It doesn’t matter if you’re delivering pizzas or diamonds; you’re going to want to have some kind of insurance coverage. Delivery is a unique type of business that warrants a smart and sometimes unique insurance plan for yourself or business. Being in charge of deliveries puts more than just you at risk, but includes other people’s items and hard work.
Regular Insurance
Presumably, if you’re in the business of delivery, you’ll be driving a vehicle of some kind. A big mistake people make is thinking their personal auto insurance will cover them if they get into an accident. Your regular insurance policy will most likely not do so. Many insurance companies have a clause in the contract that states, they forbid commercial use of the vehicle.
Listed under commercial use is delivery, this is true for people using their own vehicles. Coverage is gone once applied to commercial coverage. If you’re in an accident in a personal car delivering something, you will probably not be covered by a personal policy.
If you are involved in an accident without coverage, you may be responsible for damaged goods. It may then be up to the driver to replace or pay for repairs without using any insurance plans. Alongside that if any passengers of your vehicle or theirs have been injured, you may have to pay those medical bills. This is all because the original policy is void.
Specialty Coverage
You don’t want to be responsible for all of these potential accidents that can happen. In this regard if you’re the business overseeing the venture or the driver involved in the accident. All of the blame will be on the uninsured making you, your driver or business responsible for the financial reparations.
Insurance companies know this type of business is widespread and delivery drivers need different coverage. There is a specialty coverage that is available. There are a few caveats to the policy dependent on ownership of the vehicle, i.e. driver or employer owned.
Many companies involved in delivery, which for the most part is fast food, require employees drive their own vehicle. The company usually has purchased non-owned vehicle liability insurance. This is a type of insurance that covers delivery drivers with their own vehicles. It works alongside a personal policy and becomes the primary means of insurance in the event of an accident.
Varied Insurance
If you’re employees don’t drive their own vehicle or you don’t drive your own vehicle in a delivery service, a new kind of insurance is available to you. This policy is called a commercial auto insurance policy. It’s quite similar to the personal auto policy but is taken out by the business.
The employee who is the driver is put onto the plan and added as a driver in the policy. Standard liability business insurance used by a business does not cover driving or deliveries. They need to be separate in terms of automobiles. Two different liabilities insurance need to made with a special emphasis on commercial for delivery.
Legal Liabilities
Even with proper insurance, in the event of an accident there’s a possibility for litigation. If an accident has occurred, depending on the severity it may be cause for a lawsuit of some kind. This can either affect the business at large or any parties involved in the accident that may include the driver, owner of goods, and other persons.
There are law services out there that deal specifically with liability issues on both the employee and employer front. Beninato & Matrafajlo Attorneys at Law is one such example of a firm that can assist in an accident or claim. If there was an instance of no-fault insurance claim or significant loss of well being or income, then there could be terms of legal action to take.
Takeaways for Delivery
If you’re the business then there’s no excuse for not having viable coverage for delivery. Assuming they have coverage is no defense in the event of an accident and legal problem. Your business could be a potential risk if you do not provide the proper avenues for insurance and employers liability insurance.
It is important for both drivers and employers to work in tandem together to make sure both of them are adequately covered in the event of an accident. Having the insurance is an easy thing to do and in the end can save a whole lot of money and business integrity.
