Tag: van insurance

Do anything it takes to get cheaper rates

Posted on by News Desk

Market review for the week of 17 Mar 2013:

It’s not just me that’s been saying ‘take drastic measures,’ either, as this week the Association of British Insurers have urged the Government to take steps to help lower car insurance and van insurance rates by as much as 20 per cent simply by setting new driver safety standards. The ABI says that younger motorists in particular could see as much as £370 shaved off their yearly insurance premiums, and that’s no laughing matter, now is it?

The problem with the current standard right now, the ABI said, is that younger drivers are taught to drive in a way that’s simply ‘not fit for purpose,’ and this applies to whether you’re driving a Vauxhall Astra or a Ford Transit – if you’re not learning how to be safe behind the wheel you’re more likely to get involved in an accident, and that means insurance costs are going to remain astronomically high. Meanwhile, you could reverse this upward creep on premium prices simply by instituting better teaching methods that instill safer driving in the nation’s up and coming motorists, which will result in less expensive cover for everyone.

Meanwhile, MPs are looking for ways to control insurance costs as well, though their approach is to look into how much whiplash injury claims are diving up personal vehicle and commercial van insurance alike. In particular, the Commons Transport Committee wants to delve into why the UK has somehow become the place where you go if you’ve got a weak neck, as we’re currently the ‘whiplash capital of the world; with the number of payouts for whiplash going through the roof.

The committee is keenly examining how much that fraud could be driving up costs for everyone. There’s no doubt that fraud is indeed a problem, especially as the number of claims keep going up every year even as the number of reported accidents actually go down,  but it remains to be seen how much of an impact fabricated or exaggerated injuries actually do drive up premium prices – and what action – if any – can be taken to stamp fraudulent claims out.

For what it’s worth, it’s hard to put your finger on what whiplash injury is just a load of bollocks and which one is legitimate, thanks to the fact that there’s no real definitive test that a doctor can run to prove a patient is suffering from whiplash. It’s a soft tissue injury, and it won’t show up on an x-ray or an MRI, so all you have to go on is what the patient tells you: a good liar can mimic the symptoms of whiplash all too easily I’m afraid!

This is why your premiums keep going up every year

Posted on by News Desk

CAR INSURANCE NEWS ROUNDUP: WEEK ENDED 10 mar 2013:

If you’ve ever wondered why your commercial van insurance premium keeps going up every year, it turns out that we’re all being victimised by criminals.

Whether it’s the van insurance or car insurance industry, the prevalence of insurance fraud has reached epidemic proportions in the UK. In fact, a new report issued by the Association of British Insurers recently revealed that when it comes to claims costs, the money paid out on personal injury claims is by and large the biggest cost to insurance companies – and they turn around and charge you and me in order to make up the ever rising shortfall.

An absolutely huge proportion of these costs could be, in fact, originating from completely spurious claims, and nowhere is this more a possibility than when it comes to whiplash injury claims, as the injuries are notoriously hard to disprove. The ABI estimates that at least £90 of every driver’s insurance cover goes directly towards the costs of paying out all these fraudulent claims, and with some 1,500 claims rolling in to the nation’s insurance companies each and every day, any number of these could be completely fabricated by ‘crash for cash’ scammers looking to pull the wool over our eyes and get away with vast sums of cash.

And if you think it’s a victimless crime, think again: on top of the kinds of woe we all have to put up with in scraping together the cash to keep our van or car on the road every year, scammers that cause road traffic accidents can often cause massive real injuries to innocents. In fact, one poor woman lost her life thanks to one instance of fraud gone terribly wrong.

The incident occurred in Buckinghamshire on the A40 recently, where three men in a Ford Transit van purposefully got themselves into an accident by slamming on the brakes, sending the car behind them, 34 year old Balinder Kaur Gill’s Ford Fiesta, to shunt them from behind. The plan was to then make a claim to Ms Gill’s insurer for the vehicle damage and the ‘whiplash’ the three men suffered, but in a flash that all changed when Ms Gill’s vehicle was struck from behind in turn, this time by a Renault van that was traveling at speed, slamming into the Fiesta with such force that the woman was slain instantly – all because the three in the Ford Transit wanted to make some quick cash.

