Yes, you can usually get courier van insurance with penalty points or a motoring conviction. What matters is how serious the offence was, how recent it is and how many you have. Each insurer sets its own limit.
Zego's courier van insurance accepts drivers with no more than two motoring convictions in the past five years. You also need to be 21 to 65 and meet the rest of the eligibility list further down. It's annual cover for parcel and delivery work and your personal driving, on Third Party Only or Fully Comprehensive.
Points and convictions aren't the same thing
A fixed penalty notice is a fine for a minor driving offence, but it can still add points. Accept one for speeding and the minimum is a £100 fine and three points, unless you're offered a speed awareness course, with the offence code on your licence for four years. What a fixed penalty won't do is appear on your criminal record, unless a court gives you a conviction because of it.
A court conviction is different. The court can give you a fine, a driving ban, community service or a prison sentence, and it can add points too. Points from either route go on your driving record with an offence code.
Zego asks for your driving and claims history when you quote. Include every offence with points, whether it came from a court or a fixed penalty, and have each offence code, its date and the points to hand. Declare every endorsement, even one you don't think counts towards a limit, and never leave points off to fit one.
How long points count against you
Endorsements stay on your driving record for four or 11 years, depending on the offence. Most last four years from the date of the offence. Drink and drug driving offences last 11 years from the date of conviction.
Insurers may be able to find out about a four-year endorsement at any point while it's on your record. For an 11-year endorsement, that window is the first five years, or 30 months if you were under 18.
Criminal record checks, such as those for a job, work on a separate clock. A court fine with an endorsement becomes spent for those checks five years after you got it, if you were 18 or over. An endorsement can stay on your driving record after it's spent, so the two dates don't always line up.
The offence couriers can't afford
Delivering parcels for payment needs hire and reward cover. Driving delivery work without it is illegal and can mean fines, penalty points or your van being seized. The offence code for using a vehicle without insurance is IN10.
IN10 carries six to eight penalty points and stays on your record for four years from the offence. Build up 12 or more points within three years and you can be banned from driving. One IN10 takes you at least halfway there.
What Zego's courier van cover asks of you
Zego's eligibility list for courier van cover:
- You're aged 21 to 65
- You have a full UK or EU driving licence
- You live and work in England, Scotland or Wales
- You have no unspent criminal convictions
- You've had no more than two motoring convictions in the past five years
- You've disclosed any reportable medical conditions to the DVLA
Every policy is annual and includes public liability up to £5m, with hire and reward and social, domestic and pleasure cover on one policy. Pay in one go or in monthly instalments, and add no claims discount protection if you want it.
Our guide to courier van insurance costs explains what affects your price.
