Looking for a courier insurance, hire and reward or haulage

[Tron44]

Hi

I hope everyone is well.

So as the title suggests I am looking for insurance for a xlwb Luton Van w/tail lift.

I've shopped around on some insurance comparison websites and got some not to bad quotes, in the region of £2000 (I know when u ring them up they probably wont give the same price). But the problem I have is, whenever I google the insurance companies they have some terrible reviews and it puts me off. So can anyone recommend a decent van insurance company that isn't going to charge me an arm and a leg ?

I'm in my 30s and have a squeaky clean license, however I don't have any no claims discount on my van as I've never had a policy on it, from the quotes I've been getting I can see NCD makes quite a difference.

A little bit of background info incase it helps, I run a e-commerce business with 2 employees however things are pretty dead at the moment (thanks to how big corporations bully us small businesses) and to help keep the business afloat I wanted to get my van insured and start doing some courier work such as pallet deliveries perhaps by signing up to the courier exchange.

In summary, If you are in the same line of work as a courier driver could you -

A-Recommend a insurance company for Hire & reward or haulage insurance.
B-How much you pay for your insurance and other relevant info such as how much NCD you have so I/we can understand the price you are paying for
C-Maybe even how much you pay (and level of cover) for the other insurances required, Goods in transit & Public Liability.

This info will be helpful to me and others looking to get into the same line of work and perhaps if all self employed van drivers were to share this info it would help us collectively save money on insurance and maybe even force some insurance companies to be a bit more competitive (revolution anyone ?!).

Many thanks,

 

[MBE2017]

This question pops up approx every three months, a quick search will give you an idea of how competitive things are. I can’t help with insurances etc since I no longer am in the business, but I will give you a piece of advice.

Do not expect the courier exchange, or any similar idea to be of much use to you, I will explain why.

The exchanges are set up to utilise dead space, what is referred to as back loads, so you might get diesel money plus the cost of a pint if you are lucky. Also, no one on the exchange will want to use a newby, unless you are the only option, reputation and contacts mean everything, after all, if you fail to collect and deliver, it is their reputation damaged, not yours, in their customers eyes.

With ever increasing fuel costs best of luck making anything IMO, sorry to be negative, but most new guys do not last long, expect to wait 30/60 days to get paid, if ever.

In your position I would forget the exchanges and find some local work, delivering for nearby stores etc. A guy I know does well delivering within his town for £10, the customer has to lift it on by themselves, and the recipient unload it on their own, nice cash in hand work.

 

[Tron44]

Thank you for taking the time out to reply to my query. I definitely wasn't going to rely on the courier exchange by itself for work, there is some local businesses near my workplace which I was thinking of approaching.

Waiting 30/60 days really sucks and isn't fair for someone trying to make a living. I might still give it a go if the exchange gives me a free trial or something along those lines, in any case they are more my last resort then first.

I would prefer to deal with businesses direct instead of using a middle man, infact its like dealing with two middle men, correct me if I'm wrong ? (Paying courier exchange a fee to use their platform and then you get a job from a 3d party who's going to be also taking his cut, this is how I understand it).

You may have heard of Pete the courier driver from youtube, I've seen many of his videos and he has tons of information for any newbies starting out.

I did do a forum search already but I could not find much information on courier insurance which is the main issue I have and was hoping to get some recommendations, companies that are friendly towards self employed drivers or small businesses.

I already have a van and so the only cost for me to get going is the insurance.

 

[Frank the Insurance guy]

I've shopped around on some insurance comparison websites and got some not to bad quotes, in the region of £2000

I'm in my 30s and have a squeaky clean license, however I don't have any no claims discount on my van as I've never had a policy on it, from the quotes I've been getting I can see NCD makes quite a difference.

For what you are looking for £2,000 is a very good quote.

For a courier business, even with NCD you would probably be looking at over £1500!

 

[MBE2017]

You may have heard of Pete the courier driver from youtube, I've seen many of his videos and he has tons of information for any newbies starting out.

I did do a forum search already but I could not find much information on courier insurance which is the main issue I have and was hoping to get some recommendations, companies that are friendly towards self employed drivers or small businesses.

I already have a van and so the only cost for me to get going is the insurance.

Never heard of the guy, as for Insurance companies, get real. They are businesses, they are not friendly, they offer a product, they offer a price, then most will try to shaft you if you ever need to claim. That £12k van they insure if written off will likely get a £10k replacement value.

Welcome to the world of being a courier.

 

[Tron44]

What was putting me off was the reviews for pretty much any insurance company I came across. For example one of them had, 1.9 stars on google reviews on (84 reviews). And the following is a snapshot of their reviews,

'Worst insurance company
Cancelled my insurance via email and want me to pa £150 for no reason, also put up ur insurance price whenever they feel like it' (number of people had the same complaint about cancellations)

'I can only describe them as scammers. I have had a non fault claim with them. Even though the third party took responsibility they haven't paid my garage. Nearly 6months of asking same questions going back and forth.
Look else where .'

'Even though I have taken another year with this company, these people don't deserve even 1star. Absolute disgrace, no communication between the departments, asking for same details again and again, very rude customer service. I have taken from them for a reason otherwise no way. Stay far people.

And it goes on and on.

Even the insurance companies that weren't the cheapest weren't any different.

As for Pete the courier driver, I highly recommend checking his YouTube channel out if anyone is thinking to start doing courier work.

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

I know Pete the Courier !
Pete is a very good salesman is university educated has written books and is a fantastic communicator
He successfully traded as a market trader then in a short space of time has come from driving a van as an owner driver to running a haulage operation with a few trucks . he also has a spot on a local radio station so im told ! . Pete is very talented
Do not Do not I repeat Do not ( nobody ever listens to my advice on this subject so I dont know why I bother )
Do not look at Pete and say I can do that unless you have more business talent and skills than him ! I am watching so many people follow his story then fall flat on their face with a 30 K debt !

Pete has made it due to his skills along with the fact he is based in one of the most profitable locations in the whole of Europe !
This is a very tough industry to be in . Unless you know you have your own customer base in place and a whole heap of money then I would walk away from this idea

The fact that you have mentioned the Courier Exchange and Pete tells me that you have the wrong approach. ! You are right that the right solution are your own direct customers but you need to know and have the ability to be able to get on the phone and walk into offices this afternoon and get this business by talking to the right people !

Can you do that and do you have a wack of money in the pot to keep you going for six months ie about 20K ?

A for insuring the business and the vehicles that is a minor detail

I think you should love Pete but listen to Jeremy

 

[Frank the Insurance guy]

I think you should love Pete but listen to Jeremy

 

[Tron44]

@JEREMY HAWKE @Frank the Insurance guy - thank you for taking the time to respond to my post and valuable advice.

Unfortunately my luton van has kind of fallen apart where the tail lift connects to the body so until I get it repaired I won't be pursuing courier work.

I'm only looking to do this kind of work part time as I already have my hands full with my main line of work, when I get round to repairing and insuring my van ill post an update on how things go. To start of with I'd be happy to have enough work that will cover my insurance costs and general wear and tear of the van.