I simply can’t believe how reckless and selfish some people can be. Leave off with the cost in insurance that people like the men in the Ford Transit cause – the loss of life is absolutely reprehensible and I can only hope and pray that the Government does something about this serious whiplash fraud problem in order to prevent such tragedies in the future.

Costs are high all around – so cut your insurance bill

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 3 mar 2013:

Everyone’s hurting in the current economy, but there are ways to save on your car insurance or van insurance even in this day and age, believe it or not!

March is upon us, and you and I both know what that means: nearly everyone will be looking for a new annual insurance quote, whether it be for their family car or their van or commercial vehicle. Costs have been going up like mad over the past few years, but apparently up to one out of three don’t bother to take steps to reduce our bill, according to a research article I read recently.

A car insurance comparison site found that as many as 8.7 million motorists in the UK aren’t taking their annual policy seriously and are just automatically renewing their cover for another year. Taken together, these drivers could be losing out on an eye watering £2.5 billion by not shopping around for a better deal – and that works out to almost £300 a driver on average!

Believe it or not, the research also said that three million Brits have been labouring under the same insurance provider for a decade or more. I haven’t even had the same pair of trousers for more than ten years, let alone the same insurance provider, so it just blows my mind that someone could stick with an insurer for such a long, long time.

The truth is, you’re doing yourself a disservice if you aren’t switching to the best deal you can find every year, as insurers have absolutely no requirement to provide you with any sort of loyalty advantage for sticking it out. In fact, many insurers will raise rates year-on-year to their existing customers in order to provide better, more enticing offers to those willing to switch, so you’re definitely leaving yourself in a poor position.

Of course, you may end up getting a bum deal where there truly are no better options out there when it comes to your insurance premiums. In a situation like this, you may want to consider breaking the mold as it were and look into a telematics-based insurance cover instead, as these satnav-based insurance policies are gaining quite a bit of ground in popularity.

Telematics has been in the news lately as well thanks to its quick growth, and where it used to be that you needed to have a specific ‘black box’ device fitted to your car, there are some insurers that are coming out with smartphone apps that work the exact same way as the traditional telematics device. This makes it much less expensive to start a telematics-based policy as you don’t need to shell out upwards of a few hundred pounds for a device and instead just download a free app for your mobile phone, and with it being so much more easy to access telematics cover, it could grow even more popular in the near future.

Make sure you’ve got adequate cover – or else!

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 24 Feb 2013:

It’s rough out there, and you need to protect your vehicles – especially if you do the majority of your work on the road and out from the back of your van.

It’s more and more common to end up using your van as a mobile office if you’re a commercial van driver, according to recently released market research, but if you’re one of those enterprising entrepreneurs doing so, you need to make sure you need to keep an eye on your valuables, said one van insurance specialist. In fact, you need to make sure you’re taking sensible precautions and take steps to ensure you have adequate insurance cover, says AXA Business Insurance, because you could see yourself stranded up the creek if something untoward happens.

AXA says that, according to their research, more than 7 out of 10 commercial van owners keep a smartphone with them, while 60 per cent keep a satnav in the van as well. 45 per cent keep a tablet or laptop in their car, and all together the value of all this technology could easily be over £1,000 – and if your commercial van insurance policy doesn’t cover the theft or destruction of these valuable pieces of technology, kiss your otherwise flourishing business goodbye.

Regular policies won’t cover more than a few hundred pounds worth towards the replacement of these big-ticket items. However, if you can’t be bothered to put your valuables out of sight when you leave your van unattended – or don’t keep your car alarm functioning properly, good luck getting any money out of your insurer at all; if you ask me you would do better trying to squeeze a pint of blood from a stone.

