★ Commercial · Garage insurance
Built for businesses that live around other people's cars.
Repair shops, dealers, and service stations have an exposure standard policies don't understand: customer cars in your care, test drives, and inventory that drives itself off the lot. Garage insurance combines garage liability and garagekeepers coverage into the policy the auto trades actually need.
Free quotes · No obligation · A licensed specialist answers, usually within one business day
★ What it covers
What’s covered and what isn’t.
Plain English, no fine-print games. Every policy has exclusions; here are the ones that actually matter for Garage Insurance.
What it covers
- Garage liabilityYour premises and operations: a customer slips in the waiting room, your tech damages a car on the lift.
- Garagekeepers: legal liabilityDamage to customers' cars in your care, custody, or control (fire, theft, vandalism, collision) when you are legally liable.
- Garagekeepers: direct primary (optional)Pays regardless of fault. Broader protection, higher premium. Know which basis you have before the claim.
- Dealers physical damage / open lotYour inventory (the cars on the lot) against theft, hail, and collision.
- False pretenseA 'buyer' drives off with a car under false pretenses. Covered by endorsement where available.
- Drive-other-carCoverage for owners and employees driving non-owned vehicles on business.
What it doesn’t cover
- Faulty workmanshipComebacks and redo work are not insurance claims. Completed-operations coverage has strict limits in garage policies.
- Personal use of customer carsJoyriding exclusions are real and enforced. Personal use of a customer's vehicle is a fast way to an uncovered claim.
- Your tools and equipment in transitThat is inland marine, not garage.
- Contents of customers' carsPersonal property left inside a vehicle is typically excluded.
- Unlisted driversThe young lot attendant you didn't disclose is a coverage problem waiting for a claim.
All quotes are subject to carrier underwriting and final approval. Coverage availability, terms, and pricing vary by state and carrier. The lists above describe typical Garage Insurance policies, not any specific carrier’s form.
★ Who needs it
If this sounds like you, you need garage insurance.
The businesses that buy Garage Insurance most, and the one-line reason each one does.
Auto repair and service shops
Customer cars on lifts and in the lot, every single day.
Used car dealers
Inventory that moves under its own power needs open-lot coverage.
Body shops
High-value customer vehicles in your care for days at a time.
Tire, lube, and quick-service
High customer traffic volume plus test drives.
Towing operations
You are in custody of other people's vehicles by definition, usually with an on-hook endorsement.
Direct primary pays regardless of fault: broader, simpler at claim time.
★ What it costs
What drives the price.
Carriers price Garage Insurance on exposure, not vibes. Here’s what moves your number, and what you can actually influence.
- Garagekeepers limit and basis: Legal liability versus direct primary is the biggest coverage (and price) decision on the policy.
- Inventory values: Open-lot limits follow your floorplan and lot values.
- Number of employees and drivers: Every tech with keys is rated.
- Services offered: Body work, towing, and high-performance work rate higher than oil changes.
- Loss history: Lot theft and customer-vehicle damage claims follow the account.
★ Often quoted together
Pairs well with Garage Insurance.
Most businesses don’t buy one policy in isolation. These are the lines garage insurance buyers usually quote at the same time. One specialist quotes the whole package.
Commercial Auto
Work cars, trucks, and fleets: liability and physical damage your personal policy excludes.
General Liability
The foundation policy: third-party injuries, property damage, and legal defense.
Inland Marine
Tools, equipment, and goods in transit. The property your property policy doesn't follow.
★ Straight answers
Questions garage insurance buyers actually ask.
The short version of what our licensed specialists explain on calls every week.
What is the difference between garage liability and garagekeepers?
Legal liability vs. direct primary garagekeepers: which do I need?
Does garage insurance cover my inventory?
Are test drives covered?
Does it cover faulty repair work?
What about customer belongings left in cars?
Get my quote
Get your Garage Insurance quote. Two minutes.
Tell us about the business. A licensed specialist shops the carriers and comes back with real options.
- About 2 minutes, built for Garage Insurance
- A licensed specialist follows up, usually within one business day
- No bait prices, no call centers, no selling your information
Free quotes. No obligation. Written through Patriot Independent Insurance Partners, licensed in TX, FL, GA, SC, AL, MS, NC, CA, and CO. Your information is never sold to lead brokers.