In order to be able to legally drive your van on a public road in the United Kingdom, one of the prerequisites is that you have a valid level of insurance cover. As with car insurance, there is a massive choice of insurance companies out there that are ready and willing to provide you with insurance cover on your van.
Although the van insurance market is certainly competitive, it sadly does not mean that van insurance is cheap; in fact, on average it’s usually cheaper to insure a car than it is a van!
If renewal time is looming and you are dreading the prospect of having to pay a stupidly high insurance premium for a vehicle that is to all intents and purposes your bread and butter, then you ought to check out these top tips to help lower those premiums – and keep that case in your pocket, rather than in the bank accounts of insurance companies!
1. Make your van more secure
You often hear stories about how people’s vans are being broken into all the time by thieves who assume that valuable tools and equipment are left inside of them overnight.
This not only causes a great deal of stress, grief and inconvenience for the van owner, but it could potentially put that person out of business if they are a sole trader and rely on the van and the tools contained within them to earn a living.
Because of this fact, insurance companies feel that the risk of theft from vans is significantly higher than from cars. You can take some steps to secure your van, such as fitting an alarm and immobiliser, installing extra security locks on the doors, and using visual deterrents such as stickers that say ‘no tools kept in van overnight’.
2. Adjust voluntary excess figures
Sometimes, increasing the amount of voluntary excess on your insurance policy can help to significantly reduce your premium. It is worth adjusting the amount of voluntary excess on your policy when you are looking at quotes online, so that you can see which amount offers the best mix of excess amount and final premium.
3. Declare your NCB (no-claims bonus)
If you have racked up some no-claims bonus on your car, then you should make the insurance company aware of this fact when you are getting van insurance quotes.
It may surprise you to learn that some insurance companies will take on board this information, and in many cases, it can help to drive down the cost of your van insurance – simply because you have proved to the insurer that you’re as high a risk as they first thought.
4. Buy a modern van
Got a rusty old van? If so, then you might want to consider buying a brand new one, or perhaps a nearly-new one from a trusted van dealer such as Western Vans. One of the reasons why van insurance can be pricey is down to the lack of parts availability on older models.
If you have a newer van, then parts will be easier to get hold of – which is useful for insurance companies as it means they won’t necessarily have to write off your van in the event of an accident.