In other words, keep your expensive toys out of sight if you leave your van alone for more than a moment. Of course, this doesn’t help if the whole van is stolen altogether – and another news story this week demonstrates such an occurrence.

This one is actually pretty tragic, considering the circumstances: a drama group’s minibus was stolen right out from under the nose of the group leader one Sunday evening, with criminals absconding with the vehicle right from outside her home. However, the group – Popstars Academy – has vowed to not let this deter their performances, according to group leader Anne Marshall.

The minibus, a 10 year old Mercedes, was used for costume changes, to ferry sound equipment, and to take the young children actors and singers to nearby performances at locales such as charity fundraisers and homes for the elderly. The worst part is that the van had the Academy’s name and logo emblazoned on the side in massive letters, which meant that the thieves are callous, heartless bastards or just more than a bit thick; if you ask me, it’s probably a bit of both.

Still, the community troupe has vowed to continue on somehow. I hope they had an up to date van insurance policy!

Van seized in police check on the A24

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 17 Feb 2013:

Hold on to your hats, ladies and gentlemen: this week saw the A24 slow to a crawl thanks to a random police check that saw cars pulled over and one van seized!

The fun and games began this past Thursday in Ashtead, where police flagged down a total of 40 drivers for so-called ‘suspicious’ vehicles. I don’t know what police say when they say suspicious, but it seemed to have worked as nearly half of those pulled over left with traffic offences, while two vehicles were in such bad repair that their drivers were told to not put them back on the road until their faults were taken care of.

The star of the show was the white Ford transit van that was told to pulled over after authorities spied that the passenger wasn’t wearing their seat belt, besides the fact that they were an adult and should know better. Things got even more hilarious once it was discovered that the vehicle’s van insurance didn’t cover the driver.

The driver, a Lithuanian national whose name wasn’t released to the press – perhaps because most Brits can’t quite master the spelling and pronouncing a foreign name – now has a record for driving without proper insurance cover. He most likely got off rather easily, considering the owner of the van now has to cope with his vehicle being seized until the whole situation is sorted, so let that be a warning to anyone who thinks you can get one over on the police: they’re watching, and you’re going to end up walking if you’re not going to get yourself at least a cheap van insurance policy for your vehicle.

In related news – and the whole reason the cops are out in force and able to catch those that are a bit thick and think that ‘compulsory’ car insurance doesn’t apply to them – is that Continuous Enforcement rules have been in effect for quite some time. Not only that, but there are new technological advances that have been brought forward specifically to help local police forces catch those who are flouting the new law.

In fact, new automated licence plate readers can scan thousands of cars in very little time, even while they’re in motion, and then query a new centralised insurance database to cross-check for vehicles that are registered but aren’t legally permitted to be on the nation’s roads. It’s just one more reason to follow the law, as you can’t hide any longer even if you tried to!

Commercial vehicle production down, says one insurer

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 11 nov  2012:

One commercial van insurance provider recently announced research findings indicating commercial vehicle production levels have dropped significantly this year.

Van insurance website VanQuoteDirect’s research study found that there was 7.5 per cent reduction in the number of commercial vehicles produced in the first nine months of 2011, which was blamed on a dwindling demand for vehicles such as vans. However, overall demand for commercial vehicles still remains relatively high, according to insurance company spokesman Joe de Vries.

Mr de Vries commented on the research findings, remarking that 2011 figures may have been higher due to the fact that January of 2012 was when the Low Emission Zone went into effect, causing many people to purchase new vehicles in preparation for the new emissions regulations. However, now that this deadline is long gone, new commercial vehicle purchases may have dropped off slightly as a result.

Mr de Vries added that VanQuoteDirect remained optimistic about the commercial vehicle market both in the UK and abroad, especially since demand for new vehicles on the Continent is expected to drive demand for British-built commercial vans. This will support the growth of vehicle manufacturers based in the UK and will have a knock-on effect for the insurance industry as well.

