LTL Carrier Liability Limits & Insurance Guide
What 21 LTL carriers actually cover by default — straight from their rules tariffs — and how to protect freight worth more.
The rule every tariff shares: lowest number wins
LTL carriers don't insure your freight. Their rules tariffs limit liability to the lowest of the actual invoice value, the replacement cost, any NMFC released value, and a per-pound limit — then cap the whole shipment at a dollar maximum. Per-pound limits range from $25/lb at the most generous national carriers down to $0.50/lb, and about half the majors scale the limit by freight class, so low-class dense freight gets the least coverage per pound.
Two traps catch shippers most often. First, used goods: nearly every carrier releases used, refurbished, or reconditioned freight to about $0.10 per pound with a $10,000 cap. Second, discounted pricing: many tariffs cut liability again on spot-quoted, volume, or FAK-rated shipments — the pricing most brokered freight actually moves on.
Included liability by carrier (standard tariff)
| Carrier | New goods | New-goods cap | Used goods | Reduced spot/FAK tier | Tariff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Duie Pyle | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.50/lb | Yes | PYLE 101-U Rules Tariff, Items 848, 848-1..4, 850 |
| AAA Cooper Transportation | $0.99–$20.00/lb by freight class | $50,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | AACT 190-AF Rules Tariff, Item 570 |
| ABF Freight (ArcBest) | $2.00–$25.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb | Yes | ABF 111-AU Rules Tariff, Item 780-1 |
| Averitt Express | $5.00/lb | $100,000 | $0.10/lb | Not published | AVRT 100 Rules Tariff, Items 575, 575-50, 848 |
| Central Transport | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | Central Transport Rules Tariff CT100-CB, Items 779, 780, 784 |
| Clear Lane Freight | $1.00–$5.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb | Yes | CLNI 100-C7 Rules Tariff, Items 190, 192, 196 |
| Dayton Freight Lines | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | $50,000 | $0.50/lb | Not published | DAFG 19-K Rules Tariff, Items 835, 840, 995 |
| Estes Express Lines | $5.00/lb | $50,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | EXLA 105 FF Rules Tariff, Item 350 (Table A) |
| FedEx Freight | $25.00/lb | $100,000 | $0.50/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | FXF 100-Y Rules Tariff, Items 420–421 |
| FFE (Frozen Food Express) | $3.00/lb | $50,000 | $3.00/lb (max $50,000) | Yes | FRZF 105 Series General Rules & Charges Tariff, Item 14 (14.1); §3.45 |
| Forward Air | $0.50/lb | $100,000 | $0.50/lb (max $100,000) | Not published | Forward Air Service Conditions, Item 4.B |
| Oak Harbor Freight Lines | $1.00–$15.00/lb by freight class | $25,000 | $0.10/lb | Yes | OAKH 100 Rules Tariff, Items 540–580 |
| Old Dominion Freight Line | $5.00/lb | $50,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Not published | ODFL 100-Q Rules Tariff, Items 594, 594-1, 574 |
| Pitt Ohio | $5.00/lb | $100,000 | $0.50/lb | Yes | PITD 100-E Rules Tariff, Items 1000.2–1000.5 |
| R+L Carriers | $2.00–$25.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | R+L Carriers Rules Tariff, Item 170 |
| Roadrunner Freight | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | $50,000 | $0.10/lb (max $2,000) | Yes | RDFS 100-K Rules Tariff, Items 780, 810 |
| Saia LTL Freight | $5.00/lb | $50,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Not published | SAIA 170-D Rules Tariff, Item 108 |
| Southeastern Freight Lines | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Yes | SEFL 1090 Rules Tariff, Items 848, 848-1, 848-5 |
| TForce Freight | $25.00/lb | $100,000 | $1.00/lb | Yes | UPGF 102-T Rules Tariff, Items 166, 166-1 |
| Ward Transport & Logistics | $1.00–$10.00/lb by freight class | — | $0.10/lb | Not published | WARD 110Z Rules Tariff, Items 440, 445 |
| XPO | $3.00–$5.00/lb by freight class | $100,000 | $0.10/lb (max $10,000) | Not published | CNWY 199-AK.1 Rules Tariff, Items 25, 227 |
Compiled July 2026 from each carrier's published rules tariff (editions and effective dates cited on the individual carrier pages, where available). Limits change with tariff revisions; the tariff and bill of lading terms in effect at shipment control. Clear Lane's tariff is no longer publicly posted; figures reflect its last published edition.
Outliers worth knowing
- A 50× spread:Forward Air's default release is $0.50/lb while FedEx Freight, TForce, ABF, and R+L top out at $25/lb — the same pallet can be covered for $250 or $12,500 depending on who hauls it.
- Low overall caps: Oak Harbor caps entire shipments at $25,000; Roadrunner caps used goods at just $2,000.
- Crating changes everything: Estes drops NEW uncrated items to $0.10/lb — the used-goods rate — and several carriers treat new uncrated machinery the same way.
- The broker clause:R+L's tariff explicitly caps freight moving with a broker as shipper or consignee at $0.50/lb / $50,000 — proof that the carve-out tiers, not the headline numbers, are what brokered freight actually gets.
What full coverage costs
Across the market, full-value programs cluster around $0.65–$1.00 per $100 of declared value with minimum charges of $25–$150 — carrier-run programs at the big nationals instead charge about 3% of the excess amount. Covering an $18,000 shipment in full typically costs well under $200; weighed against a $1,800 payout on a $0.10/lb used-goods claim, it's rarely a hard call for valuable freight.
Coverage deductibles on LTL scale with the insured value — $0 up to $10,000, $500 up to $25,000, $1,000 up to $100,000 — so smaller shipments are covered first-dollar.
When you quote with us, each rate shows its included liability, and you can add full-value coverage for your declared value in one step — priced before you book. For how the layers work on truckload and partial shipments, see our insurance & cargo protection page.