Mobile mechanics insurance checklist: what a mobile mechanic should carry

The mobile mechanic insurance checklist

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Mobile mechanics usually carry garage liability, commercial auto and workers' compensation. Mobile mechanics repair cars in driveways and fleet yards from a van full of tools, with no lift, no containment for fluids and a customer's vehicle in their care wherever they happen to be. The client's vendor desk and the property manager ask for proof of each. The checklist below says what every item does, who requires it and how to check it on the policies you already have.

Reviewed by Michael LaBarbera, Licensed property & casualty agent, Provident Financial Group · Reviewed Oct 12, 2026 Updated Oct 14, 2026

Who asks a mobile mechanic for what

Who	What they usually want to see
Enterprise clients & vendor onboarding	General liability, professional or cyber liability, workers' compensation and often an umbrella
Property managers & HOAs	General liability with the manager and owner as additional insureds, and workers' compensation
Banks, lenders & SBA loans	Property or auto physical damage with the lender as loss payee, and liability proof at closing and every renewal

Each of them wants a certificate, and most want it again at every renewal. A live certificate link from the wallet shows today's coverage to every holder and tells them when it changes.

How to check what you already have

Garage declarations. Garage liability limits, then garagekeepers: the limit per location against the value of customers' vehicles on hand, and whether it is legal liability or direct primary.
Auto schedule. Every vehicle listed with the right garaging address and use; symbols that include hired and non-owned auto; physical damage with the lender as loss payee where the vehicle is financed.
Workers' compensation information page. Item 3.A must list every state you work in, item 4 must carry the right class codes, and the employers' liability limits should meet what contracts ask. Check that the estimated payroll is close to this year's.
Equipment schedule. Owned items scheduled above the per-item threshold, a blanket limit for small tools, leased or rented equipment included, and the valuation (replacement cost or actual cash value).
Pollution liability. Site-based or contractors form, claims-made or occurrence, the materials named (mold, asbestos, lead, fuels), and transport and disposal coverage.
General liability declarations page. Three liability numbers matter: each occurrence, general aggregate and the products–completed operations aggregate. Then the forms list: blanket additional insured, waiver of subrogation and primary and non-contributory wording satisfy every contract; scheduled forms satisfy one.
Hired and non-owned auto. Look for the symbols 8 and 9 or an endorsement by that name on the auto or general liability policy; without it, staff in their own cars are uninsured on company business.

What usually goes wrong for mobile mechanics

Oil and coolant on a customer's driveway or a storm drain, a pollution claim.
Tools stolen from the van overnight with no inland marine policy.
Damage to the exact thing you are working on is excluded on most general liability forms; installation floaters and care, custody and control endorsements fill that hole.
Garagekeepers written on a legal-liability basis when customers expect direct primary coverage.
Theft from a locked truck overnight with no tools floater, or a per-item limit lower than the one tool that mattered.
A personal auto policy on a truck with the company name on the door.

What underwriters will ask a mobile mechanic

Number of technicians and vans, tool values, the share of fleet versus consumer work, and fluid-handling practice
Residential versus commercial split of the work
Whether any work is done above three stories or below grade
Number of vehicles on the lot overnight and their typical value
Whether you store, tow or drive customers' vehicles off premises
Total value of hand and power tools kept on the trucks

Have the answers in the wallet before the renewal and the quote request fills itself in; CoverMatch sends one application to every eligible carrier and lines the quotes up against what you have.

Renewal timing

Audits at year end compare payroll, receipts and subcontractor costs with the estimate, so keep the wallet's size figures and the subcontractor certificates current. Start comparing sixty days before expiration, and ask for the limits the next contract will need rather than the ones the last one did.

Questions people actually ask

Do mobile mechanics need a garage policy?

Yes. General liability excludes the vehicle you are working on; garage liability with garagekeepers covers it wherever you work, and fleet accounts require it. The van itself needs commercial auto and the tools need inland marine.

Is a fluid spill on a customer's property covered?

Under most general liability and garage forms it is a pollution claim and excluded. A pollution endorsement covers it; drip pans and spill kits in the van prevent it and show the carrier the business takes it seriously.

Does general liability cover damage to a customer's property while I work on it?

It covers damage to the rest of their property, not usually the part in your hands. Many forms exclude property in your care, custody or control, so a mobile mechanic that handles valuable items or systems needs an endorsement or an installation floater. The policy explainer in the wallet flags the exclusion when it reads your policy.

What is the difference between legal liability and direct primary garagekeepers?

Legal liability pays only when the damage is your fault. Direct primary pays for the customer's car in your care regardless of fault, which is what keeps a hail storm or a break-in from becoming a customer dispute. The declarations page says which you have.

Are tools stolen from my truck covered?

Under a tools floater, yes, subject to the deductible and any per-item limit. Under the commercial auto policy, no: auto covers the vehicle, not what was in it.