Online retail delivery fleet insurance for your own delivery vans
For online sellers who have brought delivery in-house: vans carrying your own orders to customers' doors, from small parcels to two-person deliveries of furniture and appliances. Fill in one short form to be put in touch with specialist brokers who arrange cover for UK retailers' own delivery fleets.
- Your own stock to your own customers
- Two-person large item delivery
- Doorstep and in-home drops
Online retail delivery fleet insurance in brief
Online retail delivery fleet insurance is one motor policy for an ecommerce or multichannel retailer that runs its own vans to deliver its own orders to customers. Because the goods belong to the retailer until they are handed over, the vans are normally insured for carriage of own goods, not hire and reward. It is one of the retail and hospitality pages within fleet insurance for trades.
If the same vans start delivering other sellers' orders for a fee, the work becomes courier work and the cover needs to change. That side is explained on courier fleet insurance for hire and reward delivery.
Own fleet or courier
Own delivery fleet or courier: how the insurance changes
The choice between delivering yourself and handing orders to a carrier decides who insures the van and which class of use it needs.
| Point | Own vans, own orders | Using a courier | Own vans, other sellers too |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whose goods are in the van | Yours, until the customer receives them | Yours, but in the courier's van | Other sellers' as well as yours |
| Class of use the van needs | Carriage of own goods | None needed on your side | Hire and reward |
| Who insures the vehicle | Your fleet policy | The courier | Your fleet policy, with hire and reward added |
| Who controls the delivery | Your drivers and your timings | The courier's network | Your drivers, with other clients' terms too |
Some retailers keep couriers for small parcels and use their own vans only for bulky or local orders. Both can run side by side.
Large items
Two-person delivery of furniture, beds and appliances
Retailers selling bulky goods online often send a crew of two in a large van or Luton. The driving is only part of the job; carrying, unpacking and sometimes fitting inside the customer's home brings its own risks.
Lifting and carrying
Two staff moving heavy items from the van, up stairs and into rooms.
- Injuries while lifting are a staff matter
- Both crew members may drive on different days
- Employers' liability cover
Inside the customer's home
Scuffed walls, damaged floors and broken fittings during a delivery.
- Usually public liability, not the motor policy
- Room-of-choice and assembly services
- Public liability cover
Collections and old items
Faulty goods collected, and old appliances or furniture taken away.
- Returned goods back on the van
- Taking away a customer's old items
- Worth describing to the broker
Delivery to homes
What changes when the vans deliver to homes rather than shops?
Home delivery means many short stops in residential areas, often at unsocial hours. The vans are rated like any van fleet carrying its own goods, with these extra points for a home delivery round.
- Delivery slots and evenings: Customers expect evening and weekend slots, so vans may be on the road outside normal shop hours.
- Residential streets: Parking on narrow roads, reversing into driveways and stopping where loading is awkward.
- Leaving parcels safely: Smaller orders left at the door or with a neighbour, with the van door open for a minute at a time.
- Peak trading: Seasonal sales bring extra vans, extra drivers and longer routes for a few weeks.
- Branded vans: Livery helps the brand but makes a van recognisable as full of new goods.
What insurers ask
What do insurers ask a retailer running its own vans?
Insurers want to understand the orders as well as the vans. These details usually come up when a broker prepares a quote.
- What you sellElectronics and high-value goods attract more theft interest than bulky furniture.
- Order sizesSmall parcels, large items or both.
- VehiclesSmall vans, large panel vans, Lutons and any electric vans.
- Delivery radiusLocal same-day runs or regional routes from one warehouse.
- DriversEmployed drivers, warehouse staff and seasonal helpers.
- Overnight storageVans parked at the warehouse, a depot or drivers' homes.
How it works
One quote form, specialist fleet brokers
Insure Fleet is an information site, not an insurer or a broker. We link you to MyMoneyComparison.com, a comparison service that gives businesses a gateway to brokers who arrange fleet insurance every day.
Start your quote
Get my fleet quote takes you to our partner, MyMoneyComparison.com.
Describe the delivery fleet
The form asks about the vehicles, the work they do and who drives, so you can be matched with a specialist fleet broker.
Compare and decide
A broker contacts you with options, subject to insurers' acceptance criteria. There is no obligation to buy.
Before you buy
Questions to ask before bringing delivery in-house
Moving from a courier to your own vans shifts responsibility onto the business. These are the points worth clearing up first.
- Is every van insured for own goods?Business use alone may not cover goods being delivered.
- What if we deliver for a partner seller?That is hire and reward and needs adding first.
- Who may drive at peak?Seasonal staff may need approval or an any driver policy.
- Is damage inside a home covered?That usually needs public liability, not the motor policy.
- Are orders in the van covered?Stock on board normally needs goods in transit or stock cover.
- How are hired vans added for sales periods?Short-term vehicles may need declaring to the insurer.
FAQs
Online retail delivery fleet insurance questions
What is online retail delivery fleet insurance?
Online retail delivery fleet insurance is one motor policy covering the vans an online or multichannel retailer uses to deliver its own orders to customers. The vans are usually insured for carriage of own goods, with drivers and cover levels set across the fleet.
Do I need hire and reward cover to deliver my own orders?
Usually not. Goods you own, delivered by your own staff in your own vans, are normally carriage of own goods, even when the customer pays a delivery charge. Hire and reward is needed when you carry other businesses' goods for payment.
Is this the same as courier fleet insurance?
No. A courier carries parcels for many senders and is paid for the carrying, which is hire and reward. A retailer delivering its own stock is in a different position, and the policy is usually written for own goods.
What if we use self-employed drivers in their own vans?
Each driver then needs their own policy covering the work, and if they also deliver for others it usually needs to include hire and reward. Single drivers can find that type of cover through courier.insure.
Can a new online business set up its own delivery fleet?
Yes, though insurers will look closely at the drivers' records when the business has no fleet claims history. New business fleet insurance explains how a first fleet policy is usually rated.
Do florists and food retailers delivering online orders use this cover?
They can, though trades with special stock have their own points. A flower shop delivering web orders, for example, also has chilled stock and peak days to think about, covered on florist fleet insurance.
Does Insure Fleet sell insurance?
No. Insure Fleet is an information site and an affiliate of MyMoneyComparison.com, a comparison service that gives businesses a gateway to specialist brokers. When you start a quote you continue to MyMoneyComparison.com, and we may be paid a small commission if you are matched with and speak to a broker.
Ready to get your delivery fleet covered?
One form for vans delivering your own orders, no obligation.