Insurance For Food Delivery Drivers

If you drive a vehicle to deliver food or you have drivers working under you who deliver food, then you need food delivery insurance.

This post will explain exactly what food delivery insurance is, why you need it, and what types of policies are important for food delivery workers.

We also will go over typical costs as well as factors that can increase or decrease costs. Finally, we will tell you about the food delivery insurance policies offered by The Hartford, our recommended carrier.

Do Delivery Drivers Need Commercial Insurance?

Yes, delivery drivers need food delivery insurance. A personal auto policy is not sufficient.

Having a personal auto policy does satisfy the minimum legal requirements to be on the road at all. But it does not provide protection specifically for business use of the vehicle. It only covers the driver for personal use.

Depending on the scenario, there are a few different ways to obtain food delivery insurance coverage:

• For those who only occasionally deliver food or use their vehicles for other commercial purposes, a business-use endorsement may be sufficient.

• Some drivers who contract with certain companies to deliver food may already have coverage through those companies (more on that momentarily).

• Commercial auto policies are a good option for the owners of restaurants, catering businesses, etc. who employ drivers (or do their own driving).

Some examples of companies that insure their drivers include:

• DoorDash
• Amazon
• Caviar
• UberEATS
• Postmates

If you are working for one of these companies (or another similar company), look up the coverage they provide for you. If it is sufficient for your needs, you may not need to buy any additional insurance. But if you would like additional protection, you can purchase it yourself.

Here is something important to know: Let’s say you are a driver working for a catering company. You get into an accident. The catering company has purchased coverage. You are good to go, right? Not necessarily.

The issue is that sometimes your employer may not have purchased enough coverage. While the person suing will probably go after them first, if the employer’s policies do not pay out adequately, the victim can come for you next. If you do not have your own insurance, you may be on the hook for the costs.

Types of Food Delivery Insurance Coverage

Let’s expand a little more on some of what we just discussed, while also going over additional insurance options for food delivery workers.

• Business-use designation: As we mentioned, you can purchase this endorsement if you have a personal auto insurance policy (which you need to even be legally driving). Get a business-use designation if you only make deliveries on occasion.

• Commercial auto: This is a policy that you can purchase to protect a company vehicle. It is similar to a personal auto policy, but applies to vehicles for business use.

• Commercial property: Your delivery vehicle may not be the only commercial property you have with you as you are making our deliveries. You may need this type of insurance policy to protect your other commercial property.

• General liability: One of the top recommended types of insurance for all business owners to carry is general liability insurance. It covers damages to other people and their property. So, for instance, if you slip and fall on someone’s slick doorstep and spill hot food on them or stain their carpet, general liability insurance would help pay the costs.

• Business income: Sometimes disruptions to your business might result in not being able to work for a period of time. Imagine, for instance, you have just one delivery vehicle, and it gets totaled in a crash. This coverage will help you stay afloat while you are replacing the vehicle.

• Business owners’ policy (BOP): For an insurance policy that combines general liability coverage with business income and/or commercial property insurance, choose a BOP.

• Workers’ compensation. You are legally required to get workers’ compensation if you have any employees. It will pay out to cover medical bills and lost wages if they are injured or become ill on the job.

How Much Does Food Delivery Insurance Cost?

The cost for food delivery car insurance coverage can vary, but to give you an idea, The Hartford reports that the average their customers pay for a BOP is $261 a month, which comes out to $3,135 a year.

Many factors can impact insurance costs for delivery drivers:

• The details of your business. There is a huge range in businesses that deliver food. What you need if you are a restaurant owner with several drivers is not going to be the same as what you require if you run a one-person catering outfit or if you contract as a driver for a big company. So, one of the biggest determining factors for your insurance costs will be the type of business in which you are involved and your role in it.

• Where you deliver. Your service area is going to have a huge impact on your insurance costs. If you are driving around a small rural town, you are not going to run into a lot of traffic or hazards compared to if you are driving downtown in a huge city. Even the time of day you are driving could impact your insurance pricing.

• What you deliver. The types of food and beverages you are delivering could feasibly impact your insurance rates. For example, if you are delivering superhot coffees, soups, etc., those pose more risk than if you are delivering cold salads.

• How many vehicles/drivers you have? If you just need to insure a single vehicle and driver, your costs will be quite low compared to if you operate a chain of restaurants and a fleet of vehicles and drivers.

• Your driving record. Imagine for a moment you are buying coverage for yourself. Are you a safe driver, or have you received tickets in recent years? If you have been ticketed or you have gotten into accidents, you will likely pay higher insurance premiums than you would if you have a clean driving record.

• Your deductibles. The higher a policy’s deductible is, the lower the premiums will be. The lower the deductible, the more expensive the premiums will be. Making adjustments in this area is one option for lowering your costs. Just remember that it may come with consequences if you do need to make a claim.

• Your coverage amounts. It costs more to buy policies with higher coverage amounts. Lowering them may be another way for you to reduce your costs, but again, it may impact you negatively if you have to make a claim.

• Your claims record. Speaking of claims, the fewer of them you have made, the more reasonable your insurance costs may be. 

• Your experience. Ideally, you will have a long history of no claims. If you are just getting started in the food delivery business, it may help that you have no claims, but it will not help that you have no experience. The longer you can demonstrate that you are operating safely and minimizing risk, the lower your premiums will be.

• Discounts. Ask what discounts the carrier offers. Sometimes you can save more than you might expect just by taking certain steps to prove you are a safe driver, etc.

• Underwriting guidelines. Based on the underwriting guidelines that a carrier uses, they might offer you higher or lower quotes than their competitors.

What Insurance Companies Cover Delivery Drivers?

Our top recommended insurance carrier for delivery drivers is The Hartford. This company has been covering businesses for more than 200 years.

Some of the policies this company offers for food delivery include:

• Commercial auto insurance
• Non-owned and hired auto insurance
• General liability insurance
• Commercial property insurance
• Business income insurance
• BOP
• Workers’ compensation
• Umbrella coverage

Along with a great selection of policies, something else we like about The Hartford is that they are willing to take the time to customize your policies to your specific business needs. And with their ample experience, they know how to protect you in just about any scenario.

Ready to get the insurance you need to safely make food deliveries? Visit The Hartford now and receive a personalized quote.