Taxi Insurance is a term that can cover a number of types of insurance but, whatever form of taxi or taxi fleet you run, we can help.

We specialise in taxi insurance wherever, both for traditional public hire (cabs which can be hailed in the street) or private hire, where prior booking is required. We can also cover a range of vehicle types, from black cabs to saloon cars, executive vehicles and MPVS. Our services offer you the opportunity to get competitive quotations from a range of companies, such as Aviva, RSA and the Equity Insurance Group. All understand the demands of the taxi driving community and recognise that, when it comes to a claim, taxi drivers cannot afford for their vehicles to be off the road for one minute longer than necessary.

So rather than seeking multiple quotations from a series of different websites just ask us, and we will get a panel of specialists on the case, sorting you out a range of competitive quotations in next to no time. Click on the green button above to get started.

We will be delighted to help you find cover whether for both public hire and private hire taxis.

Private hire vehicles (often referred to as minicabs) are normally booked for appointment via a fixed office normally licensed with the local authority - drivers are then contacted to go to the booking or collection address.

Public hire taxis can be hailed on the street or picked up at a station at any time. Commonly called black cabs or more properly hackney cabs or carriages these cabs are normally more heavily regulated than minicabs. If you are working within the London Public Carriage Office area, you will have had to have passed 'The Knowledge' proving your ability to work out the quickest route across the capital in an instant.

Once you know the cab type then you can consider the type of insurance required.

Most taxi drivers choose comprehensive cover for their vehicles as they are essential to you as your main source of income. The legal minimum third party cover would not normally offer a replacement vehicle if yours was off the road due to an 'at fault' incident.

There are a number of factors which will greatly influence your premium - including the following:

Your base and area you drive in. This will be the address of your office, or the plating authority where you drive. As with any motor insurance policy, drivers in major cities such as London, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol or Glasgow tend to pay higher premiums due to the increased number of traffic accidents which occur there. Additionally premiums may rise due to the increased risk of taxi drivers facing say drunken behaviour, which increases the risk of damage to your cab.

Additional drivers

If the taxi is being insured for just you to drive it ignore this paragraph, but if you are looking to add additional drivers do consider the following. Adding drivers under the age of 25 can increase your premium, as it probably will if your other drivers have a poorer driving record or a history of claims. If your extra drivers do fall into this category if might be worth seeing if you can avoid them being added. If, however, your additional drivers have a better record than your own, you might find their addition will benefit you. Do, however, be totally open when applying for insurance - as, if you pretend a driver with a better record or who is older is the main driver when that is not actually the case (a process called 'fronting'), the insurer may decide that your claim is invalid leaving you very out of pocket.

Your driving license and taxi badge

All insurers will normally expect drivers to have a full UK license. Some will ask for a number of years experience, others are more flexible.

The length of time you have held a taxi badge for can significantly reduce your premiums as, after a year, insurers will start to offer discounts. Again though, insurers will be flexible, but this will more than likely be reflected in the premium.

No Claims Bonus

Mirrored no claims bonuses are a wonderful thing - this means that, if you have a no claims bonus (NCB) on your normal car policy, it can be mirrored onto your private hire or public hire insurance policy. This only really applies when you first take out taxi insurance as thereafter your taxi insurance no claims discount will be the more important factor.

Long term it's much better to buy an annual rather than monthly policy as it's only annual policies which usually allow you to build a no claims bonus. If you can, buy an annual policy but pay monthly for it to spread the costs.

### What type of vehicle do you drive?

Taxis now come in all shapes and sizes - whereas once the market was dominated by black cabs (the LCI TX1, TX4 or FX) now people carriers or passenger vans, (Ford Galaxy, Mercedes Vito or similar) are growing a firm foothold. And, as well as German saloons such as Audi, Vws and Mercs, the Japanese companies including Toyota, Lexus and Nissan have their supporters. Whichever vehicle you go for, the price, age, quality and the size of the engine will be factors which affect your taxi insurance premium. Nevertheless probably the number of passengers you carry will be the biggest factor when it come to the cost.

It is, therefore, really worthwhile considering how many extra journeys you will get through owning a 9 seater rather than a standard 5 seater.

Usage

Unlike a normal car insurance policies mileage tends to have less of an impact on taxi insurance premiums. Most offer unlimited mileage cover, although it is worth asking about limited mileage policies if you expect to do a low mileage as some brokers and insurers do offer them.

If you only do school runs let your insurer know - school run only policies can cost half that of standard cab insurance

Other factors

Where your vehicle is kept overnight can have an impact on your taxi premium, as can the amount of excess you are willing to pay if you have an at-fault accident or your taxi is stolen. Add-ons such such taxi breakdown cover(including cover which would mean you are supplied with a replacement taxi if your own vehicle is off the road) are worthwhile considering. Public Liability insurance is also worth considering in case a passenger makes a claim against you. This can extend beyond the third party cover your taxi insurance offers.

This service is operated on our behalf by Seopa Limited.

This content was last reviewed on 26/03/2024