There are a myriad of different insurance covers available for taxi, private hire and taxi firms. For example a taxi fleet insurance policy may be more appropriate and potentially save you money if you operate 3 or more licensed vehicles.
Also if your taxi firm has a mixture of saloon, MPV’s and minibus type vehicles, one fleet policy will usually cater for the lot. Also the cover can be flexible whereas if your fleet has a mixture of old and new vehicles, the older vehicles can be insured on a third party basis and the newer vehicles can be covered on fully comprehensive basis. Taxi fleet policies can be taken out on named driver basis or on any driver usually over 25′s with a minimum UK licence of at least 2 years.
Taxi insurance premiums are usually higher if you operate in inner city areas as these are considered as a higher risk to the insurers. If you have the use of a garage and additional security on your vehicle such as an immobiliser, this will help in reducing your premium as well as restricting the cover to insured only driver.
It is extremely important that you obtain the correct type of taxi policy for your vehicle. The private hire insurance policy provides cover for taxi drivers holding a private hire drivers licence and also the vehicle has to be plated with a private hire vehicle licence. The public hire insurance policy provides cover for taxi drivers that hold a valid public hire drivers licence and the vehicle has to be permitted with a public hire vehicle licence. Private hire drivers cannot be hailed on a street and the booking must be pre-booked by the passengers. Under a public hire taxi licence the passengers can hail these taxis on the road or go to a designated rank.
When obtaining a taxi insurance quote always disclose any claims or accidents that you previously have had including non-fault claims. Having no claims bonus will reduce your taxi premiums considerably, even private car no claims bonuses with certain schemes.
It’s also advisable that if you have at least 5 years taxi no claims bonus to have them protected. Usually this will attract an additional premium but is usually approximately 10 to 15% extra.
Being agreeing to purchase any taxi policy it is advisable to check the terms and conditions of the policy as no two insurers policy wordings are the same. Some insurers give unlimited mileage whereas with some taxi insurance companies the mileage is restricted. Also check the excesses applicable on the policy for accidental damage, fire, theft and windscreen. A higher will result in a cheaper quote but can work out costly in the event of a claim. You need to decide what level of excess you feel comfortable with.
There are so many companies offering taxi insurance but finding an experience broker in this market is crucial as they will help you in finding the correct policy for your needs by searching the whole of the market
Active Insurance is a leading UK broker for taxi insurance.