How to lower the cost of van insurance

Businesses, especially those that use commercial vehicles, are always looking for ways to cut back on spending on their transportation needs, especially when it comes to taking advantage of the growing competitiveness of the insurance market.

The current insurance market is growing more competitive by the day and this is having an impact on how businesses tailor their spending regarding commercial vehicles, specifically van insurance costs. A measure that is currently being employed is to down grade policies from ‘Fully Comprehensive’ cover to ‘Third party, Fire & Theft’ however, this will undoubtedly be a short term gain. The latter policy will not cover against damage to a vehicle, only other people and their property; meaning that an accident could cost a lot more than had been saved by initially changing policies.

Rather than looking to change a policy it is more beneficial to look at the ways in which to reduce the overall cost, by employing the following measures:

Fitting a Tracker Device:

A tracker device will enable law enforcement agencies to track a vehicle if it has been stolen and can easily be fitted to any van or commercial vehicle. This will help lower the cost of an insurance premium.

Improve Vehicle Security:

In order to protect a vehicle and in turn get cheaper commercial van insurance look at ways in which the risk can be lowered, such as ensuring the vehicle has secure doors, an alarm, ignition locks and immobilisers. Removing any tools that may be left within the vehicle overnight is also recommended.

No Claims Discounts:

If you own a fleet of commercial vehicles or vans you can look to see whether or not no claims discounts earned on other vehicles can be passed on, as long as this claim has not been used on another vehicle. The majority of insurers will offer a no claims discount or bonus, sometimes as much as 65%, as long as there have not been any claims made in the past.

Voluntary Excess:

By offering to pay a higher voluntary excess (the first £250 instead of £100) of any claim will potentially help to lower a premium.

Limit the Number of Drivers:

By limiting the number of drivers there are on a policy will help to keep the cost of the premiums down; having named drivers is the next best option, as long as all of the drivers have a good past driving history and are above the 'young driver' threshold.

When looking to renew or get a new insurance policy it should be noted that cheap insurance does not guarantee getting the best value for money. Look to use one of the van insurance brokers who specialises in this area. They will seek out the most competitive deals and take the 'leg work' out of carrying out your own searches.