16% of drivers using their own car for business have not declared business miles to their insurer, according to a poll by the AA. The AA Insurance MD says, “Adding business use to your policy is a small task, but can make a big difference”, as they advise business drivers to check their documents and ensure they are covered.
The survey of 1,855 drivers who use their personal car for work, the motoring group also found that one in 15 (6%) could not remember if they had declared their visits to clients, off-site meetings and conferences.
It’s important for business drivers to check their policies to ensure they are adequately covered when they use their own car for work. While many standard policies will protect the main policyholder commuting to one regular place of work, those carrying out visits to multiple sites or clients should upgrade their policy to include business use; failure to comply could lead to costly consequences.
Without the correct insurance cover, some drivers may find themselves unable to make a claim if they were using the vehicle for a business trip but had not informed their provider.
The specifics of business car insurance
The AA outlined that business car insurance falls under three classes:
Class 1: This covers driving between multiple places of work or occasional travel to meet clients. An example includes a care worker who drives to visit patients, but it excludes door-to-door sales. Your spouse may also be covered, but it’s best to check the policy’s wording.
Class 2: Offers the same as Class 1 but includes an additional named driver who’ll usually work for the same business. Deliveries and door-to-door selling aren’t included.
Class 3: This is the most expensive class and usually covers unlimited long-distance driving and door-to-door selling.
What can employers do to help?
RoadSmart, our online risk assessment and e-learning portal, helps you to remind your ‘grey fleet’ drivers of the insurance requirements, prompting them to provide a declaration to confirm they have the appropriate insurance if they use for using their own vehicle for business. The system can also be set up to make insurance certificates a requirement of their driver profile and will notify them when their insurance details are up for renewal.
RoadSmart also makes it easy for you to identify high-risk drivers who would benefit from further training. We can help you to address the development needs of these drivers with our range of on-road business driver courses, including our flagship Driving for Work course, and other targeted courses aimed at developing specific skills.
Find out more about our on road-courses, here.
Contact us today to receive a demo.
