Business insurance
Goods in Transit Insurance
Cover for the load in the van, on the basis the contract needs, with the security conditions that decide a theft claim
One policy for the goods in the vehicle, whether they are your own tools and stock or other people’s goods carried for payment, with a limit per vehicle or per load, a basis of cover that matches your conditions of carriage, and security conditions on the vehicle when it is left. What you get depends on the insurer.
- Own goods, or other people’s goods carried for payment
- Liability under conditions of carriage, or full value
- A limit per vehicle or per load
- FCA authorised and regulated
Quick answerGoods in transit insurance covers goods while they are being carried in a vehicle, loaded and unloaded, against loss or damage on the road. It is written two ways: for your own goods and tools, or for goods belonging to other people that you carry for payment, where the policy follows the terms you carry them on. The limit per vehicle or per load, the basis of cover and the conditions on the parked vehicle are what decide a claim. Tell MyMoneyComparison.com about your business once, and specialist UK commercial brokers can come back to you with quotes to compare.
This page is about the load, not the vehicle. Insuring the van itself for delivery work, the class of use that needs, and what the delivery platforms ask for are on our courier insurance and hire and reward insurance pages. Here we cover what happens to the goods: whose they are, on what terms you carry them, how much the policy pays, and what it expects of a vehicle left with a load inside.
At a glance
The Short Version for Goods in Transit
The short answers before the detail below.
- The goods, not the vehicle
- A separate policy from the motor insurance. The van policy covers the van; this covers what is inside it
- Whose goods they are
- Your own tools and stock, or other people’s goods carried for payment. The two are written differently
- The basis of cover
- Your liability under the conditions you carry on, or the full value of the goods whatever your liability
- A limit per vehicle or per load
- The most the policy pays for any one load. Set it to the biggest load, not the average
- The vehicle when it is left
- Locked, keys out, alarm set, and overnight rules that differ by policy. Theft from an unattended vehicle is where claims fail
- What it leaves out
- Cash, livestock, high-value goods and hazardous loads on many policies unless agreed; delay and consequential loss on many
The basics
What Is Goods in Transit Insurance?
Cover for goods while they are carried in a vehicle, and usually while they are loaded and unloaded, against loss, theft and damage. It is separate from the motor policy, which insures the vehicle and the injury or damage it causes to others, and either says nothing about the load or covers it only to a small limit.
Three things decide what a goods in transit policy is.
Whose goods
A builder carrying tools and materials needs own goods cover. A courier or haulier carrying other people’s goods for payment needs cover for goods they are responsible for but do not own.
On what terms
A carrier is responsible for goods on the terms it agrees with the customer, often a trade body’s standard conditions with a limit per tonne. The policy can follow those terms, or insure the full value regardless.
Up to what limit
Every policy carries a limit per vehicle, per load or per consignment, and some a limit per item. The limit is what the policy pays on the worst day, so it is set to the biggest load.
Nobody has to hold it. There is no requirement to carry goods in transit cover, but many customers, contracts and delivery platforms ask to see a certificate before they hand over a load, and a van policy alone leaves the load uninsured. What the platforms ask of a courier is on our courier insurance page.
How it works
How a Goods in Transit Policy Is Written
You describe the goods, the vehicles and the terms you carry on, the broker places the cover on the right basis, and the policy sets the limit and the conditions.
Describe the goods and the work
What you carry, for whom, the value of a typical load and of the biggest, how many drops a day, whether any of it is high value, perishable or hazardous, and how far you go.
Describe the vehicles and where they stop
The vans or lorries, their security, where they are parked overnight and whether loads are ever left in them.
The broker places it on the right basis
Own goods for tools and stock; carrier’s liability where you work to standard conditions; full-value cover where a contract or a customer demands it.
The policy sets the limit and the conditions
A limit per vehicle or per load, an excess, and the conditions on a vehicle left with goods inside. A certificate is issued for the customers who ask.
