It’s a legal requirement for all road vehicles to have motor insurance. The difference between standard car insurance and taxi-insurance is that taxi-insurance only covers motor vehicles that transport passengers for hire and payment.
Taxi insurance companies provide cover for minicabs, black cabs, minibuses, taxi fleets as well as public and privately hired vehicles. And in order to be eligible for taxi-insurance your vehicle(s) must firstly be licenced by your local authority.
Public or private
In the UK, there are two types of taxi-insurance: public and private-hire insurance. The former refers to vehicles that immediately pick-up passengers in the street, e.g. London black cabs, whereas the latter is only relevant to taxis where appointments and pick-ups are prearranged.
Most policies are either Named Drivers or Insured Only and, generally speaking, as the number of drivers on a policy increases, the cost of the premium rises. The premium will vary, however, depending on not only the number of drivers that you have, but their age and each of their no claims histories will also play a part in the cost of the premium.
Appropriate cover
Most taxi-insurance companies such as Swinton taxi insurance offer most of the traditional options such as Comprehensive/Third Party Fire and Theft and Third Party Only cover, but there is plenty of variety within each policy, so it’s important for you to research the cover best suits your business.
Taking some time to assess your company’s needs and the appropriate level of cover it needs can save you a lot of money, but beware false economies. While scrimping on cover will save you from larger premiums, having insufficient cover to get a damaged car back on the road is catastrophic to a business that is so heavily reliant on exactly that.
New company
If you are new to the taxi business and have started up your own taxi company then you should ideally shop around online for a cheap quote. Head for the online comparison websites where you should find some of the more reputable insurers. Don’t always go for the cheapest as you may find that it’s cheap simply because it provides less cover.
If you are able to demonstrate a good driving history through previous private car insurance policies or company car insurance policies, then this will definitely help lower your new quote. Where your business is based will of course have a huge bearing on what you pay.
Safety and security
As will the safety devices you fit to your cars, and where you store them. As with most vehicle insurance policies, if you can show the insurer that you keep your vehicles locked in secured areas, as opposed to parking them in the street, this will help to significantly lower your premium. Investing in high-tech reputable alarm systems and immobilisers may seem expensive to start off with but you will make immediate savings through reduced premiums.
