Using your pickup for work
Pickup trucks are often used on farms and in agricultural businesses for tasks like transporting animal feed and small items of farm machinery. Hitch a trailer to the rear of the pickup and livestock such as sheep can be transported to market.
In urban areas, tradespeople such as plumbers and electricians who don’t necessarily have to lug bulky equipment to a job are choosing to replace Transit vans with pickup trucks.
If you use your pickup truck in connection with your work, you’ll need to take out a commercial insurance policy. When getting a quote, we’ll ask how you use your pickup. You should choose the option that’s most relevant to how you use it.
Rather than have specific policies for pickups, insurers will usually treat your pickup truck in the same way as a van of similar size, offering similar policies, prices and level of cover options.
Commercial van insurance policies for your pickup truck will normally include cover for:
- Driving to multiple places of work
- Transporting work-related goods or tools
Depending on the insurer, commercial policies can be extended to cover carrying hazardous goods, specialist tools and materials, or equipment and modifications like winches and snorkels.
If you use your pickup for haulage or courier work, you'll want to look into goods in transit or courier policies, as they may offer better protection for your specific needs.
How to get cheap pickup insurance
Bigger, more powerful vehicles are usually more expensive to insure than smaller ones. And, if you’ve made any insurance claims in the last few years, it’s likely the premiums will be higher.
However there are steps you can take which could reduce your pickup premium:
- Choose a smaller, less powerful pickup truck
- Add extra security
- Don’t auto renew
- Build up a no-claims bonus
- Pay a higher voluntary excess
- Consider a black box policy
Choose a smaller, less powerful pickup truck because typically, pickups under 3.5 tonnes (the combined weight of the vehicle AND its load) are cheaper to insure. If your pickup does weigh more than this, it’s classed as a HGV and you’ll need truck insurance.
Add extra security to your pickup truck such as anti-theft devices and immobilisers to discourage potential thieves.
Don’t auto renew because sticking with your current insurer isn’t always the cheapest option. Compare pickup truck insurance quotes to make sure you’re getting the best deal.
Build up a no-claims bonus that could shave pounds off your insurance.
Pay a higher voluntary excess if you can, as it could bring your insurance cost down. Be sure to consider any compulsory excess listed on the policy as you will have to pay this and the voluntary excess if you claim.
Consider a black box policy for your pickup that uses a small telematics device installed to your truck, or an app on your phone to monitor your driving. If the device confirms that you’re a safe, responsible driver, your insurer may offer further discounts as it views you as a lower risk.
Will commercial insurance cover what I’m carrying in my pickup?
There are two options available if you use your pickup to transport business-related goods, such as tools. These are:
Carriage of your own goods is needed when you’re carrying tools of the trade that you own to complete your work. Builders, plumbers, electricians and gardeners are likely to have this type of insurance.
Be aware this usually excludes the carriage of other people’s goods or passengers for hire or reward. So if you’ve borrowed your mate’s router table to use on a job and it’s stolen from your pickup, you won’t be covered.
Haulage cover is needed if you’re paid to carry goods owned by someone else, for example, as a delivery driver or furniture removals driver. This cover may not come automatically with your commercial insurance policy and you may need to buy additional or alternative cover such as goods in transit or courier insurance policies.
Another aspect to bear in mind, whether your insurance needs are private or commercial, is when you add a “replacement hire car” option to the policy. If your pickup is off the road for whatever reason, your replacement car is unlikely to be a pickup truck.
Depending on the policy you choose, your replacement vehicle could be a small hatchback or similar-sized car. So if this aspect of cover is important to you, take steps to ensure any replacement car is suitable for your needs.
What our van insurance expert says
It might seem obvious but adding extra security measures like alarms and trackers can make your pickup less prone to theft. As well as better security, the upshot of this is insurers then see it less of a risk and might offer you cheaper insurance.
Daniel McCulloch
Head of van insurance
Types of van insurance
Commercial van insurance
protects your van and its cargo if you use your van for haulage or business use.
Temporary van insurance
gives you cheap, short-term cover from 1 to 28 days for social and business use.
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