What it covers
What Does Goods in Transit Insurance Cover?
The goods in the vehicle against loss, theft and damage, on whichever basis the policy is written, up to the limit and within the conditions.
| What | Where it stands | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Loss or damage on the road | Standard | Accident, fire, theft and damage to the goods while carried |
| Loading and unloading | On many policies | Goods damaged while being put in or taken out of the vehicle |
| Theft from the vehicle | Subject to conditions | Paid where the vehicle was locked and secured as the policy requires; excluded where it was not |
| Your liability as carrier | One basis of cover | What you owe the customer under the conditions you carry on, up to their limit per tonne or per item |
| Full value of the goods | The other basis | The goods themselves, regardless of your liability, where the contract demands it |
| Own tools and stock | The own-goods basis | The builder’s tools, the caterer’s stock, the engineer’s equipment in the van |
| Temporary storage | On some policies | Goods held overnight at a depot or in the vehicle, where declared and within the conditions |
| Europe and beyond | Where declared | UK-only as standard on many policies; wider territory on request |
The basis of cover is the line to read. A policy that insures your liability under standard conditions pays what those conditions make you owe, which for a light, valuable load can be far less than the goods were worth. A policy that insures the full value pays for the goods. Which one a customer expects is in the contract, and a mismatch is where a claim disappoints.
Exclusions
The Loads and Losses Goods in Transit Leaves Out
Some goods are excluded unless agreed, some losses are excluded on many policies, and one condition on the parked vehicle does more damage to claims than the rest put together.
Theft from an unsecured vehicle
A load taken from a vehicle left unlocked, with keys in it, with the alarm off, or parked overnight somewhere the policy does not allow, is outside cover on nearly every policy. The conditions are set out below.
Goods excluded unless agreed
Cash and bullion, livestock, fine art, jewellery and other goods attractive to thieves, hazardous loads and, on some policies, electronics and tobacco. Declared and agreed, some can be added; undeclared, they are out.
Delay and consequential loss
A late delivery and what it costs the customer are excluded on many policies. Where a carrier’s liability for delay is covered at all it is limited, often to the carriage charges.
Wear, tear and bad packing
Goods that deteriorate on their own, are badly packed, or were already damaged before loading are not a transit loss.
Goods you subcontracted
Some policies cover goods you pass to another carrier; some do not, or only where you checked the subcontractor holds cover. Worth asking.
The vehicle itself
Damage to the van and injury or damage caused to others are the motor policy’s job. Goods in transit does not step in for either.
The basis of cover
Own Goods, Carried Goods and the Contract in Between
Goods in transit is written on the goods, then on whose they are, then on the terms you carry them. The same van can need any of these.
| Basis | What it is | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Own goods | Your tools, stock and equipment in your own vehicle | Written on the value of what you carry; the tradesperson’s and caterer’s policy |
| Carrier’s liability | Other people’s goods, carried on standard conditions | Pays what you owe the customer under those conditions, usually a limit per tonne; the general haulage policy |
| Full value | Other people’s goods, insured for what they are worth | Pays for the goods regardless of your liability; what many contracts and platforms require |
| Removals | Household and office goods | Often a separate policy on the remover’s conditions, with rules on goods the customer packed |
| Courier and multi-drop | Many small consignments a day | A limit per vehicle and often per item; written to suit parcels, not pallets |
| Specialist loads | Refrigerated, vehicles, plant, livestock | Written for the load: temperature, the transporter, the animal; on their own terms |
Related pages. The van policy a courier needs is on our courier insurance page, the lorry on our HGV insurance page, and several delivery vans on one policy on our courier fleet insurance page.
Who it is for
Who Carries Goods for a Living, and Who Just Carries Tools
Anyone whose vehicle has something in it worth losing: couriers and hauliers carrying for others, removers, tradespeople with tools and materials, caterers and florists with stock, engineers with equipment, and businesses delivering their own products.
