Progressive suspends writing policies on new carriers

In a sign of an emerging insurance crisis, Progressive Commercial, one of the nation's largest commercial truck insurers, has stopped accepting new policies on motor carriers that have had a USDOT number for less than 12 months, effective October 26. "This is a temporary restriction due to current market conditions," Progressive told agents in mid-October. "If you are unsure if a risk has a USDOT number, please check SAFER to ensure you are quoting the risk accurately," the company said. The decision does not affect insurance policies already in place. Progressive assured agents that it otherwise remains committed to the commercial auto insurance business.