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Think Insurance can offer tailored Motor Trade Insurance policies for people in this area of business.

Forecourt fuel prices are at an all time high and are continually rising. Whether or not prices will stabilise is hard to judge and in the meantime it may be adviseable to try and reduce your fuel outgoings. That leaves an opportunity for people in the trade to make a decent living from this desire to save money.

Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) conversions are becoming more prominent on our roads as LPG is significantly cheaper per litre than unleaded or diesel – the price per litre can be found to be half that of petrol or diesel.

Whilst this is true, there are some issues about converting to LPG. The public may be wary of carrying LPG, believing it to be more hazardous to have in the vehicle – a misconception. LPG prices have been steadily increasing over the last few years as demand for the product has increased so others may believe that it is not economical anymore to convert. Also, there can be an issue with availability of stations to purchase the fuel.

However, most petrol engines are suitable for an LPG conversion which means that you can enjoy the cost and environmental benefits – LPG emits a lot less carbon dioxide than Petrol. The vast majority of vehicles will be converted into dual fuel meaning they can run on both LPG and petrol, and as such have two independent fuel systems & tanks. This means that you shouldn’t be able to run dry when out and about!

So, if you find this interesting maybe you could have a conversion business? When you do don’t forget to give us a call for your Motor Trader Insurance policy.

LPG conversions should only be undertaken by an LPGA Approved Conversion Specialist.

Think Insurance can provide you with a cheap insurance quote today, whether you are looking for a motor trade, home, taxi or commercial insurance policy, leave your details and we will contact you.

Think Insurance is an Insurance Intermediary that specialises in Motor Trade Insurance for full and part timers. As such we have noticed that there are a lot of myths when it comes to convictions.  We will try to give a clearer picture as to how these can affect your  policy.

Motoring Convictions :

Most minor motoring convections – for example an SP30 which is the most common speeding offence – will remain as rateable by the DVLA for 3 years from the date of conviction or date of offence if it is dealt with by fixed penalty.  The conviction has to remain on your driving licence for 4 years, at which point you may return your licence to the DVLA to have this removed.  The problem for you, the customer, is that you actually have to disclose these to your insurance company for 5 years!  So in effect, you could have a clean licence but still have a conviction which should be disclosed to your insurers.

There are some more serious convictions which have to be disclosed for longer periods – for example a DR10 conviction for Drink driving remains on your driving licence for 11 years – whereas again there is a discrepancy as most insurance companies will only rate on this for 5 Years.

Another myth that Think Insurance has come across is customer’s belief that once they have received a ban for totting up, known as a TT99, their  licence is clean again.  The TT99 is for a number of offences totalling 12 penalty points, or more, at which point you would be banned from driving for normally 6 months.  This does not in fact clear your licence but the convictions leading to the totting up are all replaced by the new code TT99 – which does have to be disclosed to your insurers and will remain on your driving licence for a period of 4 years from the conviction date (again most insurers will require disclosure for 5yrs).

In summary, if you’re not sure if something is valid it is better to be honest with your insurer or broker rather than find out when it’s too late after a claim occurs.  Most insurers take a very dim view when a customer non discloses any motoring conviction – and this will generally  result in at least an additional premium. In some cases however it may result in Voidance of the policy from inception and that would mean your insurance would be treated as if there was never any in place.

Criminal Convictions :

Most customers don’t realise that criminal convictions are relevant when applying for insurance – some insurers do ask the question in their proposal form when you are applying for insurers while others don’t.  A question that all insurance companies abide by  is whether there are any relevant material facts.  Material facts are anything the insurer would deem to have a bearing on your risk and which therefore could influence the level of premium imposed, or  indeed whether the insurer was prepared to accept you as a client.  One case would be a criminal conviction even if it is not asked for specifically.

Criminal convictions should be disclosed in line with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act – but as a rough guide any criminal conviction with a prison sentence of 6 months or should be disclosed for 7 years and sentences of more than 6 months are to be disclosed for 10 years.

For any further information regarding motor trade insurance or any other forms of cover give us a call.