The question is whose goods are in the van. If they are yours, the policy is written on their value and the work is describing what you carry. If they belong to a customer, the policy is written on your responsibility for them, and the work is matching it to the terms you carry on: standard trade conditions with a limit per tonne for general haulage, or full value where a contract or a delivery platform demands it.
Carrying for others
Couriers, hauliers, removers
The customer expects the goods to arrive, and the contract says what you owe if they do not. The policy is set to that: the basis, the limit, and often a certificate the customer asks to see before the first job.
Carrying your own
Tradespeople, caterers, engineers
Tools, stock and equipment that the business cannot work without. The policy is set to their value, with the overnight rules mattering most: a van full of tools on a driveway is the loss these policies are most often tested on.
The van policy is separate. Some van and courier policies include a small amount of goods in transit cover, enough for a tradesperson’s tools on some, rarely enough for a paid load. Which van policy a courier needs is on our courier insurance page; the guide for couriers in particular is our goods in transit for courier drivers guide.
The choice
Carrier’s Liability Cover vs Full-Value Cover
Cover for other people’s goods is written one of two ways, and the customer’s contract usually decides which.
| Carrier’s liability | Full value | |
|---|---|---|
| What it insures | Your responsibility to the customer under the conditions you carry on | The goods themselves, for what they are worth |
| What it pays | What those conditions make you owe, usually a limit per tonne or per item | The value of the goods lost or damaged, up to the policy limit |
| A light, valuable load | Can pay far less than the goods were worth | Pays for the goods |
| The customer’s position | Claims against you within the conditions; may hold their own cover for the rest | Looks to you for the full loss |
| What contracts and platforms ask for | Accepted for general haulage on standard conditions | Required by many contracts and delivery platforms, at a stated limit |
| The premium | Usually the lower of the two | Usually the higher, because more is insured |
| The paperwork | Your conditions of carriage, agreed with the customer | The contract, stating the limit the customer expects |
| Where it goes wrong | A customer who never agreed to your conditions | A limit set below the loads actually carried |
Conditions of carriage only work if the customer agreed to them. A carrier whose terms were never sent, signed or referred to on the paperwork may find it owes the full value of the goods while holding a policy that pays a limit per tonne. A broker who places this cover will ask which conditions you use and how customers accept them.
Cost
What a Goods in Transit Premium Turns On
The goods, the limit, the basis of cover, the vehicles and where they stop, and the claims record. We do not print average premiums.
Why the goods come first
A van of pallets and a van of phones are different risks at the same value. What is carried, how attractive it is to thieves and how easily it spoils are what an insurer rates before it looks at the vehicle.
Why the limit and the basis matter
A higher limit per load and full-value cover both mean more is insured, and the premium follows. Setting the limit to the loads you actually carry, and the basis to what the contract needs, is where the premium is decided.
What the quote is rated on
In roughly this order
- The goodsWhat, for whom, how attractive to thievesBase
- Limit and basisPer vehicle or per load; liability or full valueRate
- Vehicles and stopsHow many, their security, overnight parkingRate
- Territory and mileageUK only or wider; drops a dayRate
- Claims recordRecent losses, and how they happenedAdjust
The goods
Declared honestly, a mixed load is priced as a mixed load. A category left off the proposal is a claim reduced, or declined, later.
The limit
Set to the biggest load, not the average. A limit below the load means the shortfall above the limit is yours, and on some policies a proportion of every claim.
The security
Alarms, immobilisers, slam locks, cages and a locked compound overnight are what an insurer asks about, and some offer better terms for them.
The parked vehicle
Where the Van Is Parked Decides the Theft Claim
Theft from a vehicle left with goods inside is the loss where goods in transit claims most often fail, because the conditions on the parked vehicle are strict and differ by policy.
Locked, keys out, alarm set
Nearly every policy requires the vehicle to be locked, the keys removed and any alarm or immobiliser set whenever it is left, however briefly. A delivery drop with the engine running is where this is tested.
