liability (for injuries and damage arising from your operations and premises), it is not workers' compensation (for employee injuries), and it is not commercial property.
Most businesses need those alongside commercial auto. As an independent agency, we build the whole program and place each line with the right market — so nothing overlaps and nothing's left uncovered.
Is National General commercial auto the same paper as Allstate, and whose rating applies?
National General has been an Allstate company since January 2021, and the US National General companies are members of Allstate Insurance Group. AM Best affirmed Allstate Insurance Group at a Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of "aa-" (Superior) on August 28, 2025, with a stable outlook — that's the rating on your Arkansas commercial auto policy.
A separate Bermuda entity, National General Insurance Ltd., is rated A (Excellent), a notch lower. Ratings change; the current one is at ambest.com.
How do I get a National General commercial auto quote in Bentonville or Rogers?
Start at our commercial quote form or call (479) 286-1066. Have your vehicle list, driver list with license details, and your radius of operation ready — commercial auto is priced on the vehicles, the drivers, what the business does, and how far it travels.
National General's program fits small-business and local-to-intermediate operations best; if you run long-haul or for-hire, tell us and we'll route it to the right market. Because we're independent, we compare it against our other commercial markets.
If our carrier and coverage guides are helpful, mark Cribb Insurance as a preferred source so more Northwest Arkansas business owners find our local, plain-English explanations.
Get the work vehicles on the right policy — and the whole program right.
Send us your vehicle list, your drivers, and what the business does. We'll write the National General commercial auto to fit — liability, physical damage, and the hired-and-non-owned coverage owners forget — flag the general liability and workers' comp you also need, and place each line with the right market. Small-business or a light fleet, local or intermediate radius, we'll compare it against our other commercial markets and build the program around it.
Cribb Insurance Group Inc. is an independent insurance agency licensed in Arkansas. We are not National General or Allstate, and this page is authored independently and is not endorsed, sponsored, reviewed, or approved by either. "National General," "Custom360," "DynamicDrive," and "Allstate" are trademarks or service marks of Allstate Insurance Company and its affiliates, used here nominatively to identify products we are appointed to place. National General's Arkansas commercial auto policies are underwritten by member companies of the National General Group, Winston-Salem, NC.
This page describes coverage in general terms for informational purposes only. It is not a policy, not an offer of insurance, and not a guarantee of coverage, availability, eligibility, or price. Coverages, limits, hired- and non-owned-auto availability, eligible vehicle types, radius/appetite, discounts, eligibility, and availability vary by business, by vehicle and use, by state, by policy, and over time, are set by the carrier, and are subject to underwriting review and approval and to the terms, conditions, limits, and exclusions of the policy actually issued. Commercial auto insures vehicles and driving only; it is not general liability, workers' compensation, or commercial property insurance, which are separate coverages. National General's commercial auto program is oriented to small-business and local-to-intermediate-radius operations; long-haul and for-hire risks may require a different market. Any statement that commercial auto premiums may be tax-deductible is general information, not tax advice — consult a qualified tax professional. If anything on this page conflicts with the issued policy, the policy controls.
Financial strength ratings are opinions of an insurer's ability to meet its ongoing insurance obligations, are subject to change, are not recommendations to purchase, hold or terminate any policy, and do not address an insurer's claims-handling practices; current ratings are at ambest.com. The A+ (Superior) rating referenced applies to the members of Allstate Insurance Group as affirmed by AM Best on August 28, 2025; National General Insurance Ltd. (Bermuda) is a separately rated entity carrying a different rating. If anything here conflicts with the issued policy, the policy controls.
Last reviewed July 2026.