Plant Insurance

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What can plant insurance cover?

A surprising number of things can be insured on this type of policy:

  • Construction plant - including diggers, earth movers, mobile cranes, and dump trucks
  • Agricultural vehicles - everything from tractors, combine harvesters, sprayers, and beet lifters to para ploughs, trailers, and the other tools of the farmer's trade
  • Lifting equipment - cranes, forklift trucks, mobile cranes, cherry pickers, and mobile scissor lifts
  • Road maintenance vehicles - such as road sweepers, self-propelled tar layers, and steam rollers
  • Attachments - including welfare units, and on-site cabins

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Additional cover also available

It can also include additional protection against these common risks:

  • Public liability - insures you should a member of the public injure themselves or in the event their property is damaged whilst you are working. It covers the cost of claims made by customers and/or members of the public for incidents that occur in connection to your business activity.
  • Road-risk plant - provides cover if you use your machinery on the public highway, such as to move supplies or take away spoil or muck.
  • Employers' liability - is a legal requirement if you employ others. It provides cover in the event of your employee injuring themselves or if their property is damaged whilst at work. The law says that if you employ at least one person you must have employers' liability insurance (sometimes called 'EL insurance') to provide protection for your employees if they get injured or become ill as a result of working for your business. Your policy must:
  • Cover you for at least £5 million
  • Your insurance must be with an authorised insurer
  • Employers must provide a safe working environment
  • Third-party working risks (TPWR) - which covers damage to other people's property while you're working
  • Products liability - this which insures you if your products or services injure a third party
  • Accidental damage - should your equipment be accidentally damaged while in use
  • Glass cover
  • Loss or damage to trailers
  • Construction plant, tools, and equipment - with the option to include workers' personal tools in it
  • Off-site storage
  • Immobilised equipment
  • Cover while in transit - so if your kit is involved in an accident or is damaged while being moved from job to job, you'll be protected
  • Continuing hiring charges - if a piece of hired-in plant is damaged and you can't use it, this will cover the ongoing hire charges

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What types of plant insurance are there?

The main types of cover are:

Hired-in plant - for vehicles and equipment you hire-in while undertaking work
Owned plant - for vehicles and equipment that your business owns
Temporary cover - some providers, such as Insured4u, can offer cover that lasts a day or lasts all year
All-risks - which covers you against fire, flood, theft, malicious and accidental damage
Road risks only - where the policy only applies when vehicles are on public roads

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How much does plant insurance cost?

The cost of your cover will depend on several factors, including:

  • The amount and type of plant equipment you want to protect
  • Its value
  • The type of work you're doing and where you are doing it
  • The size of the projects you are working on
  • The number of risks you wish to cover

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FAQ

Why Do I Need Plant Insurance?

Plant insurance provides a wide range of covers that have been designed to protect businesses that use these specialist types of equipment. Given the cost of these machines, the fact that many are hired-in rather than owned, that many will need to have road risk cover, and the public liability risks associated with this sort of work, having a plant insurance policy makes sense.

What is ‘hired-in' plant?

Hired-in plant is equipment that you hire for a specific job as opposed to equipment that your business owns.

Is Plant Insurance A Legal Requirement?

No, but if you have employees, then you will need employers' liability insurance.

Can Equipment Be Covered While Being Transported To And From A Site?

Yes, you just need to ensure it's part of your policy.

Are There Any Requirements For Equipment To Be Considered As Plant?

Yes. For an item to be classed as a plant vehicle, it will need to specify on the logbook that it is plant or special types.

Can It Cover Vehicles While On The Road?

Yes, if you have road risks, cover.

Does Plant Insurance Cover Hire Charges?

If any hired-in plant is damaged or stolen, you'll usually be liable to continue paying the hire charges for the item in question, even if it is no longer used by you. In most instances, these charges will be covered for 90 days, but it's always worth checking the policy.

Are Some Vehicles NOT Considered As Plant?

Yes, some items you think would be considered as such are not. This includes things like a truck with a hi-ab on the back, which would be classed as a heavy goods vehicle. Horseboxes are another item some people would class as a special types vehicle; however, it is not unless noted on the log book.

If Hired-In Plant Is Damaged, Am I Liable?

Yes. When you hire machinery, it means that you are responsible for that item, and you need to make sure you send it back in the condition you hired it. If a piece of kit you have hired was to break or be damaged and you didn't have hired-in plant insurance, you would have to pay for any repairs.

Are There Any Other Policies I Should Consider?

People who take out plant insurance often take out other policies. Some of the most common include:

  • Public liability
  • Contract works
  • Employers' liability
  • Stock and materials
  • Professional indemnity
  • Third-party working risks

If you'd like to know more about how Jensten Insurance Brokers Ilkeston can help protect your plant, please call 0115 672 5680.

Other Insurances We Offer

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03330 505533

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