Haulage & Couriers Insurance

How do I get Haulage and Couriers Insurance Quotes?

Reviews on:

Road Haulage Association
HaulageMan
AXA
Aon
ChoiceQuote
MotorRisk
TruckQuote

Road Haulage Association

Join The Road Haulage Association (RHA), the campaigning voice of the haulage industry, and you can buy all the essential cover you need in one single policy.

Provided by Towergate Underwriting Group and exclusive to RHA members, there are three types of policy.

Whether you're a single owner-driver or a global logistics company, there's something to suit all sizes of business:

• RHA Truck Master - for 1-5 vehicles
• RHA Elite Fleet - for the small fleet operator
• RHA Fleet Master - for large fleet operators

Covers available include:

• Comprehensive, Third Party Fire & Theft, or Third Party commercial vehicle insurance
• Hauliers' Liability (Goods-in-Transit)
• Public and Employers' liability
• Motor-related legal expenses
• Engineering inspection and insurance for vehicle-mounted cranes and grabs
• Personal accident, sickness or loss of licence income protection
• Property insurance
• Business interruption
• LifeLine international driver travel cover
• Directors' and Officers' liability
• Life cover

Subject to status, you could take advantage of low-rate payment plans. All three policies have risk management features including:

• Driver awareness training - to help cut accident numbers and control insurance costs
• Health & safety services - to ensure you meet regulatory requirements
• Inclinometers - tilt sensors to reduce the likelihood of tipping accidents
• Smartwater® - a forensic liquid to deter theft of vehicles
• Accident cameras - good back-up evidence in the event of an accident

To find out about joining the RHA telephone 01733 267436

HaulageMan

As the name suggests, online brokers HaulageMan Ltd - an arm of Orion Direct Insurance - specialise in haulage insurance - they don't do anything else.

Most of their policies offer discounts for vehicle security, restricted driver numbers and an introductory no claims bonus.

Goods in Transit

If you carry goods for others and get paid to do it, or in insurance-speak, for 'hire and reward,' or transport your own goods, check out HaulageMan's goods in transit cover.

The aim of the policy is to protect the goods against loss or damage whilst in transit.

You can set a limit on the sum to be insured for each vehicle or any one consignment based on the value of the load, RHA or CMR conditions.

It covers theft/loss of goods, damage caused by accidents and other damage during transit.

Cover is available for the owner of the goods or the business transporting them and it can include attached and detached trailer cover.

You can get cover for the movement of all classes of goods throughout the UK, Europe and Worldwide with full theft cover in Italy.

Other policies available from the HaulageMan include:

Tankers & Hazardous Goods Insurance

Tankers are harder to insure, for obvious reasons.

This policy is designed for road tanker vehicles and fleets of all types including hazardous goods carriers with cover for spillage and discharge when loading/unloading, plus clean up costs for spillage after an accident.

Tipper Insurance

This policy recognises the risk attached to tipping wagons overturning while loading or unloading and the unsafe nature of the sites used.

Owner Driver Insurance

As well as standard commercial vehicle motor insurance, this offers:

• Public liability cover
• Goods in transit cover
• Motor trade insurance
• Loss of licence cover
• Personal accident/sickness cover

Loss of Licence / Operators Licence Insurance

What would you do if you lost your driving or operators licence? This policy provides cover for loss of livelihood following loss of driving licence, personal accident and/or illness.

Separate cover is available for loss of licence after totting up penalty points or other legal infringements, and withdrawal of licence following illness.

Strike & Blockade Insurance

If your vehicle gets caught up in a strike or blockade in the UK and Western Europe, you can claim a daily rate of £250 or £400 for immobility. Also applies to certain other countries in Eastern Europe and North Africa.

Easy-to-arrange packaged policies

AXA

AXA Insurance, one of the world's largest financial service providers, offers a number of insurance deals specifically geared towards the needs of the haulage business.

Hauliers Choice Insurance

The Hauliers Choice Insurance package is for road haulage companies and couriers with up to 5 vehicles. Higher risk ventures such as tanker operators, furniture removers, livestock carriers or freight forwarders aren't eligible.

The policy covers:

• Goods in transit - covers your liability for the loss of or damage to goods in transit
• Public liability - covers your legal liability following accidental injury to other people or damage to property belonging to other people.

Goods in Transit cover can be arranged on an All Risks basis or RHA conditions of carriage (a maximum of £1,300 per tonne of carrying capacity).

If you claim on an "all risks" basis you can opt to settle the loss with your customer for the full value of the goods, up to the selected vehicle sum insured (max £75,000).

CMR cover is automatically included - you can claim up to a maximum of £250,000 for any one vehicle operating in Great Britain, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Eire. This can be widened to include Western Europe.

Optional extras

Employers' liability - covers you for damages resulting from injury or illness to your employees while working for you.

Axa Goods in Transit for Haulage Contractors

This is for haulage contractors, couriers and furniture removers who carry other people's goods for hire and reward.

Larger haulage operations with more than 5 vehicles are eligible for cover and this can be extended to include jobs passed to subcontractors.

