New CarrierHQ Portal Customizes Insurance Premiums Based On Fleet Safety

CarrierHQ, the trucking technology solutions company, announced a mobile-friendly portal in the wake of the AB5 legislation that has led the trucking community to function within an environment of regulatory uncertainty. CarrierHQ enables small fleets to gain authority by providing them services needed to get started, including initial finances, and helping them continue to grow their business. 

"What people focus on in a portal is its ease of use and having a complete set of services that are complementary and work together," said Scott Prince, the CEO of CarrierHQ. "Through our portal, we've been able to eliminate the barrier to get a quote, for instance, on insurance service. The carrier does not need to provide all of its last runs for getting the quote, as it sometimes takes a while to collect, transfer over and report. The insurance quote can be received online within minutes."

CarrierHQ has partnered with insurance services giant Aon's customized insurance program called Aon Affinity, with an exclusive channel for small fleets to get their insurance option through its ‘small fleet advantage' program. Prince explained that carriers could use CarrierHQ as a one-stop-shop – starting from getting their quote online, all the way through to binding online through the platform. 

The insurance program is set up in a way where it nudges carriers to focus on their drivers' behavior. By driving safely, the insurance program ensures the carrier's premium lowers each month through the year – making carriers care more about their truckers' driving behavior, as safety means reduced premiums. 

"This is very different from anything else out there in the market at this point in time. That apart, we also do other services like factoring, business formation, fuel card and compliance, and other business consulting and accounting services to support a back office," said Prince.

This insurance option will be offered in 47 of the 50 states. The other portal services will work collaboratively, with the intent to improve the life cycle of a small fleet to ultimately result in the growth of its business. 

"If a carrier is expanding from a one-truck fleet to a two-truck or three-truck fleet, they can go in and add that equipment themselves through the self-service portal," said Brion St. Amour, the COO and general counsel of CarrierHQ. "They can reach out if they need assistance, but the goal is to give them independence. Carriers can process invoices, have everything sent out and collected, and manage accounts on their own. With the fuel card partnerships we have, carriers can put funds on the cards and manage them on a driver level."

This ground-level control over operations helps fleets to manage their drivers and monitor safety more proactively than before. Fleets can identify poor drivers and help them change their driving characteristics to make operations safer. 

St. Amour explained that although CarrierHQ's new portal coincides with the debate over AB5, the company saw the need for such a service a while ago. "Aon was looking at the problems in the industry, but they did not have a product that competed in the small fleet market. So we ended up collaborating over the last year to build a product that has an ease of use and with a low-touch point, for small fleets operating in an underserved market," he said.

CarrierHQ focuses on fleets that have 20 trucks or fewer – a segment that Prince pointed out is increasingly making large companies like Uber Technologies Inc UBER and Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN  take notice. In essence, through this new portal, independent contractors and small fleets can form or grow their own fleets, especially relevant in times of regulations creating uncertainty in employee classification and recruiting.

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