Can Motor Trade Insurance Protect You for a Second Job?

If you have two different jobs, maybe running a part-time motor trade business as well as working in another non-motor trade role, you may find some benefits in using your Motor Trade insurance policy to cover your vehicles when being used for your other work. This type of Motor Trade insurance cover is called Additional Business Use.

Additional Business Use cover is only available to traders with a Part Time Motor Trade insurance policy, and it cannot be added to a regular Motor Trade insurance policy for full-time traders.

What is Part-Time Motor Trade Insurance?

Part Time Motor Trade insurance is a type of Motor Trade insurance that is specifically designed for traders who only operate on a part-time basis. This can be because a trader has a second occupation, and if you are reading this article that probably means you.

However, not all part-time traders have a second occupation, as Part-Time Motor Trade insurance can also be taken out by people who have retired from work and run a motor trade business on a part-time basis.

Is Additional Business Use Automatically Included on a Motor Trade Policy?

It is worth noting that Additional Business Use will not automatically be included on your policy and you will need to ask for it to be added on. There are many people that make the wrong assumption that the policy they take out for their motor trade related job will provide them the necessary cover for their other work, so if you need it, don’t forget to ask!

If you do use one of your own vehicles that’s insured under your Part Time Motor Trade insurance for your second occupation without Additional Business Use cover added to your policy, then you could potentially either end up in trouble with the police or you may find that your insurer will refuse to pay out if you are involved in an accident. Either way, you could end up with an unnecessary headache when it could easily be sorted out by making a simple addition to your policy.

Even with Additional Business Use cover added to your Part Time Motor Trade insurance policy, it’s your responsibility to ensure that any car that you have added to your Motor Trade insurance can be used for your second occupation.

Can Additional Business Use Cover Any Occupation?

In short, no it can't cover vehicle use related to every occupation, but this cover is available for a lot of different jobs. The specific jobs that can and can’t be included will differ from insurer to insurer, therefore always make sure you ask your broker for full details to make sure you’re covered under Additional Business Use cover.

To avoid disappointment and wasting your time, we suggest that you enquire about your eligibility for Additional Business Use cover at the earliest possible moment in the Motor Trade insurance quotation process. 

Is Additional Business Use Expensive?

Additional Business Use, as the name suggests, enables you to use vehicles that are covered on your trader's policy for other types of business, however this only applies to vehicles on your policy that you own. This means that you can’t take a customer’s Lamborghini to a building site, for example!

Including Additional Business Use cover on your Motor Trade insurance means that you will be covered for travelling between different places in relation to your non-motor trade job. You will generally find that adding this onto your policy will be relatively cheap - sometimes it can be as low as 5% of the total cost of your policy. It’s usually a worthwhile cost as it’s generally going to end up costing you a lot less than taking out one policy for your motor trade activity and a separate Car insurance policy for your other work. 

Extra Protection for Your Motor Trade Business

Additional Business Use isn’t the only Motor Trade insurance product you can add to your policy; there are several other additional products that could help further protect your motor trade business such as Goods in Transit or Product Liability. When researching whether your Motor Trade insurance can protect you for a second job you should also look into how your can further protect your motor trade interests.

Don’t Take the Risk – Add Additional Business Use To Your Policy

If you want to find out more, whether it be to see if you can get additional cover to protect your vehicles for use in a second job, or even to get a quote to find out how much it could cost, then our team of Motor Trade insurance experts are on hand to help. For just a relatively small initial cost Additional Business Use could save you money in the long run and keep you protected. 

If you need to add Additional Business Use to your Think Insurance Motor Trade insurance policy then please call us on 0800 221 8077, where you’ll be put through to a Motor Trade insurance expert.

Alternatively, if you haven’t yet taken out a Motor Trade insurance policy with Think, you can call the number above to discuss a bespoke policy with our Motor Trade team or click ‘Get a Quote’ below and we’ll be in touch!