Hired-In Plant Insurance
Competitive Plant Insurance Backed By ‘Exceptional’ Service
Want to save money on your hired-in plant insurance? Let the plant insurance specialists at Coversure Hull compare our markets to find you the hired plant insurance quote that’s right for you. Whether you need cover for one day or several weeks, call us today on 0800 977 6037 and let our award-winning team help you.
Hired-in plant insurance backed by ‘Exceptional’ service
Our award-wining team is rated as ‘Exceptional’ by feefo and with over 50 years of plant insurance experience, you can rest assured you’re in safe hands. Being independent we can put your needs first, and we’ll compare the market to find you great cover for a great value premium. To find out more, call us free on 0800 977 6037, start your plant insurance quote today or read our comprehensive guide to plant insurance.
What is hired plant insurance?
Plant insurance, also known as contractors’ plant insurance, special types insurance or engineering insurance, provides cover for specialist vehicles and equipment such as JCBs, diggers, and mobile cranes when they are hired.
While plant insurance is often associated with the construction industry – hence it being sometimes called construction plant insurance – it can also protect equipment used in sectors such as manufacturing, logistics and haulage. A flexible form of protection, hired plant insurance through Coversure Hull can cover for common risks, including:
- Loss or theft
- Damage to hired plant while in your care – including the cost of repairs
- Damage to hired-in plant while its transported – with cover available for both the UK and the EU
- Ongoing hire charges – if hired plant is lost or stolen, you’re likely to be liable for ongoing hire charges. Hired-in plant insurance can cover these for a fixed period - often between 30 and 90 days - but limits can be adjusted
- Legal fees - for defending legal proceedings incurred with the insurer's consent
- Road risks only – where the policy only applies when vehicles are being driven on public roads
- All-risks cover – protects hired plant against damage by fire, flood, theft, malicious or accidental damage
- Public and employers’ liability insurance
- Off-site storage
What plant can be covered by hired-in plant insurance?
A wide range of vehicles and other plant equipment can be covered by hired plant insurance, including:
- Mini diggers
- Mobile cranes
- Excavators
- Bulldozers
- Diggers
- Gritters
- Steam rollers
- Tamping rollers
- Heavy excavators
- Forklift trucks
- Scissor lifts
- Generators
- Lighting towers
- Skip loaders
- Tar sprayers
- Tractors
- Combine harvesters
- Telehandlers
- Sprayers and other agricultural vehicles
- Dump trucks
- Excavators
- Lorry-mounted plant
- Nifty lifts
- Road sweepers
- Telescopic loaders
- Tower wagons
- Trench excavators
- Welfare units and static welfare cabins
These are just some of the types of equipment that a hired-in plant insurance policy can cover. If you have a specific piece of kit that you need to insure, please contact the Coversure Hull team on 0800 977 6037 or click here, and we’ll be happy to help you find cover for it.
How long does a hired plant insurance policy last for?
Within reason, for as short or as long you need it to. If you’re hiring a mini digger for a day to dig up the garden or lay some drainage channels at home, we can help. Equally if you have a construction firm and are hiring several pieces of plant equipment for a period of weeks or months, we can help with that too. To find out more, call us free on 0800 977 6037.
How much does hired plant insurance cost?
The cost of your policy will depend on things like:
- The value of the plant you’re hiring
- The length of time you’re hiring it for
- Whether it’s going to be used on roads and needs road risks cover
- If you have policy extensions such as public liability insurance
- The type of work you are doing and where
- The age of the drivers/users of the equipment
- Where it will be stored overnight/at the weekends
- Your postcode
If you’d like to know how much hired-in plant insurance will cost you to get a quote, please contact us on 0800 977 6037 and one of our experienced team will be happy to help you get the cover you need.
