Insurance Claims

The cost of getting a taxi back on the road after a crash is continuing to rise – and drivers are worried that they could be left footing the bill. Having been hit by the pandemic, rising fuel costs, and then the cost-of-living crisis, the soaring cost of parts is once again squeezing their finances.

Having taxi insurance that will take care of repairs and quickly get a cab back on the road gives many taxi drivers huge peace of mind.

But if you are involved in a collision, there are steps you have to take to make sure your insurance claim goes smoothly and you won’t be left with any expensive surprises.

The motor insurance industry takes two main factors into account when calculating insurance premiums – the risk and the cost of paying out a claim.

We recently looked at how the soaring cost of vehicle parts was pushing up the price of repairs and making taxi insurance and other business motor insurance claims more expensive.

Although you must have taxi insurance to operate legally in the UK, there are other types of insurance needed to run a taxi business.

And, typically, the bigger the operation, the more cover is needed to protect staff, passengers and the entire operation.

As the cost of living continues to increase, there are steps taxi drivers can take to reduce their taxi insurance premiums.

The rising cost of domestic car insurance made headlines recently after the Association of British Insurers revealed that soaring repair costs pushed the average vehicle premium to £511 – 21% higher than this time last year.

There are times when fleet taxi insurance is a better option for taxi companies than taking out public hire insurance or private hire insurance for individual drivers.

A fleet usually includes five or more vehicles used for either private or public hire and can include a mixture of cars and vans. This gives them the flexibility to be able to cater for all types of fares from short trips to longer trips.

Our advice to every taxi driver is to take out the best taxi insurance policy they can afford that offers them the most protection.

Whether they run a black cab and need public hire insurance, or need private hire insurance for their PHV, they should always try to take out the policy that offers them the most protection.

Taxi drivers understandably look for the cheapest taxi insurance deal they can find – but that doesn’t mean they are getting the best cover.

There is a lot of truth in the saying you don’t know how good your insurance is until you need it. If you keep paying low premiums for years and never make a claim, you will be happy with your choice of cover.

Taxi drivers know how important it is to have the right insurance to protect their business.

By law, all cab and private hire drivers must have third-party taxi insurance as the minimum cover. This is the lowest level of insurance and means that if they at fault for a crash, the other parties involved will be covered, as well as any passengers in the cab.

Every taxi business is different which is why an insurance broker can help drivers find the right taxi insurance for their specific needs.

Buying a taxi is a huge investment, so having the right insurance in place is vital to protect the driver in the event of a claim and to get the vehicle back on the road after an accident.

Taxi drivers pay higher taxi insurance premiums because of the amount of time they spend on the road, so it is no surprise that they could face even greater costs after a claim or conviction.

But this does not mean the end of the road for good deals on their taxi insurance – as long as they are honest with their taxi insurer and taxi insurance broker, when it comes to taking out or renewing their policy.

We are all feeling the pinch as the cost-of-living crisis makes things more expensive for everyone, so as taxi drivers continue to operate safely on the roads, they understandably want to know why their premiums are going up for their taxi insurance.

While a clean licence and claims-free motoring help keep taxi insurance premiums low, some of the factors that affect the price are beyond the control of drivers and insurers.