Check out the food truck insurance needed in the UK to protect your business and keep it legal.
Food trucks and street food businesses are one of the easiest types of businesses to start and for very good reason. They have a very low barrier to entry!
This means that compared to other types of business you can start a food truck with little or no previous experience, just a passion for creating good food.
However, there are some very important considerations you need to make before you can operate legally such as, what insurance does a food truck need in the UK?
The types of food truck insurance needed for the UK include Public Liability Insurance, Food truck insurance, Employer Liability Insurance, Product liability insurance, Fleet Insurance, and Vehicle Towing Insurance.
However, the exact food truck insurance you need depends on the type of mobile catering unit and the number of employees.
In this article, I will, therefore, explain in more detail what type of insurance you will need for a food truck depending on your operational setup.
Contents
1. Public Liability Insurance
2. Employer Liability insurance
3. Product Liability Insurance
4. Food Truck Insurance
5. Food Truck Fleet Insurance
6. Towing Vehicle Insurance
Related Questions:
- How Much Is Food Truck Insurance?
- What Kind Of Licence Do I Need To Run A Food Truck?
What type of Insurance does a food truck need?
1. Public Liability
This is the most important type of insurance for a food truck and protects you against compensation claims from a customer, client, or the general public arising from any hazard associated with the running of your business.
For example, if a piece of falling signage were to injure a customer or damage the property of someone’s property, then your food truck business would be covered against a claim.
The minimum public liability insurance most councils and event organizers will accept is £5 million. However, this seems to have risen over recent years, with some only accepting £10 million.
There are specialty insurance companies that deal specifically with food truck businesses.
Simply Business is an established insurance broker that can help you find competitive insurance quotes for mobile catering.
You can get a quote from Simply Business here
2. Employer liability insurance
It is always a good sign when you need to take on extra staff for your food truck. This means the business is growing and more money is coming in.
However, with this extra growth comes a bit more responsibility, paperwork, and expense. You will, therefore, need Employer liability insurance for your food truck if you employ more than one employee or contractor.
This insurance will protect your food truck business and help to pay out any compensation claims as a result of any injury or illness to your employees; medical expenses; and legal fees.
Note, you must have an employer liability insurance policy with a minimum of £5 million of cover.
Get a quote from Simply Business here.
3. Product Liability Insurance
This type of insurance, along with Public and Employers Liability insurance will give you that extra protection against claims made specifically related to your food product.
This insurance is also important if other stores stock your product.
So If a customer gets food poisoning as a result of consuming your product either from your food truck or a shop that stocks your product it will help to pay compensation claims and legal fees.
However, it is worth noting that product Liability insurance is not actually a legal requirement in the UK.
4. Food Truck Insurance
Food trucks can cost a lot of money and are obviously one of, if not the, most important bits of equipment related to the running of a mobile catering business. If it gets damaged or stolen then this can mean the end of your food truck catering business.
This is where food truck insurance comes in and covers you against accidental damage such as a fire (very important as most food trucks will be using gas bottles); theft; malicious damage caused by a third party; and loss or damage to expensive equipment inside the van, such as fridges and cookers.
Other types of mobile catering units such as catering trailers and static kiosks will also be covered by food truck insurance.
Having this type of insurance will, therefore, help with peace of mind and keep your food truck business running, as well as protect your income.
5. Food Truck Fleet Insurance
If you have multiple vans trading at different locations, then business must be good. It’s also time to be thinking about different types of food truck insurance.
Food truck fleet insurance is the same as food truck insurance, where you get the same coverage but You are likely to save time and money when you get all of your vehicles covered by the same insurer.
Discounts are often available for businesses with over five food trucks or catering units.
6. Towing Vehicle Insurance
Have you ever tried reversing with a catering trainer attached to your vehicle? I have and it’s not one of my favourite things to do I can tell you. It is also quite a dangerous and scary experience (even for the experienced).
Third-party Towing vehicle insurance, therefore, protects you against any damage caused to a person(s) or property as a result of towing a trailer.
This type of insurance is also a legal requirement in the UK under the Road Traffic Act.
It should be pretty obvious, but just to be clear this type of insurance is more applicable to a catering trailer attached to a vehicle, than a food truck.
Related Questions
How Much Is Food Truck Insurance?
Unfortunately, there is no one simple answer here as the cost of food truck insurance will very much be related to the following factors:
* The type of mobile catering unit you will use
Will you be using a food truck or mobile trailer? If you go for the latter you will need additional vehicle towing insurance.
* The number of employees you have
Will it be just you working in the food truck or will you have additional employees working for you? If you will have staff working alongside you then you will need Employee Liability Insurance.
* Your Insurance History
Food truck insurance quotes will be calculated in part, based on your insurance history. So if you have ever had a claim in the past, even if it is related to another type of insurance, it may affect how your insurance premium is calculated.
What Kind Of Licence Do I Need To Run A Food Truck?
Now you have the insurance you need for a food truck covered, there are a few other certificates you will need before you start to serve that delicious street food.
You must register any new food truck business with your local food authority; obtain a level 2 food safety and hygiene certificate (this can be done online or at your local college); get all your electrical and gas equipment inspected by qualified engineers, and have an up to date risk assessment in place.
Related articles:
Conclusion
So there you have it, a complete list of all the food truck insurance you need to protect your business and keep it legal.
Depending on the type of vehicle you use, how many employees you have and your insurance history will determine what types of insurance you will need and how much it will cost to get covered.
Where once food truck insurance was a very niche industry, there are now more insurers willing to provide cover for food trucks and mobile catering businesses as this industry grows.
So happy days for getting your food truck business covered!
Author
Gavin D is the founder of Street Food Central and Tru Foo Juice Bar Co. and has worked in the mobile catering industry for over 7 years.