Self-Drive Hire FAQs

We can arrange insurance cover for most types of self-drive hire operation - everything from everyday car and van rental to high risk prestige and supercar hire. We also have special arrangements for self-drive hire motor homes, motor caravans, camper vans and horseboxes.

We do not currently provide self-drive hire insurance products for accident management operators or credit hire companies.

There are many things affecting self-drive hire insurance quotations but the principle factors are:

• Type of vehicle involved
• Value of the rental vehicles
• Area of the country in which your operation is based
• Claims history of the business.

We can cover self-drive hire risks in most regions of the UK - including Belfast (BT) postcode areas - but there are some inner city areas which our preferred underwriters avoid.

'Off hire' cover means insurance for your hire vehicles when not on hire - for example, when being driven by an employee of the business or when parked at your premises. Not all self-drive hire policies include cover when 'off hire' so you sometimes have to arrange separate cover.

Theft may occur when a hirer fails to return a vehicle at the end of a hire period or treats the hired vehicle as his or her own property - for example by selling it to another party.

In most cases we can arrange monthly instalment at competitive rates. Credit terms are subject to acceptance of your application and full written details are available on request.

No. We realise that you need to concentrate on hiring your vehicles and don't want to be swamped by paperwork so we try to keep this to a minimum. In most cases you will be able to continue to use your standard hirers form but the insurer will want to vet this to make sure it contains acceptable and compliant wording relating to insurance cover.

Yes. You must verify the hirer's identity and using some form of photo identity (e.g. photocard licence or passport). It will not be sufficient to simply check a standard non-photocard driving licence. It is recommended that ID is verified using at least one recent utility bill. On the day of hire, you should also check the original driving licence of all the drivers.

No. Insurers generally exclude cover for vehicles where the hirer has paid in cash. If you have a known and trusted customer who wishes to pay in cash then the insurer may agree to this but it must be referred for approval before the hire contract is concluded.

The excess will vary according to the type of vehicle, age of driver and the track record of your business. The minimum excess is generally £250 but it's more typical to have a £500 excess applying to most damage claims (including glass breakage) and a co-insurance of between 25% and 33.3% clause applying to theft claims. High value and high performance vehicles will often be subject to higher excesses but these will be specified in any quotation we provide. In addition to the standard excess, the policy will generally include an additional excess for young drivers. This is typically £300 for a driver aged between 21 and 24 years.

A co-insurance clause makes you responsible for a proportion of any loss. For example, a 25% co-insurance clause would mean that you would have to bear a quater of any loss with the insurer indemnifying you for the remainder. On self-drive hire policies, a co-insurance clause is often applied to theft cover and, in respect of motorhomes, fire damage claims caused by cooking or heating appliances.

Yes. Generally, drivers aged between 21 and 70 will be acceptable at normal terms provided they have held a full licence for at least 2 years and have a good driving record. However, for performance cars or high risk vehicles there will be further age restrictions - perhaps to drivers over 25 years of age or even 30 years for high value performance cars.

Yes. We realise that you need an insurance partner with a flexible and realistic approach to help you maximise value from your self-drive hire fleet. We can refer to the underwriters for specific approval on a case-by-case basis. Most importantly, we can get a swift response so you won't be kept waiting around for an answer and risk losing an opportunity to hire.

Very occasionally you will need to charge the hirer an additional premium but usually there will simply be an increased excess for that hirer. The precise terms will be confirmed on a case-by-case basis.

Some insurers charge a 'minimum and deposit premium' for self-drive hire risks. It means that you will have to pay the specified amount irrespective of whether or not you complete a year's cover and even if you change vehicles to something that would generally attract a lower premium. The insurers we work with generally only apply this term during the first year of insurance.

We can generally obtain a quotation for you within 1 working day of receiving your details.