Jun 10
17
Business Use Car Insurance
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If you or anyone you employ uses a vehicle for business purposes, then you need car insurance specifically for business purposes.
Private car insurance is all well and good if you only drive to and from one place of work only, but if you use a privately insured car to travel to other destinations on business, you won’t be insured in the event of an accident.
If an accident did happen, and someone suffered an inury, there could be consequences for both the business and the driver, if the vehicle involved was insured privately rather than on a policy which included business usage. The injured party could potentially pursue the business as well as the driver, as the business could be held responsible for the driver’s actions. Any damages due could prove rather expensive without insurance to cover the costs. If it turned out that the driver was injured, there may also be cause for a claim under the employer’s liability policy, as the company is usually responsible for employees when they are hurt on company business.
Generally, business car insurance is split into 3 classes. These classes are generally the same from one insurance company to another, although there will always be minor differences.
Business Car Insurance – Class 1
Cover for owner drivers using their own vehicles for work. SDP cover is usually included and cover is available for husbands or wives as well.
Business Car Insurance – Class 2
Cover for named drivers for business use. In this class, the policyholder is usually the business itself.
Business Car Insurance – Class 3
Cover for commercial travelling, where travelling is part of the job, e.g. sales representatives who spend most of the day travelling specifically on behalf of the business. However, it doesn’t usually provide cover where travelling IS the business, such as couriers or hauliers.
What can I do to control the costs of my business car insurance?
You need to talk to an expert. There are many tips and tricks that can reduce your price, such as adding your spouse to your cover. So long as they have a decent driving history and a clean licence, then an insurer will look on this favourably, as it means the vehicle will actually spend a little less time on business because your other half will be using it for some of the time.
Other things to think about are your annual mileage, any named drivers ages and their driving experience, plus increasing your excess. If you have several vehicles, what about a fleet insurance policy? These are fairly obvious considerations, but there are many other, more subtle, aspects worth looking at, but as the insurance markets and legal compliancy issues such as the Road Traffic Act are constantly changing, an insurance expert is definitely the way to go. This is part of the value found when you talk to a decent insurance broker.
A decent broker will treat you in a professional manner. They can do the shopping around for you, just as a comparison website can, but where a website falls down, is they can answer all your questions on the spot, and guide you through the ins and outs of comparable policies enabling you to make a more informed decision. Many brokers also have access to competitive schemes that are not available direct to the public, and will know which companies offer price matching facilities or introductory discounts.
A decent broker will also be there for you if you are unlucky enough to suffer an accident. They can help you through the claims process and take up the case on your behalf when you need a little extra help getting an insurance company moving.
So how do you go about finding such a broker? Look for an independant company that isn’t tied to an insurance company, that will give you an independant quote, and a large one, that will also have the bargaining power to get those specialist schemes and discounts. One with good customer services standards is a must too, especially when it comes to claims. One such broker is Coversure. They have a national chain of over 85 offices, with many experienced staff and good relationships with many major insurers, so next time you’re shopping for an insurance quote, try Coversure.
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