Overnight, and where
Many policies exclude theft from the vehicle between set night hours unless it is in a locked building or a secured compound, and some exclude it unless the goods are removed. Some allow a driveway or the street with a load inside; many do not. The policy states the hours and the places.
Goods in view
Some policies require goods to be out of sight, in a cage or a locked compartment, or exclude theft from an open-backed vehicle. Tools on a pickup bed are the common failure.
Declared security
An alarm or a slam lock declared on the proposal is a condition of cover. A vehicle without the declared device, or a device not set, is the same as an unlocked one to the insurer.
Quote checklist
What a Goods in Transit Quote Asks About
The goods, the terms you carry on, the limit you need, the vehicles and where they stop.
The goods
What you carry, for whom, and whether any of it is high value, perishable, hazardous or live.
The values
A typical load, the biggest load, and the most valuable single item. The limit is set from these.
The terms
Whether you carry on standard trade conditions, your own terms or a customer’s contract, and what limit that contract states.
The vehicles
How many, what type, their security, and whether any are open-backed or refrigerated.
Where they stop
Overnight parking for each vehicle, whether loads are left in them, and any depot or storage in between.
The claims record
Losses over recent years and how each happened. A theft from a locked compound and a theft from a driveway are different stories to an insurer.
The customer’s contract is worth having to hand. It says what basis and what limit the customer expects, and a certificate that shows less than the contract asks for will be sent back. The vehicle side of a courier’s quote is on our courier insurance page.
Comparing
Reading Goods in Transit Quotes: the Limit, the Basis and the Conditions
The premium and the limit are the first two numbers on any comparison. The basis of cover and the parked-vehicle conditions are what decide whether a claim is paid.
On the basis
- Whether the policy insures your liability under conditions, or the full value
- Whether it matches what your customers’ contracts and platforms require
- Whether goods you subcontract are covered, and on what condition
On the limits
- The limit per vehicle, per load and, where stated, per item
- Whether a limit below the load reduces every claim in proportion
- The excess, and whether theft carries a higher one
On the conditions
- The overnight hours and where a loaded vehicle may be left
- What security must be fitted and set, and whether goods must be out of sight
- Whether loading, unloading and temporary storage are included
In your own plans
- Loads getting bigger or more valuable this year
- New customers with contracts that state a basis and a limit
- Work beyond the UK, and what the policy’s territory says
Two things catch carriers out. A liability policy behind a contract that expected full value, and a load stolen overnight from a place the policy never allowed. Neither shows on a premium comparison. The standard terms are in our plain English jargon guide, and the class of use a paid load needs on the vehicle is on our hire and reward insurance page.
Cutting costs
Bringing the Goods in Transit Premium Down
The levers are the limit, the goods, the security and the records. We publish no savings figures.
Set the limit to the loads
A limit far above anything you carry is premium for nothing. A limit below the biggest load is a claim that comes up short. Set it from the loads, and review it when they change.
Match the basis to the contract
Full-value cover for the customers who require it, liability cover for general work on standard conditions. Paying for full value on every load when one contract needs it is the common overspend.
Secure the vehicle and say so
Alarms, immobilisers, slam locks, cages and a compound overnight are rated, and some insurers offer better terms for them. Declared and used, they also keep the theft claim inside cover.
Declare the goods properly
A category declared is a category priced. A category discovered at a claim can mean a reduced or declined claim and, where it was deliberately hidden, a cancelled policy.
Empty the van at night where you can
Goods taken indoors overnight are goods the policy is not asked about. Where they must stay in the vehicle, a locked building or compound is what the conditions want.
Explain the record
A loss that was not your fault is worth setting out to the broker. A record with the circumstances is rated better than a record of numbers.
Glossary
Goods in Transit Jargon, Untangled
The terms that come up most on a goods in transit policy.
- Goods in transit
- Cover for goods while carried in a vehicle, and usually while loaded and unloaded. Separate from the motor policy.
