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Written by:
Prachi Singh
Contributing Writer
Prachi is an insurance writer with a master’s degree in business administration. Through her writing, she hopes to help readers make smart and informed decisions about their finances. She loves to travel and write poetry.
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Reviewed by:
Laura Longero
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Executive Editor
Laura is an award-winning editor with experience in content and communications covering auto insurance and personal finance. She has written for several media outlets, including the USA Today Network. She most recently worked in the public sector for the Nevada Department of Transportation.

Many auto insurance policies will provide liability coverage for trailers if you own them. Many auto insurance policies do extend this type of coverage to trailers if they are being pulled by your insured vehicle at the time of an accident — but check with your insurer as state laws, insurance company guidelines and policy terms vary.

Whether other parts of an auto insurance policy, besides your liability coverages, would cover a trailer while it is being towed would depend upon the terms of your policy and the guidelines of your insurance carrier. In many cases, the trailer would need its own comprehensive or collision coverage. Some insurers would require the trailer to be listed on the declarations page of your policy to be covered.

Trailer coverage will vary by state and by the insurance company. Some will extend liability coverage while it’s attached to your motor vehicle. In contrast, others will say to be covered, you must have a separate policy for the trailer or an endorsement to your personal auto insurance to cover the trailer.

It could also depend on the type of trailer you are towing. If it is a utility trailer with a car on it or a pleasure craft such as an ATV or watercraft, then it likely will be extended coverage though you would need to check about coverage for the trailer’s contents. If it is a travel trailer, it may need its own policy to be covered.

If your personal auto insurance policy covers your trailer, you should ask your agent if the contents or items being towed on the trailer are covered. It may be that the contents would not be covered under your car insurance without an endorsement, even if your trailer is covered.

Auto insurance policies will not typically cover a rented trailer, though. If you get a trailer from U-haul, for instance, then you normally would need to also get their coverage on the trailer since rented equipment such as this usually is not covered by your personal auto insurance or any of the insurance benefits that credit cards sometimes extend you for say driving a rental car.

If you want to know if your current car insurance policy or a policy that you will purchase for your vehicle will extend to a trailer that you pull with your insured vehicle, read through the terms of your policy and ask the insurance provider for any clarification you need. Ask if there are any size and/or valuation limitations if the trailer is not listed and is separately insured.

 — Michelle Megna contributed to this story.

Laura Longero

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Laura Longero

Executive Editor

Laura is an award-winning editor with experience in content and communications covering auto insurance and personal finance. She has written for several media outlets, including the USA Today Network. She most recently worked in the public sector for the Nevada Department of Transportation.

John McCormick

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John McCormick

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John is the editorial director for CarInsurance.com, Insurance.com and Insure.com. Before joining QuinStreet, John was a deputy editor at The Wall Street Journal and had been an editor and reporter at a number of other media outlets where he covered insurance, personal finance, and technology.

Leslie Kasperowicz

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Leslie Kasperowicz

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Leslie Kasperowicz is an insurance educator and content creation professional with nearly two decades of experience first directly in the insurance industry at Farmers Insurance and then as a writer, researcher, and educator for insurance shoppers writing for sites like ExpertInsuranceReviews.com and InsuranceHotline.com and managing content, now at CarInsurance.com.

Nupur Gambhir

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Nupur Gambhir

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Nupur Gambhir is a content editor and licensed life, health, and disability insurance expert. She has extensive experience bringing brands to life and has built award-nominated campaigns for travel and tech. Her insurance expertise has been featured in Bloomberg News, Forbes Advisor, CNET, Fortune, Slate, Real Simple, Lifehacker, The Financial Gym, and the end-of-life planning service.

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author image
Contributing Writer

Prachi is an insurance writer with a master’s degree in business administration. Through her writing, she hopes to help readers make smart and informed decisions about their finances. She loves to travel and write poetry.