As a business the use of vehicles can cause you lots of issues that you need to be aware of, but it is easy to miss the fact that if you alter your vehicles you could be invalidating your insurance policy.   This is particularly important if you have a fleet of vehicles that are kitted out or tailored to your specific requirements.  An example of this would be equipment racking, beacons, key-less running and onboard power generation.  If you use an insurance broker or deal direct with the insurer make sure that you discuss the changes with them fully.

You should be careful about effecting changes to your vehicles or you may fall foul of the terms of your insurance policy.  If you don’t, you may be in breach of contract with the result that if you have a claim, they may be able to avoid paying you out and even require you to reimburse them for sums they have paid out on claims against you.  In hard economic times, the last thing you need is a fight with your own insurers which you may lose.

If your vehicles are not insured and your vehicle is involved in a collision that results in a death YOU could be prosecuted for causing or permitting death by driving whilst uninsured under section 21 Road Safety Act 2006.  That could lead to a prison sentence for you the business owner in addition to the driver who didn’t even know there was no insurance on the vehicle you provided them with.

If you are in any doubt I recommend that you talk to your insurance broker or insurance company.

Nigel Grainger

Senior Consultant

Fleet Risk Consultants