Whether you run a taxi company, a courier service, or a business reliant on vans and commercial cars, keeping your vehicles on the road is vital. But with several vehicles comes a bigger challenge: how to insure them properly.
Managing multiple separate policies can be time-consuming, complicated, and expensive. This is where a single, consolidated commercial vehicle insurance policy excels, enabling you to efficiently and affordably protect your entire fleet.
In this guide, we will explain how to insure multiple vehicles under a single business policy and why it makes sense.
Why Choose a Single Policy for Multiple Commercial Vehicles?
If you own or manage multiple vehicles for your business, taking out individual policies for each might seem logical at first.
However, in the long term, it can be far more costly and harder to administer. Here’s why consolidating under one commercial vehicle insurance policy is a practical choice:
- Reduced Administration: Juggling multiple policies, renewals, and paperwork can drain time and resources. A single policy is far simpler to manage.
- Better Financial Value: Insurers often reward businesses for insuring multiple vehicles on one policy with reduced premiums and loyalty benefits.
- Stronger Risk Management: With a single view of all vehicles, you can track claims, driver history, and risk factors far more easily.
- Streamlined Support: When something goes wrong, dealing with just one insurer cuts confusion and speeds up the claims process.
- Flexible Scaling: If you grow or downsize your fleet, you can add or remove vehicles easily without having to start a fresh policy each time.
What is Fleet Insurance and What Does It Cover?
Fleet insurance is a specific category of commercial vehicle insurance designed to protect multiple vehicles under a single policy. It is extremely versatile, allowing you to cover:
- company cars
- delivery vans
- taxis
- private hire vehicles
Some insurers will accept as few as two vehicles on a fleet policy, while others may have a higher minimum. The more vehicles you operate, the greater the administrative and cost-saving benefits of insuring them together.
Fleet Insurance Policy Inclusions
A comprehensive fleet insurance policy generally offers the same types of protection as a single commercial vehicle insurance policy, but on a much broader scale. Cover might include:
- Third-party only: The legal minimum, covering injury or damage to third parties
- Comprehensive: Covers damage to third parties as well as your own vehicles, even if the accident is your fault
In addition, many businesses, especially those in the taxi trade, choose extras such as:
- public liability insurance (essential for taxi operators)
- passenger liability cover
- breakdown assistance
- windscreen cover
- legal expenses insurance
- personal accident cover for drivers
These options can be added to tailor a policy to the specific risks of your industry.
Is Fleet Insurance the Right Choice for Your Business?
When you have several vehicles as part of your business, it is often more cost-effective and easier to manage a single fleet insurance policy rather than keeping track of multiple policies.
This is even more important for taxi operators. Managing individual policies for each vehicle can become complicated and risky, with the potential for gaps in coverage that might harm both your passengers and your business’s reputation.
Fleet taxi insurance offers a far better solution, simplifying administration and giving you greater peace of mind and control over your insurance arrangements.
What to Consider Before Buying Fleet Insurance?
Before you jump in, think carefully about these factors:
- Number of vehicles – Fleet policies are usually more beneficial from two vehicles onwards, but the sweet spot is around three to five vehicles or more.
- Driver information – Insurers will want details about your drivers’ ages, experience, endorsements, and claims history.
- Vehicle usage – Ensure you declare whether vehicles will be used for public hire, private hire, deliveries, or personal business travel.
- Security features – Telematics, dashcams, secure storage, and driver safety training can help reduce premiums.
- Claims history – A good history with low claims can significantly improve your bargaining power.
- Level of coverage – While third-party coverage may be cheaper, comprehensive fleet coverage is usually more cost-effective in the long run, especially for taxis.
Final Thoughts
Having several vehicles insured on a single commercial vehicle insurance cover is a smart, effective, and viable plan for any company that relies on its fleet of transport vehicles. You can get higher financial value, easier administration, and flexibility with this type of cover.
So, make the right decision, look for reliable providers, and think about insuring your commercial vehicle online to make the process easier and cover your fleet timely.