Van insurance can be for personal or business use. Private van insurance is referred to as “social use only” and means that you should only use your van for this purpose, whereas commercial van insurance will mean that you can use your van for business, whether it is carrying goods, or not.
One insurance company that specialises in van insurance of all kinds is one sure insurance.
Private Van Insurance
There are circumstances where someone will use a van for social use. For example, this can be if they need extra storage space in their vehicle to support a hobby. Playing certain sports or being part of a music group, which is just a hobby, can mean carrying equipment to take part. You can have that equipment insured separately by covering it on an “all risks” section of a household policy.
Vans can be a more secure way of carrying goods than putting them in the back of an estate car where the windows will display what is being carried.
Depending on the engine size of your van, you should know that you may have to pay a higher premium for the insurance. This makes it important to find the right insurance company that specialises in van insurance and so offers you a competitive premium. The good news is that many van insurance policies can be around the same price as car insurance policies when it is a small van. It is the larger vans that have the larger engines sizes and the greater capacities for goods transportation that are rated more highly.
Commercial Van Insurance
Whether or not you have van insurance that covers you for business is not determined by whether you carry goods or not, although you invariably will, but the purpose for which you use the van. In other words, whether it is as part of a business. If you in any way use your van for your business then you will need commercial van insurance or business use to cover it properly. Then you can extend to covering goods that are carried so that they are also insured. Tools of a trade can be carried rather than goods.
The cover with commercial van insurance will allow you to transport goods or materials as well as tools and have these insured along with your vehicle. Also, of course, you will have the third-party liability covered should you damage another person’s vehicle during business activities. This is a legal requirement as with car insurance.
Businesses will be considered to make more journeys on the road than where someone is just travelling to and from work, and so this will, of course, need to be reflected in the premium charged.
Comparing the Two
It is a matter of deciding just what you use your van for to select the right policy. If your van is in any way used for business, then you must have commercial van insurance. If it is for 100% social domestic and pleasure use then you can obtain insurance for a pleasing amount as long as you do not select a van that is bigger than your needs, just because it might have been cheaper to buy initially.
The importance of choosing the right van policy will mean the difference between having insurance or voiding your policy. If an accident should occur and you are using the van for business when you are insured for only social use, the claim will not be paid out by the insurer. This could have serious financial and legal implications.
It is possible to run a business from a car or van, but a van has the advantage of allowing you to transport larger packages and indeed heavier loads. The principle here is that the more you can carry, the more that you can deliver and therefore earn. It is cost-effective on fuel not to have to make several journeys when one journey is possible because you have a van. This is an eco-friendly approach as well as a financial consideration.
Hopefully the above has given you an insight into the major differences between van insurance that is intended for business use as opposed to that for personal use. It is vital to know the difference so that you are properly insured in the event of an accident or claim. Insurers can advise you on which cover it is that you need but if you use your van for business in any way then it must be insured for that.
