Rigby Financial – What Is Fleet Insurance?
If your company uses a number of vehicles to deliver goods or services, you should certainly consider obtaining Motor Fleet Insurance. Naturally, it is possible to insure each individual car, van or lorry separately, but this can lead to more trouble, red tape and paperwork than you may have time to handle. Different policies may be due for renewal at different times, and keeping track of the varying premiums on each can be a real headache, especially if your fleet is a large or particularly diverse one. Covering your working vehicles as a fleet will consolidate all that paperwork and ensure that everything happens at the same time, under one single policy. So, apart from a means of making your work life that much easier, what exactly is Commercial Fleet Insurance?
Your Fleet
In insurance terms, a fleet is a collection of vehicles used for commercial or corporate purposes. These vehicles do not need to be the same make, the same model or even the same type. Courier scooters, taxis, tractors, wedding cars, lorries and almost any other motorised vehicle can all be insured together under one single policy. There is usually no upper limit to the size of fleet you can insure, and, if you have fewer than five vehicles – but more than one – you may still be able to insure them as a group under a “mini fleet” policy.
Your Policy
There are a number of different types of Fleet Insurance policy you can opt for, including Third Party, which includes cover in cases of damage or loss of other vehicles or injuries to third parties caused by your own vehicles. However, Third Party Fleet Insurance does not cover your own vehicles. If you get a Third Party, Fire and Theft policy, all of the above is covered alongside any damage to your own vehicles caused by fire and incidents of theft perpetrated against any unit within your fleet. A Fully Comprehensive policy does exactly what it says on the tin, covering the above specifics as well as any costs arising from accidental damage that vehicles within your fleet may suffer.
Your Specialist Vehicles
If you have antique, specially adapted or unique vehicles within your fleet – say you run tours on vintage buses, for example – you may find that, while Fleet Insurance covers you for the vast majority of issues that may arise, there might be elements of your vehicle – or very specific eventualities particular to that kind of model – that require a little extra cover. That is one of the reasons why it is extremely important to discuss your vehicles and your company in great detail with any prospective insurance broker before you agree on a particular policy.
Your Premiums
The costs inherent in obtaining Fleet Insurance may be affected by a number of different criteria. The areas in which your company physically operates may be brought into account, as well as the type of goods, products – or passengers – that they will transport or the service they will be used to provide. Another factor will be the security features each individual vehicle has been fitted with, as well as the security of the compound or premises in which they are kept. Finally, you will also be asked to speak to the insurer about the history of each of your drivers, as, for example, your premiums may go up if any of the operators of your vehicles have ever been legally penalised for traffic related offences.
Different insurance brokers may offer slightly different kinds of Commercial Motor Fleet Cover, and there may be optional extras that one will offer where another may not. You need to discuss your requirements in depth and take your time to look around for the right policy, as you may otherwise find yourself paying for elements of cover that you don’t need or missing out on cover that may one day prove vital. Cover can be tailored for many different types of vehicle, from industrial vehicles to agricultural vehicles to taxis and beyond, so it’s a really good idea to hunt around for the very best policy for your unique fleet.
Insurance brokers and financial advisers Rigby Financial are just a phone call away if you require any further advice or information about Fleet Insurance, or if you’re interested in setting up a policy. Call 01744 886077 today, or fill out the handy contact form on their website, and one of their insurance experts will be more than happy to help you with whatever you need.