However, there is still much concern about the burgeoning eurozone crisis, both on its effects on the Continent and here at home, as a collapse would wreak havoc on our own sluggishly recovering economy. Hopefully demand for new commercial vehicles will drive economic growth and new manufacturing jobs, perhaps stemming what some are afraid will otherwise be the unending tide of economic ruin.

Increasing vehicle production as we move into 2013 is something to hope for very stridently, said Mr de Vries, who added that increases in production would aid the UK in its attempts to finish climbing out of the deep, deep economic hole it tumbled down into back in 2008 during the credit crisis.

White Van Man, like common sense, an endangered species

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 4 nov  2012:

Just when you thought it was safe to get behind the wheel: this week, the news cycle has been filled with some rather silly points made about van drivers.

One initial report, published just a few days ago, has sounded the alarm that we’ve a new endangered species here in the UK: The White Van Man. A new survey found that out of those under the age of 30 that are entering a trade, only four per cent of them are in need of a van.

The commercial van insurance provider that conducted the poll discovered that this simply wasn’t true across all age ranges. In fact, anyone over the age of 40 that was planning on changing careers has an 80 per cent chance to be going into a position that requires a van, the insurer found.

What’s behind the demise of young Brits getting behind the wheel of big white vans?  Well, nearly one out of every three said that if it wasn’t increases to the price of a litre of petrol, it was rampant insurance and road tax hikes as well driving them into the arms of jobs that didn’t require them sitting in traffic for hours and breathing exhaust fumes; meanwhile 25 per cent of younger drivers said they had no desire to be lumped in with the rest of the White Van Men due to their horrid reputations.

Believe it or not, there may be a bit of truth to the whole ‘horrid driver’ stereotype when it comes to those who drive a van for a living. The research conducted by the car insurance provider found that around 15 per cent of van drivers surveyed had driving offences.

While that’s not a terribly high figure, the next one will definitely blow your mind: around one out of every five van drivers reported actually having sex in their vehicle! Hopefully this wasn’t on the clock – and even more hopefully this wasn’t while the van was in motion, though it would explain some of the poor driving people always complain about, wouldn’t it?

 

Check your cover if transporting electronics this season

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 7 oct 2012:

With the festive season rapidly approaching – and the advent of the new iPhone 5 – anyone transporting electronics needs to check their cover, and soon!

Have you thought about the size of your courier van and exactly how many electronics you can actually fit back there? Well, if you do the maths, you could end up having room for around £50 million worth of high-value electronics such as the already massively popular iPhone 5 alone; if you’re done running about in a panic, you  may want to consider checking the level of cover on your commercial van insurance now.

It only took around 24 hours for 2 million individuals to pr-order the new Apple iPhone 5 once it became available to do so. This will inevitably lead to huge demand for the product this Christmas shopping season, which means massive amounts of the electronic device are going to be shipped all across the country to retailers, and that anyone with a courier van could make a killing by shipping all these smartphones – however they could also risk financial ruin if something were happen to their high-value cargo whilst in transit and their van insurance doesn’t cover them against theft or destruction of goods.

There’s around 200 cubic feet on the inside of the average van, which means you could stick nearly 100,000 iPhones in the back, provided you take them out of the packaging. The retail value of these items would be upwards of £50 million, and while there’s no way one single courier would be transporting those many iPhones at once, the point still stands: as electronic devices shrink in size but grow in price, couriers will naturally have higher value cargo whenever they’re transporting the devices, so the need for proper insurance cover has never been more important.

If you think iPhones won’t be stolen, just remember the news out of Japan on the new Apple product’s launch day:

Meanwhile, news reports on the launch day revealed that around 200 iPhone 5 unites were nicked from a shop in Osaka, Japan. The retail value of these stolen phones – just 200 of them – was around £160,000, which is more than enough to cripple your courier business if you can’t cover such a massive outlay of cash without the aid of an ironclad insurance policy.

Van drivers in the doghouse, 2 independent polls show

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 30 SEPT 2012:

Van drivers are in the doghouse after it was revealed that not one but two independent research studies have discovered evidence of bad behaviour.

