Maintaining Your Transport Business through the Unexpected Accidents

Transferring goods from factory to warehouse or port to site and vice-versa might seem easy but it is no Jack’s play. There are constant risks of damage to the cargo being carried due to unexpected natural and man-made disasters. Moreover, being in the transport business, you may worry about unfortunate incidents of destruction of the carrier (truck) due to unfortunate incidents like sudden overturning of the vehicle, major road accidents, collision etc.
All these accidents may or may not happen but, one cannot be sure that the vehicles used in the business are completely safe. Moreover, a transport business can run successfully only if it succeeds in carrying the consignment safely and on time. If due to any unexpected happening, the cargo is not delivered on time or is lost or damaged, then, it is not only the client who suffers the loss but also the transport company that had been assigned the job as it would lose its compensation for the same.

Inland transit insurance helps to cover such loss or damage to the cargo which is being carried by land transport. Geographically, this insurance policy is meant for the transporting of goods within the nation itself. Goods that are transported to other countries through aerial and sea routes are excluded from this policy.
Let’s have a look how one can secure the transport business from unexpected mishaps:

1. Overnight vehicles’ cover:
Suppose due to unfavourable weather conditions or some riots, the carrier needs to break the journey and stop overnight at a safe place with the cargo in the vehicle. In such a case, one can never be sure of safety and security. The vehicle will be halted at the chosen place with minimal risk but there can always be some damage to the vehicle or the cargo inside. The Inland transit policy provides a separate overnight vehicles’ cover for such purposes that covers any loss due to damage or loss of the vehicle as well as cargo in such cases.

Even in long road journeys, the vehicle carrier may require to halt at some place with the goods stored in it. This policy can counter the risks connected to such situations.

2. Comprehensive Policy:
Since you are in the transport business, there might be multiple vehicles that might be carrying different consignments at the same time. It will be difficult to secure these vehicles.

Most insurers provide a comprehensive policy for multiple vehicles in such cases. This can be beneficial as it is a cost-effective option compared to taking a separate policy for each vehicle.

3. Goods in transit (own vehicle) cover:
It might be that you have a fixed number of commercial vehicles to run your business. In case your business improves and there is an excess of consignments that need to be transported, you might choose to use your own vehicle for this purpose. What would happen if such a vehicle carrying the merchandise is hampered, lost, damaged or collides in an accident?

So, if you use your own vehicles also in your business to transport the cargo, it would be feasible to avail this part of the inland transit policy. It helps in securing the merchandise as well as the vehicle that is prominent for your business use.

4. Goods in transit (carrier’s) cover:
Your business may be involved with third-party carriers to transport the consignments. Even though these third-party carriers might be trustworthy, it is always safe to have a cover for the goods that are being transported in your name. This should be done in order to avoid any legal hiatus later in case of loss or damage to the goods due to any unexpected happening.

After all, you will be solely held responsible if any such unfortunate incident takes place as the client is in direct contact with you. This is because the third-party or carrier employed to carry the merchandise may not take the responsibility for any damage. Moreover;in many cases; carriers are unaware of what they are carrying. Liability arising in such a case can be covered through this policy.

So, an inland transit insurance policy might seem feasible for businesses that are involved in constant transfer of goods from one place to another but for a transport business, this policy is the most crucial of all.