Nuclear Verdicts Drove Truck Insurance to $10.2/Mile, a Record High

Commercial truck insurance premiums hit a record $10.2 per mile in 2024, rising for the fifth consecutive year, with a further 5.8% increase in Q1 2025. For a solo owner-operator running 120,000 miles per year, that is over $12,000 annually in insurance alone — often the second-largest expense after fuel. The primary driver is 'nuclear verdicts': jury awards exceeding $10 million in truck accident lawsuits. In 2024, there were 135 nuclear verdicts against corporations in trucking and transportation, a 52% increase over 2023, totaling $31.3 billion. The median nuclear verdict climbed to $51 million, up from $21 million in 2020. 'Thermonuclear verdicts' exceeding $100 million jumped to 49 cases. Commercial auto liability insurance has been unprofitable for insurers for 14 consecutive years, meaning every insurer is losing money and passing costs to drivers. The structural root cause is that the federal minimum liability insurance requirement for truckers ($750,000, unchanged since 1985) is laughably below modern verdict amounts, so insurers must price for worst-case exposure. Meanwhile, plaintiff attorneys use 'reptile theory' litigation tactics specifically designed to inflame juries against trucking companies, and there is no federal tort reform to cap non-economic damages in trucking cases.