Newbie driver here. Despite 30yrs car experience, I’m a newly qualified hgv driver. I’m driving self employed and am picking up a few jobs in the entertainment business. It’s been suggested to me I might “like” to get Drivers Negligence Insurance by one or two companies as their excess is high for new drivers and they’d require me to cover their losses in the event of a prang. Is this normal? Premiums for this kind of cover are stupidly high. Surely if someone’s going to employ you they take the risk that ■■■■ sometimes happens…
They are chancing their arm to get you to pay what they should be covering.
However, you say you’re self employed. In that case you may find that you would get the bill in an accident. Check what you have signed to find out.
Personally it sounds to me like your “employed” but on the books as self employed, as if you were self employed you would have this in place and factored the cost of this into your rate for the job.
Your comment at the end of employing you and taking the risk doesn’t apply as you are"self employed" meaning you have been “hired” to do a task. Failure to perform the task to standard hired for is therefore your risk not the companies.
I assume you’re on a higher rate as self employed compared to a PAYE job? This is what the higher rate is designed to cover. Rather than being a tax fiddle to earn more.
I am sure others more knowledgeable will give their opinion but I would say as a new pass you should either get the cover or a properly employed job. I have had drivers tell me of firms having 10k excess in the event of an accident. That’s going to hurt if something happens
Thanks for your response. I guess the problem arises when companies don’t necessarily need full time drivers on their books with the need to pay their tax,holiday pay,sick pay,NIC etc. As a self employed worker you take care of all that and may even have a public liability policy to protect your actions away from the vehicle. Another question, therefore is how do agencies deal with this when supplying freelance drivers? Do the hiring companies who own the vehicles (and therefore pay the insurance) take the risk or does the agency supplying the driver? Sorry if this is a schoolboy question! Like I say, I’m new to this.
I’ve always worked via agencies, and I’ve had a handful of minor ■■■■■ and scrapes during my formative early years. No-one has ever tried to pass a damage bill onto me.