If you are an owner operator of a lorry or a fleet of lorries, then a major consideration and expense will be the lorry insurance needed. Specialist insurance companies who deal with heavy goods vehicles, lorry and truck insurance or brokers acting on their behalf will be able to guide and advise you as the best policies available to meet your individual company needs.

With the credit crunch affecting may small and large business, looking for ways to cut expenses may be a high priority for many at the moment. Cutting back on adequate insurance is not an option. At times like these you will need to ensure that your vehicle and drivers are fully insured and covered for all eventualities.

The positive aspect here is that the insurance companies may also be feeling the effects of the country’s financial situation. As such there are some very competitive lorry insurance deals on offer at the moment.

Calculating the cost of lorry insurance can seem like a very complex task. It may be worth considering all aspects of the risks and weighing up all available options. Lorries carrying hazardous goods such as flammable liquids pose a potential risk to the driver and the general public therefore Public Liability insurance is a must.

Goods which are highly valuable have the potential risk of being targeted for theft, Goods in Transit cover may well be necessary if you are carrying goods for others.

There are a whole host of scenarios and risks which can increase the cost of lorry insurance. Carrying out a full risk assessment can save money on insurance costs as well as being a proactive way to monitor the efficiency of your business and drivers.

It is suggested that around 40% of people in the UK suffer from some type of sleep disorder. Road traffic accidents involving lorries is often caused or partly caused to driver tiredness of drivers. There are many drivers who suffer from sleeping disorders such as sleep apnoea who inadvertently fall asleep while driving, so it may be worth screening drivers for sleep disorders and re-schedule routes to take this into account In the UK driving hours are regulated to ensure drivers have sufficient ‘down-time’ to rest, however there are many continental lorry drivers who exceed the driving time by many hours, such lack of rest and sleep is attributed to causing many accidents involving lorries on the UKs roads.

Introducing top-up driver training schemes may help reduce the cost of your lorry insurance premiums, as well as help to make a saving on fuel with reduced excessive breaking and heavy acceleration techniques being introduced or re-enforced. Vehicle maintenance and wear on expensive tyres will also benefit from these types of driver training schemes. The insurance advisors will be able to help you find the most suitable training courses.

Talking with an insurance advisor about the potential risks your company faces when on the road and incorporating them into your insurance policy is well worth the time and effort. Especially when you consider that the average lorry insurance claim for fatal injuries is in excess of 1 million pounds, can you really afford not to have the correct lorry insurance?

Paul Headley is a specialist insurance article writer. Staveley Head are a leading UK insurance broker for
lorry insurance

[tags]lorry insurance[/tags]