How to get cheaper hired plant insurance
There are many ways you can potentially reduce your hired-in plant insurance premiums. To help you get cheaper plant insurance, follow these top tips:
- Don’t buy the hire company’s hired-in plant insurance – while it may be the easy option, it’s likely to be more expensive and won’t offer the best cover. These policies are often restrictive – most don’t include accidental damage insurance, for example – and almost certainly won’t come with any qualified, independent advice. This is because these policies are sold on a ‘non-advised’ basis, so what you see in the policy wording is what you get. No one will be on hand to explain the details to you. It’s safer and often most cost-effective to get some hired-in plant insurance advice and a hired plant insurance quote from an independent broker
- Shop around – like any other insurance policy, it can pay to shop around. Ultimately, you want to use an independent insurance broker that’s specialises in plant insurance
- Use an independent insurance broker – getting the right plant insurance takes specialist knowledge. Hired-in plant insurance can involve covering multiple complex risks with policies containing exemptions and limits that may not be obvious. By getting some advice from an independent broker that specialises in plant insurance such as Coversure Hull, you can get the cover you need while they do the shopping around for you
- Store your equipment securely – according to Construction and Agriculture Equipment Security and Registration (CESAR) over £1m of agricultural and plant equipment is stolen each week in the UK. While it won’t always be possible to store your equipment securely overnight or at weekends, do so whenever you can. If you must leave it on-site, make sure the site is as secure as possible by using portable or micro-CCTV cameras and interior cameras in cabs. Plant thefts are rising, so this is a problem that you need to address. If your hired plant is stolen, you’ll likely be left liable for ongoing hire fees
- Increase your excess – your excess is the amount you pay in the event of a claim. Some plant insurance policies come with a ‘variable’ excess which allows you to choose how much you pay when you make a claim. If you have a good claims record, raising your excess can be an easy way of getting cheaper hired plant insurance. Raising your excess can also reduce the chances of you making small claims as it may cost you more by the time you have paid the excess
- Choose a ‘named driver’ rather than ‘any driver’ policy – when it comes to road-going plant such as diggers or mobile cranes, it’s convenient if any qualified driver is insured to drive them. This is what is known as an ‘any driver’ policy. Convenient as any driver policies are, they are more expensive than ‘named driver’ policies. Named driver policies only allow certain people to drive them, and if you choose lower-risk drivers such as ones aged over 25 and those who don’t have poor claims records, this can also help you get cheaper plant insurance
- Take out a road risks only policy – if you only need cover for when your plant is being driven on public roads, then you can get a road risks policy. This is a stripped-down form of cover, often taken out on a third party-only basis
- Get an annual policy – if you’re hiring plant in several times a year, it may work out cheaper to get an annual special types insurance policy rather than a series of short-term plant hire policies
- Get a plant fleet insurance policy – if you have two or more pieces of plant to insure – be they diggers, dumper trucks, steam rollers or forklift trucks – you can get plant fleet insurance.
Hired plant insurance FAQ
Hired plant insurance is a complex area of insurance and it’s important to get it right. To help you get the cover that’s right for you, here are our hired-in plant insurance frequently asked questions. We hope they will prove helpful, but if you’d like to get some independent advice, then please call us free on 0800 977 6037. Our team of insurance specialists will be happy to talk you through the options to ensure you get the protection that’s right for you. You may also want to read our plant insurance guide
Q. Is hired plant a legal requirement?
A. Yes, if you intend to drive it on the road, otherwise no
Q. What’s the difference between plant and hired-in plant insurance?
A. Plant insurance is the collective term for this type of cover and includes owned and hired-in plant insurance. The various plant insurance options are:
- Hired-in plant insurance – hired plant insurance covers equipment you rent rather than own. Hired-in plant insurance can last a day, a week, or even months depending on your needs and provides specific protection against financial risks arising from using hired plant. These include cover for the cost of repairs should it be accidentally damaged or covering hire fees should it be lost or stolen
- Owned plant insurance – or plant insurance as it’s more commonly known, protects plant equipment that you or your business owns. Cover is usually taken out annually, though we can arrange temporary cover if required. It is often taken out as part of a package of covers alongside other business-critical insurances such as public liability insurance
- Temporary plant insurance and annual plant insurance – temporary plant insurance is taken out by people who need hired-in plant insurance, be that for a mini-digger for a day, or an excavator for a week on a construction job. Annual plant insurance policies tend to be for those with owned plant, though if you’re hiring in plant regularly, it can work out cheaper to get an annual policy
- Road risks plant insurance – road risks plant insurance allows you to drive plant vehicles on the road so long as they have road tax
Q. How much does hired-in plant insurance cost?
A. That will depend on things like the value of your equipment, your postcode and where you will be using it. If you’d like a personalised plant insurance quote, please call the team on 0800 977 6037
Q. How long can hired plant cover last for?
A. We can arrange cover for a day, a week, or a year depending on your needs
Q. Can plant equipment be covered while being transported to and from a site?
A. Yes if you have equipment floater cover as part of your policy
Q. Are there any other policies I should consider?
A. Yes, the most common ones include public liability insurance – which protects you should someone by injured or their property damaged - and third-party working risks
Q. What types of equipment can hired-in plant insurance cover?
A. Everything from mini-diggers and mobile cranes to JCBs and forklifts
Q. Can it cover me to drive plant on the road?
A. Yes, provided you have a road risks element to your policy
Q. Is cover available for private individuals as well as businesses?
A. Yes, we can offer cover for people who are hiring-in plant as well as businesses that own their own kit
Q. How can I get a hired plant insurance quote?
A. Getting a quote from us is easy. You can call us on 0800 977 6037 or get your hired plant insurance quote here. Thanks to our wide range of insurance providers, we can compare our markets to find you the cover you need at a premium you’ll like
Get a hired plant insurance quote
If you'd like some independent plant insurance help or a hired plant insurance quote, call us on 0800 977 6037. We can give you all the advice you need and can compare our markets to find you the cover you require.