Policy features:

• Property in Transit - Choose from an "all risks" or legal liability basis for loss or damage to property in transit
• Own Goods - Up to £10,000 max for loss or damage to own property in transit
• Containers - Up to £35,000 for loss or damage to a container or flat (as long as you don't own, hire or lease them)

Optional Extras

• Household removals - for damage to goods during removal
• Deterioration - for damage to frozen, chilled or insulated goods
• Loss of use - for vehicles out of action following fire or accidental damage

Axa Haulage Vehicle Insurance

This package is for owner operators with up to 5 vehicles. As well as motor vehicle insurance - Fully Comp or Third Party Fire & Theft basis - and public liability cover, you get uninsured loss recovery and motor prosecution defence.

Uninsured loss recovery is particularly useful to have up your sleeve if you need to take legal action to claw back costs and damages.

It'll meet the cost of defending your legal rights if criminal proceedings are brought against you after an accident for a motoring offence.

Other policy features include emergency medical treatment, windows and windscreens cover and UK and continental breakdown assistance service.

Axa Goods in Transit for Domestic Sendings

For loss or damage to your own goods and property while in transit in your own vehicle within the UK and Eire. Plus you can insure your own goods for a more realistic value when carried by others.

Optional extras

• Property on demonstration - for loss or damage to property while being used for demonstration purposes
• Exhibitions - for loss or damage to property/stands at exhibitions

Axa Goods in Transit for Worldwide Sendings

For businesses that send or receive property within the British Isles and Eire using hauliers, couriers, rail companies or post, and businesses who import goods from - and send goods outside - the UK

Aon

Aon (it means 'oneness' in Gaelic) is one of the UK's leading insurance brokers and risk managers for the transportation industry, and cite road haulage as one of their industry specialisations.

Services include:

• Warehousing risks, including warehousekeeper's legal liability
• Liability for loss or damage to customers' goods
• Fleet Management
• Health and Safety including a review of operating procedures
• Employers Liability with tailored cover for larger organisations
• Environmental risks
• Driver training
• Contracts analysis and vetting of sub-contractor policies
• Flexible payment options available

Aon will work with you to improve your business's risk profile to help your organisation get the best insurance terms and premium.

ChoiceQuote

Liverpool-based ChoiceQuote have been insuring hauliers for over 10 years. Among the features on offer from a ChoiceQuote Haulage Insurance Policy are:

• Open driving options
• Monthly payment options
• European cover available
• Cover for both haulage and own goods

In addition to commercial vehicle insurance and goods in transit they can provide public/employers' liability insurance.

Davis Underwriting

Davis Underwriting, a subsidiary of The Davis Group, have teamed up with The British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) to create insurance packages for what's often viewed as the riskier side of the haulage industry.

MotorRisk

MotorRisk Hauliers

This is for haulage contractors with up to 6 large goods vehicles over 7.5 GVW.

It covers:

• Hazardous goods excluding classes 1 & 7 (explosives/ radioactive material)
• Non-hazardous tankers including comprehensive trailer cover
• Multiple attached and detached trailer cover
• No loading applies for tipping risks
• UK and EU options

There's up to 40% introductory no claims bonus discount for new businesses plus there's a discounted rate for own goods.

MotorRisk - Skip Hirers

This is for skip hirers with any number of vehicles, from 1 to 100+. You can choose motor vehicle insurance on a Fully Comp or Third Party Fire & Theft, with cover available for:

• Single vehicles to large fleets
• As part of a fleet, all types of vehicles including skip carriers, vans, special types, cars etc
• Open driving with no age experience restrictions available on fleets
• UK and EU options

Among the major carrots on offer are a 2-year fixed rate deal plus a low claims rebate clause for fleets over 4 vehicles (subject to achieved agreed loss ratio).

Another attractive feature is 12-months interest-free instalments. For individual vehicles there's up to 40% introductory discount.

Policies are underwritten by Brit, Highway or Norwich Union and cover is available for risks based in Northern Ireland

To find out more about MotorRisk BIBA, ask your insurance broker for details or visit the BIBA website where you can find details of insurance brokers near you.

TruckQuote

TruckQuote - part of the Towergate Underwriting Group - is for the independent haulier with up to five trucks over 7.5 tonnes. It brings all of the haulier's insurance needs together in one mighty package.

You can pick and mix the type of cover you want, vehicles can have different cover (eg fully comp or third party only) or you can simply opt for motor cover alone. Risk management advice and driver training are available free.

The single portfolio of documents includes:

• Motor (Comprehensive, including windscreen; Third Party, Fire and Theft, Third Party only or Laid Up Fire and Theft)
• Goods in Transit
• Employers (£10m) & Public (min. £1m) liability
• Personal Accident
• Loss of Licence
• Engineering
• Income protection
• Legal expenses
• European cover

Damage cover to other people's property is covered up to £5m.

There are higher levels of cover for hauliers working for particular companies (Carillion, Tarmac, Hanson, Aggregate Industries), for example:

• Up to £5m for High Category Hazardous Goods or Hazardous locations is, but just £250,000 for others
• Up to £5m for full airside liability cover, but nothing for others except what's required by law under the Road Traffic Acts.

The Goods in Transit section looks robust enough to suit most types of hauliers, with a choice of either All Risks (at a indemnity limit of your choice) or RHA with CMR included, with cover for damage to containers that you don't own or lease.

The insurers on the portfolio include Norwich Union, Equity Red Star, Royal & SunAlliance, and RAC Insurance Ltd. truckquote.co.uk