12.1 Business Auto Coverage Form and Covered Auto Symbols

The Business Auto Coverage Form

Commercial auto exposures are most often written on the ISO Business Auto Coverage Form (CA 00 01). It is a modular policy assembled from the form itself, a Business Auto Declarations (CA DS 03), the Common Policy Conditions (IL 00 17), the Common Policy Declarations (IL 00 03), and any endorsements. The current edition is CA 00 01 11 20. Like all ISO commercial forms, it follows the standard architecture of Declarations, Coverages, Exclusions, Conditions, and Definitions.

The form is divided into five numbered sections:

The single most heavily tested concept on the national exam is the covered auto symbol system in Section I.

Covered Auto Symbols 1 through 9

Each coverage on the Declarations is keyed to one or more numeric symbols. The symbol — not a vehicle schedule alone — controls what is covered. Memorize the table:

Key trap: Symbol 1 (any auto) is the only symbol that automatically picks up autos the insured acquires during the policy period, plus owned, hired, and non-owned exposures. Symbol 7 covers only autos listed on the schedule, so newly acquired autos are covered only if the insurer already covers all of the insured's autos or the insured reports the new auto within 30 days.

How symbols pair with coverages

Liability is almost always written with Symbol 1 because liability is the open-ended exposure. Physical Damage (comprehensive and collision) is typically written with Symbol 7 because the insurer wants to price each scheduled vehicle's value. Hired (8) and non-owned (9) symbols add the borrowed-and-employee-vehicle exposure for liability; they do not, by themselves, provide physical damage on hired autos — that requires the Hired Auto Physical Damage endorsement (CA 99 03) or symbol 8 shown for physical damage with a stated limit.

Newly acquired autos: under Symbol 1 or 2, coverage is automatic. Under Symbol 7 (specified autos), a newly acquired auto is covered for the rest of the policy period only if (a) the insurer covers all autos the insured owns, OR (b) the auto replaces one already covered, OR (c) the insured asks to insure it within 30 days of acquisition.

The Covered Auto Symbols (1-9)

The Business Auto Coverage Form (BACF, CA 00 01) uses numbered covered-auto symbols entered on the declarations to define which vehicles a coverage applies to. Mastery of these symbols is essential and frequently tested:

Exam trap: Symbol 1 = "any auto" provides the broadest liability protection, automatically covering owned, hired, and non-owned autos and new acquisitions. For physical damage, the broadest realistic symbols are 2/7 (owned/scheduled) plus 8 (hired) - symbol 1 is typically used for liability. Symbol 9 (non-owned) is critical for an employer whose staff run errands in their own cars: it covers the employer's vicarious liability, not the employee's own car damage.

Applying Symbols to a Real Account

In practice, an agent assigns different symbols to different coverages on the same declarations page. A typical contractor might carry Symbol 1 (any auto) for liability, Symbol 2 (owned autos) for physical damage, Symbol 8 (hired) and Symbol 9 (non-owned) to capture rented trucks and employees' personal vehicles used for work. Reading which symbol sits beside which coverage tells you exactly what is and is not insured.

Exam tip: When a question asks which symbol gives the broadest liability, the answer is Symbol 1 - "any auto." When an employer worries about staff driving their own cars on company errands, the answer is Symbol 9 (non-owned), which protects the employer's vicarious liability. For rented or borrowed trucks, Symbol 8 (hired autos) is the trigger. Newly acquired autos are automatically covered when Symbols 1, 2, 3, or 4 are used; with Symbol 7 (scheduled), the insured must report a new auto, usually within 30 days, to extend coverage.