Anyone anywhere will always need commercial insurance for any vehicle(s) they use for business or work –vans are no exception. Several occupations and businesses utilize a van or two when their work depends on moving from one work site to another and transporting equipment. Some musicians and bands often use vans to get around from event to event or on tour. Those are often a lot of hours and miles on the road, so drivers and owners of the vans in question will want them to be fully insured should something happen. So, the question is, do vans used by bands qualify as commercial vehicles? The answer is yes. A band’s van is specifically used to transport them and their equipment to paying gigs –a job, if you will. So, commercial van insurance is more than useful (and required) to have.
Commercial Van Insurance in General
Let’s look at commercial van insurance, in general, to understand what it usually covers and how much it costs. Standard car insurance is required in nearly every state for every driver. The main goal has always been to make sure that drivers are able to cover damage and injuries that they cause to others –it’s pretty much a legal obligation. There are also several other add-on coverages that offer more in-depth coverage for their own damages and injuries. The issue with regular car insurance is that it doesn’t carry over when a vehicle is being used for work or business purposes. That is why we have commercial car insurance. When drivers are on the work clock or heading to a job site with equipment, commercial car insurance will be there to insure them from everything that is standard car insurance along with any business-related damages to employees or equipment. A band may have a driver or roadie in their employment and their instruments and equipment in the back, so there is a lot to be insured when you look at it. The great news is that commercial van insurance has coverage for everything.
What Commercial Van Insurance Covers
Commercial van insurance offers the following protections to a van while it is being used for business purposes:
- General liability coverage – First and foremost, any type of insurance is insuring you against damages and injuries that you caused or were your fault. This includes the injuries and medical treatments of any driver or passenger with them that is injured and property damage to their vehicle when you hit them. You would be surprised by how many uninsured businesses are nearly put out of business because of having to pay damages such as these. General liability insurance is both necessary and required by law for commercial vehicles as they are for standard ones.
- Comprehensive coverage – Vans can take up a lot of space in storage or when parked. There is a lot that can happen to it when you are not using it, like criminal or weather damage. Bands often park their vans in alleys when they are at a gig, so comprehensive coverage will come in absolute handy for this exact reason.
- Collision coverage – Of course, there is also the matter of the damage done to your commercial vehicle after an accident, that you were at fault. When it comes to a work vehicle, more damage can be done, and being on the line for it can compromise your business’ finances. Comprehensive and collision coverage make up full auto insurance which every business should at least consider carrying.
- Medical payments coverage – You may have also been wondering about injuries to yourself or employees in an at-fault accident with the commercial van or car. MedPay, as it is also called, does exactly this no matter who was at fault which makes it must-have insurance for businesses and commercial endeavors using vehicles such as vans. Van can hold a considerable number of occupants, and you want them all taken care of if something happens.
- Uninsured motorist coverage – While car insurance is required in most of the United States and even the world, there are some drivers that break the law and forego coverage. There is always a chance that you can be involved in an accident with one of these drivers, and they won’t be able to cover the damages they caused. Uninsured motorist coverage comes to the rescue in cases such as this by covering property damage and personal injuries.
Cost of Commercial Van Insurance For Bands
The cost of commercial van insurance depends on a variety of factors like the business you are in, the type of van you are using, how often it is being driven, and any driving record of anyone behind the steering wheel. When it comes to band vans, they will be on the road quite a bit if they tour often and will be parked outside of venues commonly. The average for commercial van insurance comes out to about $1,400 annually, which is around $117 per month. As a band, you will want to have full coverage for your van. Shopping for commercial van insurance is very much like shopping for standard car insurance –take advantage of those free quotes and the fact that every provider prices their policies differently.
