TL;DR: Nebraska's PSC floors are $750,000 plus $5,000 cargo for household goods movers, $500,000 for taxicabs, and $5,000,000 for large buses, while deregulated general freight carries only registration minimums as a legal floor. Federal tiers from $750,000 to $5,000,000 govern interstate work, and the market expects $1,000,000.
What floors does the Nebraska PSC set?
Clear ones, for its regulated classes. Household goods movers must carry at least $750,000 in liability plus $5,000 in cargo coverage, matching the federal general-freight figure and acknowledging that a moving truck full of a family's possessions is both a road risk and a bailment. Taxicab operators carry at least $500,000, and passenger carriers in vehicles seating sixteen or more, the motorcoach class, carry $5,000,000, the same number the federal rules use for large buses. Each floor is evidenced by the insurer's Form E on file with the commission, and the filing's continuity is a condition of the authority itself.
What floor does general freight carry?
Only the registration minimums, since Nebraska deregulated ordinary property carriage and no trucking-specific intrastate schedule survives. Light vehicles carry 25/50/25, and heavier intrastate trucks are written in practice to federal-aligned levels because that is what the market requires. The legal thinness matters less than it appears: the moment freight crosses a state line, and on I-80 it almost always does, the federal tiers apply, $750,000 for general freight over 10,001 pounds, $1,000,000 for oil products, $5,000,000 for the highest-hazard cargo, with the insurer's federal filing evidencing compliance.
How do the numbers compare?
Nebraska's mover floor equals the federal general-freight tier, its bus floor equals the federal passenger requirement, and its deregulated freight sector defaults to the market's $1,000,000 standard, which sits above every floor in the table. The practical effect is a state where the regulated minimums and the market expectations converge, and where the only carriers exposed to a genuinely low legal floor are purely intrastate freight operations, a small and shrinking category on the plains.
| Operation | Minimum | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Household goods movers | $750,000 plus $5,000 cargo | PSC rules, Form E |
| Taxicabs | $500,000 | PSC rules |
| Buses 16 or more seats | $5,000,000 | PSC rules |
| Interstate general freight | $750,000 | 49 CFR 387.9 |
| Hazmat top tier | $5,000,000 | 49 CFR 387.9 |
Why buy above the floors?
Because Nebraska's severity events are corridor-scale. A winter pileup on I-80 can involve dozens of vehicles, multiple fatalities, and claims that consume a $750,000 policy before the reconstruction reports are written, and a livestock rollover adds cargo mortality to the casualty loss. Shippers and brokers require $1,000,000 as the entry point, packing-plant and elevator contracts often specify more, and umbrella layers above the primary are standard for fleets with meaningful contract books. The moderate legal climate helps outcomes; it does not shrink the physics.
How should a Nebraska carrier set limits?
Anchor at $1,000,000 primary liability, let the federal filing certify it for interstate lanes, and treat the hazmat tiers as floors for fuel and chemical work. Size umbrella capacity against the worst realistic I-80 event and the largest contract in the book, match cargo limits to livestock and grain values with trade-specific terms, and keep the PSC floors in view if moving or passenger work ever enters the operation. Review the stack annually as contracts and lanes evolve, because on the nation's busiest freight corridor, limits set for the statute rather than the corridor are limits set to fail.
Real questions Nebraska owner-operators and fleet managers ask
What is the minimum liability for a Nebraska household goods mover?
$750,000 in liability plus $5,000 in cargo coverage, evidenced by an insurer-filed Form E with the PSC. The figure matches the federal general-freight tier.
What legal floor applies to Nebraska general freight?
Only registration minimums survive deregulation for purely intrastate work, but interstate operation, the norm on I-80, carries the federal $750,000 floor, and the market expects $1,000,000.
What limits do Nebraska passenger carriers need?
Taxicabs carry at least $500,000 and buses seating sixteen or more carry $5,000,000 under PSC rules, aligned with the federal passenger schedule.
Why do I-80 carriers need more than minimum limits?
Corridor severity. Winter whiteout pileups involve dozens of vehicles and can consume minimum policies many times over, so umbrella layers above a $1,000,000 primary are standard for corridor fleets.
Do Nebraska hazmat haulers follow state or federal minimums?
Federal. Oil products require $1,000,000 and the highest-hazard categories $5,000,000 under 49 CFR 387.9, regardless of whether the route stays inside Nebraska.
Can Morrow write trucking insurance in Nebraska?
Not directly today. Morrow is the brand name of Afthonea Inc, licensed in Massachusetts, Florida, California, New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, and Texas. If your trucking company is based in Nebraska, we can refer you to a licensed Nebraska agent, and this guide still shows you exactly what to ask that agent for. Everything above comes from public Nebraska and federal sources, not from us selling you a policy.
Related Nebraska trucking guides
The other Nebraska trucking questions, answered the same way.
- Trucking insurance in Nebraska (start here)
- Trucking insurance requirements
- Intrastate authority and filings
- Cost of trucking insurance
- Business insurance in Nebraska
- Federal minimum liability limits by commodity
- What is an MCS-90 endorsement?
- Federal minimum liability limits by commodity
This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Limits, forms, and deadlines change, so verify current requirements with the Nebraska Public Service Commission and the Nebraska Department of Insurance before you rely on them. Morrow is a brand name of Afthonea Inc. Last updated: July 2026.