With standard vehicle insurance, you won’t be covered for transporting other people’s goods, even if you have business use cover. With specialist courier insurance, you get coverage tailored to delivery drivers, whether you are carrying parcels or food.
This insurance covers the increased risks involved when you work as a courier. Not only do you spend more time on the road, but you also visit other people’s properties and homes. So the chance of accidents or damage occurring is much higher and needs to be adequately covered with delivery insurance.
If you earn money by delivering parcels, groceries or any other third party goods, you will need courier hire and reward insurance in the UK. This is also known as H&R or commercial vehicle insurance.
This insurance offers the appropriate coverage for multi-drop deliveries and could cover working for popular companies like Amazon, Evri, DHL, Yodel, Deliveroo, Just Eat, or Uber Eats. It is also available for a range of delivery vehicles including cars, vans, motorbikes, scooters, and bikes.
Yes, if you work as a courier in the UK you will legally need hire and reward insurance. You could also need goods in transit insurance, however, this cover is tailored to long distance deliveries that are more common for lorries and large commercial vans.
For multiple deliveries made in a small area, courier delivery driver insurance will keep you safe and legal while you work. You need this cover regardless of whether you are delivering full-time, picking up part-time or seasonal courier work, or working as a self-employed courier.
What our experts say:
“There could be thousands of delivery drivers working across the UK without realising their insurance is not valid. With the cost-of-living soaring, millions of people are taking a hard look at their finances and seeking additional ways to earn a little extra cash” – Greg Wilson, Founder of Quotezone.co.uk
With so much demand for home delivery, services are utilising every possible vehicle. Deliveroo bicycle couriers are a common site, while companies like Tesco, Evri and Amazon Flex still focus on vans and cars. You’ll have the option of:
Just like with standard motor insurance policies, you’ll have the option of:
The option you choose will dictate the core coverage on your policy, so it’s important to review these carefully. You’ll also have to specify how you use the vehicle. For example, if you also rely on the van or car for social, domestic and pleasure use, make sure this is covered alongside your courier work.
If you are only taking on seasonal or temporary courier work, you might benefit from short-term or temporary courier insurance. This is not offered by every courier insurance provider but is still widely available and often more cost-effective when compared to annual policies.
Pay as you go parcel and food delivery insurance options also allow for more flexible and tailored coverage for temporary couriers. With a lot of courier work, like Amazon delivery driving, acting as a side gig or second source of income, this can help keep courier insurance costs down.
Some insurers will specialise in fast food delivery insurance with products like Uber Eats insurance. Temporary and pay as you go food delivery insurance is also available, giving you all the benefits of flexible insurance while tailoring coverage to your exact job.
Hire and reward insurance for the UK allows you to legally take on courier work. Depending on the cover you choose, it will generally protect your delivery vehicle itself, and accidental damage you cause to other people or their property while making deliveries.
As an example, if you have fully comprehensive hire and reward car insurance, you will be protected against damage to your car, even if you were at fault. This can be vital when you rely on your car or delivery van for both transportation and income.
Public liability insurance offers more comprehensive protection from harm or damage you accidentally cause to the public or their property while working as a delivery driver. It is commonly combined with courier insurance to protect you while you work around others.
This can offer financial support for any legal expenses and compensation claims you face through your work. This can be especially important if you are a self-employed delivery driver without the financial backing of a large delivery firm.
With so much reliance on your vehicle as a source of income, you might want to consider extra levels of coverage too. These are often available as add-ons to standard courier insurance policies.
Popular options with courier drivers include:
Hire and reward insurance won’t cover you if you deliver high-risk or hazardous goods over long distances, for example, between warehouses, or docks. It also does not cover the actual items you are delivering. These will require goods in transit insurance.
Generally, courier insurance for a car or van will cost more than standard car or van insurance policies. The cost of your courier insurance will be tailored to match your level of risk. Knowing what insurers see as a risk can help give you an idea of what you will pay, and could even help you find cheap hire and reward insurance quotes.
Your insurance history – If you have had an insurance policy cancelled or voided, or if you have built up a no-claims bonus.
Looking for the cheapest hire and reward insurance quotes can be essential to keeping your business costs down. However, don’t let low costs come above finding comprehensive insurance. Some methods to keep courier insurance costs down include:
Compare courier insurance quotes – Using online comparison websites like Quotezone could help you find a cheaper deal on courier insurance.
Unlike standard insurance, you could have to meet more criteria to get courier car insurance. For this and other courier insurance policies, providers can require you to:
When comparing courier insurance policies, the first things to consider are what coverage you want and what you can afford. When you compare with Quotezone, we only match you to trusted UK courier insurers who offer the coverage you need.
Comparing as many providers as possible can help you evaluate your options. Always be sure to consider the limits and exclusions of the policy alongside the coverage and premium before you buy.
While some courier services offer their workers some level of insurance coverage, it is not common practice and is unlikely to be comprehensive. If you are technically a self employed courier or independent contractor, you’ll need your own self-employed courier insurance. Companies like Amazon and Uber Eats will often require you to upload your insurance documents before you can start working for them. So securing food delivery insurance in the UK not only protects you and your car from the financial fallout that can follow accidents. It is also key to securing your job.
Because what you deliver affects the risk of insuring you as a courier, many insurers will specialise in insuring one type of delivery driver. Searching specifically for hire and reward insurance for food delivery will allow you to find insurers who can match your needs.
Similarly to fast food delivery insurers, certain insurance providers will favour drivers who deliver parcels. Options like specialist Evri insurance can have tailored coverage to match the risks specific to drivers who deliver a wider range of materials.
With many couriers picking up delivery driving as casual and part-time work, flexible insurance options are widely available. Pay-as-you-go and top-up courier insurance options allow short-term protection that can match the needs of those working in the gig economy.
Only been insured for a month, sogood so far
Carole
Wolverhampton, United Kingdom
Quotezone found me a very favourable alternative quote for my insurance
Lynne
Oldham, United Kingdom
4.76/5 from 3656 customer reviews
Car insurance has been through a turbulent time of late, however 2024 actually showed signs of premiums stabilising. Although the…
Read full guide : Car insurance data, research and statistics
England’s most prolific areas for speeding offences have been revealed and the area covered by Warwickshire Police has the highest…
Read full guide : The area of England that you are most likely to get caught speeding
New analysis from Quotezone reveals the professions that are consistently flagged as high-risk by insurers, resulting in some of the…
Read full guide : DATA – How your job title affects how much you pay for car insurance
From AI-generated imagery to staged accidents, false car insurance claims are on the rise with many using misleading or false…
Read full guide : What you need to know about car insurance fraud?
Hitting potholes isn’t fun – they can cause significant damage to your car and even result in a traffic accident….
Read full guide : How to claim for pothole damage
Electric Car Statistics: Trends and Surveys With the decision to delay the ban on new petrol and diesel cars from…
Read full guide : Electric Car Statistics – Trends and Surveys