- Own goods
- Cover for your own tools, stock and equipment in your own vehicle. Written on their value.
- Carrier’s liability
- Cover for what you owe a customer for their goods under the conditions you carry on. Pays the liability, not the value.
- Full-value cover
- Cover for other people’s goods for what they are worth, regardless of your liability. What many contracts require.
- Conditions of carriage
- The terms a carrier carries goods on, often a trade body’s standard conditions with a limit per tonne. Only bind a customer who agreed to them.
- Limit per vehicle
- The most the policy pays for goods in any one vehicle at one time. Some policies also limit per load or per item.
- Unattended vehicle condition
- The rule on how a vehicle left with goods inside must be secured, and where and when it may be left. The condition most theft claims turn on.
- Consequential loss
- What a late or lost delivery costs the customer beyond the goods. Excluded on many policies, or limited to the carriage charges.
- Certificate
- The document a customer or platform asks to see, showing the basis, the limit and the period of cover.
- Subcontracted goods
- Goods you pass to another carrier. Covered on some policies, sometimes only where you checked the subcontractor holds cover.
- Territorial limits
- Where the policy applies. UK only on many policies as standard; wider by declaration.
- Hire and reward
- Carrying goods or passengers for payment. A class of use on the motor policy, not a goods in transit term, but the two go together.
Anything not listed here is covered in our plain English jargon guide.
Why MyMoneyComparison.com
Why Run a Goods in Transit Quote Through MyMoneyComparison.com?
MyMoneyComparison.com is an FCA-authorised UK comparison service that introduces businesses to specialist commercial brokers. We do not sell insurance and we do not give advice: the broker you choose arranges the policy. Using us is free.
One form, whole business
Describe the goods and the vehicles once, instead of repeating it to each broker.
Advice given
We are an introducer, not a broker. We do not sell policies or recommend one insurer or product over another. Read our editorial policy.
Authorised and regulated
MyMoneyComparison.com Ltd appears on the FCA register under FRN 916241.
Incorporated
A UK company since 2013. FCA authorisation is separate and later; the register carries its date.
FAQs
Goods in Transit Insurance FAQs
Answers on the basis of cover, the limit, conditions of carriage, the parked vehicle, excluded goods and certificates.
What is goods in transit insurance?
Cover for goods while they are carried in a vehicle, and usually while loaded and unloaded, against loss, theft and damage. It is separate from the motor policy, which insures the vehicle and either says nothing about the load or covers it only to a small limit. It is written for your own goods and tools, or for other people’s goods you carry for payment, and in the second case on either your liability or the full value.
Do I have to have goods in transit insurance?
No. There is no requirement to hold it. Many customers, contracts and delivery platforms ask to see a certificate before they hand over a load, though, and a van or courier policy on its own leaves the goods uninsured, or covers them only to a small limit. For a business whose vehicle carries anything worth losing, it is the policy that covers that.
Does my van insurance cover the goods inside it?
Usually not, or only to a small limit. Some van and courier policies include a modest amount of goods in transit cover, enough for a tradesperson’s tools on some policies and rarely enough for a paid load. The motor policy covers the vehicle and what it does to others; the load is a separate policy or a separate section, with its own limit and conditions.
What is the difference between carrier’s liability and full-value cover?
Carrier’s liability cover pays what you owe the customer under the conditions you carry on, often a limit per tonne, which for a light, valuable load can be far less than the goods were worth. Full-value cover pays for the goods themselves, regardless of your liability, up to the policy limit. Contracts and delivery platforms often state which they expect, and at what limit.
What are conditions of carriage?
The terms a carrier carries goods on. Many hauliers and couriers use a trade body’s standard conditions, which limit what the carrier owes for lost or damaged goods, usually per tonne, and limit liability for delay. They only bind a customer who agreed to them, so a carrier whose terms were never sent or signed may owe the full value while holding a policy that pays the limit.
