Despite the stuttering economy, there are companies, especially in the automotive sector, bucking the trend. The lack of confidence shown in other sectors seems to have bypassed the vehicle industry as registered van sales grow and component manufacturers struggle to keep up with line-side supply.
As automotive production ramps up, so does the requirement for continuity of supply. As ‘stopping a line’ can cost your business up to £15,000 an hour or more, you need to know you can deliver on time, every time. It is of little use having the product on your shelf if it is needed on the production line.
More vans, more investment, higher van insurance?
With the competitive nature that supplying in bulk encourages, if you are taking your business in that direction, you need to save costs in all other areas to guarantee your organisation remains profitable. One of the biggest investments is in your commercial vehicle fleet of delivery vehicles. For every single one, you need to have the relevant van insurance policy; however, you do not need individual van insurance policies, but take out ‘fleet’ insurance, instead.
Bulk discount for fleet insurance
If you are touting bulk business before your van insurance broker, you can expect them to concede a degree of their usual rigidity. What many organisations don’t realise is the power they potentially yield by having this level of bulk fleet cover to buy.
Include field sales vehicles and some private cars
To further boost your leverage, there is nothing stopping you dangling the carrot of your other vehicles, which obviously also need commercial cover. The more business you have to place, the greater the flexibility you will find within your van insurance quote. You may even be able to add the private cars or 4 x 4’s owned by the company shareholders or directors.
Other differences between singular and fleet van insurance
As a payoff, if you like, for the extra discount, your van insurer will expect a little more from your fleet. No claims, for instance, will be recalculated depending upon the number of vans you cover in one policy. Multiple vans increase the probability of one or more being involved in an accident; therefore, you will more likely have a no claims based upon a percentage of incidents involving your entire fleet.
The conditions for drivers will also be more stringent. Specific information for every named driver will have to be recorded and periodically checked, maybe as often as every six months, to maintain the duty of care entrusted by the van insurance broker on your fleet to the world at large. This will especially be the case if there are many drivers below the age of 25. This is perhaps one of the last remaining avenues for finding cheap van insurance for young drivers.
Every insurance broker operates slightly differently, something that has attracted the attentions of the OFT recently. But, just to make you aware that, if you are considering expending your fleet of commercial vehicles, do not settle for the existing rates you have for just one or two delivery vans. Even if you have no issue with your broker, it is worth putting your new insurance business-to-place into a ‘compare cheap van insurance‘ facility online and using that as a yardstick to get the best deal from your existing broker for your new, bigger business.