On Thursday,
Farmers Insurance announced that it is now offering its new food truck insurance product in 16 states, such as Washington and Kansas. In July, the product was initially made available only in New Mexico and Utah.
"At Farmers, we understand that consumer preferences and the needs of business owners are constantly evolving, and we are continuously looking for new ways to meet these changing demands for our customers," said Farmers Insurance head of business insurance for commercial auto Jake Rothfuss in a statement.
"The increased popularity of food trucks is an example of the impact of shifting consumer preferences and it's important for Farmers to be able to provide our business owner customers with the insurance they want to continue to be successful in this constantly changing economy."
Bit by bit, Farmers Insurance has plans to introduce food truck insurance policies to 28 states total over the course of 2016.
“It is relatively new for us across the country, and we’re slowly rolling it out,” Rothfuss told
The Topeka Capital-Journal.
Before food truck insurance was a thing, owners had to secure separate policies—commercial auto, business owner, restaurant—for their mobile commercial operations. The combination of the two makes policy purchasing and management much more convenient for mobile food entrepreneurs.
“It was tough at times for food truck owners to get the coverages they needed, and also to get them from one place, as opposed to having to piece them together,” commented Rothfuss. “Even if they got one policy from one avenue, and another portion from another avenue, there might have still been some coverage gaps. Traditional property and general liability insurance is really geared to a physical location, where a food truck itself by definition is mobile.”
According to
The Topeka Capital-Journal, food truck revenue hit $1.2 billion last year, exhibiting more than 12% growth in five years.
Related stories:
Farmers Insurance feeds New Mexico food truck industry a new insurance product
Farmers Insurance launches rideshare coverage in four states
