Courier van insurance is designed specifically for people who drive delivery vans making multiple deliveries in a single area. It covers the cost of the van you’re driving if it gets lost, damaged or stolen, or if you cause any damage to a third party.
It can also be used to protect the goods you’re transporting, and can reimburse you should anything happen to them in transit, depending on the level of cover you choose.
Courier van insurance is different to hauliers’ insurance, which instead protects delivery drivers who make one or two larger drop-offs on long-distance journeys.
How does courier van insurance work?
The insurance you need for courier vans isn’t always contained in a single policy – instead, you work with your insurer to build a package of options that suit the type of work you do. You can choose from the following:
- Standard business van insurance: This covers the cost of damage caused to other people’s vehicles or property. It may also cover damage to your vehicle, depending on what level of cover you take out. You’ll need to explain that you’ll be carrying goods for business delivery trips, and specify which kinds of goods you’ll be carrying
- Goods-in-transit coverage: This insures the value of the goods you’re transporting; depending on the insurer, it will either be a separate policy or included as an add-on to standard business van insurance
- Public liability insurance: This covers your business against compensation claims and legal costs if you injure or kill someone on the job, or damage their property. It can be bought separately or included as an add-on to the main policy
- Employers’ liability insurance: This covers you for compensation and legal costs if an employee is injured while at work for you. It can be bought separately or included as an add-on to the main policy
What is goods-in-transit insurance?
A goods-in-transit policy protects the value of the goods or cargo you’re carrying if:
- They’re stolen
- They’re damaged
- They’re lost in transit
Some policies also cover these goods if they’re stolen, damaged or lost while locked in your courier van overnight, though you have to pay more for this level of cover. Your insurance policy may also cover the cost of any claims made for delivery delays.
The level of cover you can get differs between insurers, and the maximum pay-out per item and per cargo load will also vary from policy to policy. It’s a good idea to read the policy documents in full before taking out cover to make sure you’ll be covered at the level you require.
Goods-in-transit insurance won’t cover poorly manufactured goods or any damage that’s caused because the items were not properly packaged. It will only cover your cargo for anything that happens in van transit.
What levels of courier van insurance can you get?
The level of cover you get for your courier van differs depending on the type of business van insurance you choose:
- Comprehensive cover: Comprehensive van insurance covers your vehicle if it’s accidentally damaged either by you or another driver. It also covers the cost of fire damage, and pays out if your van is stolen. Comprehensive courier van insurance also covers any damage you may cause to other vehicles and other people’s property when you’re driving
- Third-party-only cover: Third-party-only courier van insurance is the minimum level of cover you need to drive your van, and will cover the cost of any damage to another person’s vehicle or property – but not your own
- Third-party, fire and theft (TPFT) cover: Third-party, fire and theft courier van insurance offers the same cover as third-party-only but also covers damage caused by fire, lightning, self-ignition, explosion, theft or attempted theft
Do you need courier van insurance?
If you’re providing a courier service and you’re transporting products or documents between a business and a customer in return for a payment, then you will definitely need a specific courier van insurance policy.
If you have an accident while on a business trip and need to claim on your insurance, you won’t be covered if you’ve told your insurer you only use your van for social trips. Worse still, the police will consider you to be driving while uninsured – which will more than likely get you six penalty points on your license and a £300 fine. You may also be banned from driving for up to 28 days, or even have your vehicle confiscated.
Courier van insurance offers tailored cover for the day-to-day miles you do as a courier and the multiple delivery stops you’ll need to make to meet scheduled delivery times.
Goods-in-transit cover isn’t compulsory, but you are responsible for any loss, damage or theft that happens to the goods while you’re delivering them, and insurance will meet the cost of any claims against you.
Compare courier van insurance
MoneySuperMarket’s van insurance comparison tool is a great way to find the insurance policy that best suits you and your business.
You’ll need to select ‘Haulage’ when asked what you intend to use the van for, and you’ll also need to give an accurate estimate of how many miles you’ll be driving for work each year.
You’ll then be able to sort your courier van insurance quotes by insurer, annual price, excess fee and whichever extra features are available – including courtesy vehicle, breakdown, EU and legal cover.
To add goods in transit cover and professional indemnity insurance to your courier van insurance policy, you’ll need to see if a provider offers this cover as an add-on to your policy or as a separate policy when you click through to their site.