Think Insurance – Quality, Service and Price

Think Insurance can provide you with a cheap insurance quote today, whether you are looking for a motor trade, home, taxi or commercial insurance policy, leave your details and we will contact you.

So what motor trade insurance can you have? What types of covers are on offer from Think Insurance?

Third Party Only – This covers you on any stock, customer or own vehicles that you can drive for the designated use. It covers any damage done to the Third Party if it is your fault but does not unfortunately cover your own damage. For example if you hit someone from behind, their vehicle is covered but not your own. Similarly you have no cover for vandalism, fire, theft or malicious damage at this level. This insurance is normally the cheapest and offers a cost effective but riskier cover.

Third Party Fire and Theft – This is very similar to the Third Party Only cover, however you do also get cover for any damage to your vehicle (or customer’s) caused by fire, or if your vehicle is stolen.

Comprehensive – This is the cover which is the most expensive, but it does insure you for the most cover. This is different to the previous two covers: Comprehensive insurance covers damage to your vehicle even in the event that the damage was caused by your own fault (or someone else’s fault when you can’t claim off them). This can be in an accident – eg . running into the back of someone or just having a single vehicle accident. It also covers you for theft, fire and unlike other covers, malicious damage. The misconception of this cover is that you can also drive cars not on your policy for social use cover, this is not true. You may drive your own vehicles for social and trade use – but you may only drive another person’s vehicle for trade use – eg taking a customer’s vehicle for an MOT etc

Overall you need to weigh up the risk you are comfortable with  and what is feasible for your needs. If it is a policy where you are only driving your own cheap cars  it may be silly to insure yourself comprehensively and reduce the amount of profit available. Similarly if you need to drive customer’s cars it may be better to pay more and receive better cover. The choice for people in the trade is ultimately down to you – but remember if in doubt it is always best to contact a knowledgeable, specialist broker for advise on your motor trade insurance policy.

Think Insurance – Quality, Service and Price

Think Insurance can provide you with a cheap insurance quote today, whether you are looking for a motor trade, home, taxi or commercial insurance policy, leave your details and we will contact you.

When it comes to insuring a so called ‘supercar’, there can be a few grey areas regarding their classification and whether or not you can be covered for them on your regular traders policy. We have given you a brief overview of some of the basic information to take note of if you are looking to get a supercar added onto your cover.

Can you get covered for supercars on a motor trader insurance policy?

Most people would expect the answer to be a straight forward NO, but actually, depending on the insurer, you can sell super cars for a reasonable additional premium or sometimes you may even be able to do so at no extra cost!

Can I have a supercar for my own private car?

The answer is the same – yes (subject to the right insurer), you can have a supercar as your own personal car but there will be an additional charge to do so. Again it does depend on finding the right company that will allow you to do so.

What cars are classed as supercars?

Here is a list of what is generally classed as a supercar:

Bentley

Lotus

Porsche

Rolls Royce

Ferrari

Lamborghini

Bugatti

Aston Martin

Maserati

A C Cobra

TVR

(always check if in doubt as insurer’s lists vary – eg a Jaguar XJ220 would surely be a supercar!)

Depending on the insurance company you will be allowed differing levels of interaction and cover with Supercars.

Some policies allow the sale and repair of super cars but will not cover you to drive your own e.g. for social purposes. Some will allow you to drive, keep, sell, fix or wash supercars for no extra charge. On the other hand, others will not give cover in any shape or form at this level and would cancel the policy immediately if they thought they were covering such vehicles! Then again you may find a company that will judge your risk on an individual merit basis – i.e. have you any experience driving these vehicles and are you willing to pay a higher premium for the cover.

Remember the cheapest quote is not always the best quote and usually there is a reason why they are cheaper i.e. restrictions to vehicles and numbers of private and stock vehicles.

It is important that you always check with your broker when sourcing a motor trade insurance policy.

Think Insurance – Quality, Service & Price

Think Insurance can provide you with a cheap insurance quote today, whether you are looking for a motor trade, home, taxi or commercial insurance policy, leave your details and we will contact you.