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Just had a new policy and interested to see that SDP+Commuting has a specific exclusion "Use for Social, domestic and pleasure purposes and use only by the Insured for journeys between home and a permanent place of business and vice versa, provided that business calls are not made on the journey"

Now it doesn't bother me in the slightest since I won't use a phone while driving, but I know a lot of my colleagues unfortunately do take calls in the car while commuting. I wonder how many are therefore uninsured because they don't have business insurance?

It also raises an interesting point, because HMRC definitely don't allow commuting costs to be claimed as business mileage. Technically I guess there's no explicit contradiction, but it seems to me that if I can't claim for it as business mileage, it shouldn't be classed as business use and exempted from commuting cover.

Your insurer isn't responsible for HMRC rules on expenses, so I don't see why it should it be bound by them when deciding on cover. The mere fact that HMRC may categorise you as self-employed doesn't preclude you from benefitting from employment rights of an employee. Different definitions for different purposes.

Does "provided that business calls are not made on the journey" refer to telephone communication or in-person visits? I would read it as making stops along the way as opposed to taking a phone call. Perhaps some clarification from the insurer?

Strangely Brown wrote:Does "provided that business calls are not made on the journey" refer to telephone communication or in-person visits? I would read it as making stops along the way as opposed to taking a phone call. Perhaps some clarification from the insurer?

That's an interesting thought. I think that, when using my own car for work trios, they've always been there and back. But if I stopped mid-journey (which I have done while using a company car), would that count - or does it have to be 'calls' plural? (Really getting picky with the words!)

And if phone calls, 'made' or 'initiated and received'?

Strangely Brown wrote:Does "provided that business calls are not made on the journey" refer to telephone communication or in-person visits? I would read it as making stops along the way as opposed to taking a phone call. Perhaps some clarification from the insurer?

Ah yes, that simply hadn't occurred to me. Since all of my "customers" are abroad, I think that's as equally unlikely as taking a phone call.