How much cover do I need?
Enough for the biggest load, not the average. The limit per vehicle or per load is the most the policy pays on any one occasion, and a limit below the load means the shortfall is yours; on some policies every claim is reduced in proportion. Where a customer’s contract states a limit, the policy needs to meet it. The broker sets the limit from the loads you describe.
What does the unattended vehicle condition say?
That a vehicle left with goods inside must be locked, the keys removed and any alarm or immobiliser set, and on many policies that overnight the vehicle must be in a locked building or a secured compound or the goods removed. Some policies also require goods out of sight or in a locked compartment. The hours and the places differ by policy, and theft outside them is not covered.
Can I leave tools in the van overnight?
It depends on the policy. Some allow it on a driveway or the street where the vehicle is locked and alarmed; many exclude theft between set night hours unless the vehicle is in a locked building or compound; some exclude it unless the tools are taken indoors. The policy states the rule, and a claim for tools taken from a van on the drive is decided by it.
What goods are excluded?
On many policies cash and bullion, livestock, fine art, jewellery and other goods attractive to thieves, and hazardous loads, unless declared and agreed; some also exclude electronics, tobacco and alcohol unless agreed. Delay and what it costs the customer, wear and tear, bad packing and damage that happened before loading are excluded on many. Declared, some of the excluded goods can be added on their own terms.
Are loading and unloading covered?
On many policies, yes, as part of transit; on some only while the goods are in the vehicle. Goods held overnight at a depot or in the vehicle between drops are covered on some policies where declared and within the conditions, and excluded on others. Where a business stores goods for any length of time, that is usually a separate cover.
Does it cover goods I subcontract to another carrier?
On some policies, yes; on some, no; on some only where you checked that the subcontractor holds their own cover. A business that passes loads on regularly needs the policy to say so, because the customer looks to the carrier it contracted with, not to the one that had the goods.
Is Europe covered?
UK only is the standard territory on many policies, with Europe or wider added by declaration. International carriage is usually done under its own conventions and conditions, which set their own limits, and a policy for that work is written to them. Say where you go when you ask for a quote.
What do delivery platforms and customers ask to see?
A certificate showing the basis of cover, the limit and the period, and often a stated minimum limit on a full-value basis. Some platforms and contracts state their figure; the policy needs to meet it or the certificate is sent back. What the delivery platforms ask of the vehicle policy is on our courier insurance page.
What does the broker want to see for a quote?
What you carry and for whom; a typical load, the biggest load and the most valuable item; the conditions or contracts you carry on and any limit they state; the vehicles, their security and where each is parked overnight; whether loads are left in them; where you go; and your claims record with the circumstances of each loss.
Why does this page not show goods in transit insurance prices?
Because no figure would be true for you. Goods in transit is priced on the goods, the limit, the basis of cover, the vehicles and where they stop, the territory and the claims record, in combinations no average captures. If we publish data of our own one day, it will carry a sample size and a date.
Ready when you are
Get the Loads You Carry Quoted
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About this page
This page is about the load, not the vehicle: whose goods are in it, on what terms, up to what limit, and what the policy expects of a vehicle left with goods inside. The vehicle policy for delivery work is on our courier insurance page, and the class of use it needs on our hire and reward insurance page. It is general information rather than advice. Policies differ, so read your own documents and put the questions raised here to your insurer or broker.
How we approached this page
- Published UK goods in transit and haulage insurer and specialist broker pages, for the basis of cover, limits, unattended vehicle conditions, excluded goods, subcontracting and territory points described throughout
- The road haulage trade body’s published conditions of carriage and its insurance guidance, for how carrier’s liability is limited and when full-value cover is required
- The delivery platforms’ own pages, for what they ask carriers to show; the Financial Conduct Authority register, for checking a firm
No premium figures and no savings claims appear here. The main thing this page adds is the basis-of-cover and parked-vehicle detail that comparison tables leave out.
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