New figures from the AA’s insurance division have discovered that van drivers are twice as likely to collect a conviction for a motoring offence when compared to car drivers. Not only that, but AA Insurance also discovered that the white van man has his mobile practically glued to his ear, as car drivers are six times less likely to be caught on the phone than a van driver – information that van insurance are sure to use as an excuse to raise your premium prices, no doubt.

The data, analysed by the AA, comes directly from their customers, indicating that nearly 7.5 per cent of car drivers have had their licence endorsed sometime throughout the past five years. However, that figure jumped to 15.5 per cent when it came to their customers who held a commercial van insurance policy through the motoring organisation’s insurance division.

Meanwhile, less than one-half of one per cent of car drivers had ended up with a CU80, or an offence for mobile phone use behind the wheel. Again, this figure was dwarfed by the more than 2 per cent of van drivers who were also given the same offence.

Meanwhile, another motor insurer’s independent survey found that van drivers also happen to be some of the most irritating people to run into on the road, thanks to a new poll. While Admiral says the most frustrating motorists to encounter were the elderly, with 41 per cent of respondents indicating that the way older motorists drive is enough to make them want to tear their hair out, van drivers weren’t that far behind at just over one out of every three respondents.

In fact, van drivers beat many other annoying motorists out by a wide margin, including ‘boy racers,’ caravanners, and motorbike riders. In fact, the only more hated annoyances on the road – besides the elderly – were cyclists at 36 per cent and taxi drivers at 37 per cent, according to the poll.

Let that be a lesson to all white van men out there: you’ve got a horrid reputation behind the wheel, so quit being such an annoyance. Moreover, you can’t even deny it, because there’s statistical proof of being bad drivers in comparison to others, so fair warning – enough is enough!

Don’t forget your insurance cover – ever

Posted on by News Desk

Van insurance news roundup: 7 days ending 23 sept 2012:

It’s been a bad week for one young entrepreneur, when it was recently revealed that her catering van was nicked by thieves.

22 year old Penny Blayney, a caterer that left school to start her Munchkings business, was absolutely distraught to find out that her van, valued at £10,000, had been stolen. Worse yet was not only did Ms Blayney have £500 worth of stock within the van, but also had her rent money within the trailer when it was stolen as well!

An incredulous Ms Blayney, a native of Grafton Rise in Herne Bay, lamented that the worst part was that her commercial van insurance policy had lapsed, as she had intended to sell the vehicle and use the proceeds of the sale to help grow her business even further. The determination of the thieves must have been absolutely incredible, according to the 22 year old entrepreneur, as the van had been fitted with several different security measures and would have required a flatbed lorry to make off with the vehicle.

There’s little in the way of evidence regarding the crime so far, except that one of her neighbours reported hearing loud noises one evening, which leads authorities to believe that had been when the theft occurred. The determined Ms Blayney has not been deterred by this setback, continuing to serve her regular customers even as she struggles to find a solution for both her missing van and her sudden lack of rent money for this month!
Honestly, the massive, 14 foot long trailer is a bit hard to miss, considering it’s emblazoned with the ‘Munchkings’ logo on the side. It’ also fitted with a ten-litre tea urn, a microwave, a freezer, not one but two refrigerators, three chip fryers, two hobs, and a 4 foot griddle. Anyone that has seen the vehicle is urged to contact the police at their earliest opportunity, and could spell the difference between the life and death of poor Ms Blayney’s business.
This is, of course, an incredibly tragic way to demonstrate the absolute need for van insurance. Even if you’re not going to take out comprehensive cover on your commercial vehicle, taking out and maintaining third party fire and theft cover is an absolute necessity – and could have led to Ms Blayney having a modicum of protection against the loss of such a massive business investment.

Step 1

Complete your quick and easy quote

Step 2

Reveal your van insurance policies

Step 3

Pick your favourite and get instant cover