Van insurance basic facts to think about.

Van insurance covers you to drive your van legally in the UK. Van insurance is a legal requirement to operate your van on UK roads much the same as it is legal requirement to have car insurance to drive your car as per the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Both van insurance and car insurance share similarities but with van insurance it is more often the case that the van shall be used in a commercial aspect.

Van insurance also shares the same types of categories as car insurance, for example:

Third Party
Third Party Fire & Theft
Fully Comprehensive

The usual bolt on insurance elements are available such as windscreen cover, personal belongings etc etc but as with any additional requirements from the insurance provider the premium will increase.

With any van insurance policy to be taken out you much let the provider of that policy know the nature of the business you require the policy for. This might see a relatively small amount of detail but getting this incorrect can void your policy and potentially open up a number of costly legal issues should you go to make a claim or have a claim lodged against you. Essentially if you state you are using your van for landscaping but then are pulled over by the police whilst and it is proven that you were using your van for courier work you could be charge with not having the correct insurance policy. This will cost you not only a fine but up to 6 points on your licence and an increase in your premium.

For the purpose of this site you are more than likely to be in the courier or haulage industry so it would be imperative that you make sure that the phrase/wording within your policy state "Courier usage, hire and reward". If you are at all concerned check and then double check as it is not worth dismissing.

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Goods in Transit Insurance - Basic Facts

Goods in Transit insurance is exactly what it is says. It is an insurance policy that covers Goods that are in Transit against damage or loss whilst being transported.

Goods in Transit, also known as GIT, will generally cover for:

Damage caused during transit
Damage that is caused by accidents whilst in transit
Theft or Loss whilst in transit

The premiums for Goods in Transit insurance are, as with all other types of insurances, based purely on risk. The higher the risk the higher the premiums you will pay to get cover. You may be able to reduce the amount of risk by bolstering the level of security you have on your vehicle however it is best to check this with your Goods in Transit insurance provider.

The amount of cover you will need can be specified by you but can range from £2,500 to well over £100,000. When you are considering your Goods in Transit policy it is worth bearing in mind if you need to have the highest amount of cover. If you are transporting low volume, low value goods than paying a higher premium might not be necessary.

It is also worth considering that there are certain exclusions that Goods in Transit insurance will not cover. You would be best advised to check these items with the insurance provider as the worst case would be that you wish to claim on your customers behalf only to find that you were not covered and you WILL have to compensate the customer out of your own pocket.

Goods in Transit insurance is generally dealt with separately from Van Insurance policies so you must assume if you have taken out van insurance you will not automatically have Goods in Transit policy included.
As with all insurance polices check the amount of cover you have once you receive the Goods in Transit paperwork through. It is very easy to rectify any errors in a policy before any claim is made. However if the error is notice during or after a claim is made it is virtually impossible to amend and will almost certainly result in you being out of pocket.

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