In response to rising insurance premiums, increased vehicle theft, and new motoring offences, specialist fleet insurance broker McCarron Coates is urging fleet managers to prioritise ‘insurance-worthiness’ alongside traditional concerns of roadworthiness.
The broker highlights the importance of comprehensive risk management practices, from daily walk-round checks to driver behaviour monitoring, as key indicators of a fleet’s insurance-worthiness. Advanced measures like installing safety devices and conducting regular driver training are also recommended to enhance a fleet’s appeal to insurers.
McCarron Coates points out the heightened risk of vehicle and goods theft amid the cost of living crisis, emphasising the role of theft prevention technologies in improving a fleet’s insurance profile. The brokerage also underscores the value of maintaining a claims-free record and the benefits of quick claims reporting, with delayed reporting potentially quadrupling costs.
The recent introduction of the offence of Causing Serious Injury by Careless or Inconsiderate Driving has added a new dimension to fleet management challenges with the potential for driving bans and prison sentences for convicted drivers and the possibility of employer prosecution. Defence strategies can maintain a fleet’s insurance-worthiness, and so McCarron Coates helps protect against this by offering legal representation services to its clients through its RTC Crisis Line.
“We want all fleets, whatever their nature or size, whether consisting of company cars, vans, coaches and buses, or HGVs, to really pay attention to their insurance-worthiness and keep this concept in mind, when managing their roadworthiness obligations,” says McCarron Coates Director Ian McCarron. “While it may seem a less tangible concept to grasp, it is a vital and multi-faceted one, comprising lots of actions that together combine to create a better image of a fleet, for presentation to an insurer.
“The plus side is that, in striving to impress an insurer, a fleet is inevitably better run, easier to manage, experiencing less downtime, boosting its productivity and becoming increasingly profitable. It is not just insurance premiums that can be kept down but many other costs associated with poor risk management too. Insurance-worthiness is a win-win for both fleet operator and insurer.”
