Mobile mechanic insurance: key facts
- Public liability is not a legal requirement for a mobile mechanic, but it is the core cover for injury and property damage claims.
- Driving a customer's car on a public road needs motor insurance under the Road Traffic Act 1988. Customers' own policies usually exclude the car while a motor trader has it for repair, so you need road risks motor trade cover.
- Public liability usually excludes property in your care, custody and control, so the car you are working on needs separate customers' vehicles cover.
- Employers' liability is compulsory once you employ anyone, with at least £5 million of cover.
- Waste oil, filters and batteries are hazardous waste and must go to an authorised carrier or site.
- A sole-trader mobile mechanic typically pays roughly £100 to £300 a year for public liability only (rough guide figures, including 12% Insurance Premium Tax). Road risks cover is extra and priced on your age, driving record and postcode.
What does mobile mechanic insurance cover?
Mobile mechanic insurance usually combines public liability (with products and workmanship liability), cover for customers' vehicles in your care, and tools and diagnostic equipment cover. Mechanics who drive customers' cars add road risks motor trade insurance.
| Cover | What it protects | Who needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Public liability | Injury or property damage claims caused by your work, such as oil on a driveway. | Every mobile mechanic. It is the core of any policy. |
| Products and workmanship liability | Injury or damage caused by parts you supplied or work you did, after you have left. It does not normally pay to redo the job. | All mechanics. Check it is included with your public liability. |
| Customers' vehicles in your care | Accidental damage, fire and theft of customers' cars while you are working on them or holding the keys. | Most mobile mechanics. |
| Road risks (motor trade) | Driving customers' cars on public roads, such as test drives and deliveries. | Anyone who drives a customer's car on the road. |
| Tools and diagnostic equipment | Theft of or damage to tools, jacks and diagnostic kit, including from your van. | Anyone whose tools would be costly to replace. |
| Employers' liability | Claims from staff injured or made ill at work. | A legal requirement once you employ anyone. |
| Personal accident and income protection | A set payment or weekly income if you are injured or ill and can't work. | Self-employed mechanics with no sick pay. |
Road risks insurance: motor trade insurance for mobile mechanics
Road risks insurance is a motor trade policy that covers you to drive vehicles you don't own on public roads in connection with your business. A mobile mechanic needs it to test drive, move or deliver a customer's car.
Three different policies often get mixed up:
| Policy | What it covers you to drive | Customers' cars? |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary van insurance (with business use) | Only the van named on the policy, for work journeys. | No |
| The customer's own car insurance | Named drivers. Most exclude the car while it is with the motor trade for repair. | Usually not, while you have it for repair |
| Road risks motor trade insurance | Vehicles you are working on, and often your own van. | Yes, within the policy terms |
When you need road risks cover
- Test drives after brake, suspension or clutch work, even if it is only round the block.
- Moving the car on the road, such as to a garage for an MOT.
- Collection and delivery of customers' cars.
If you only work on cars where they are parked and the customer does any driving, you may not need road risks. Check the maximum vehicle value, driver age limits and whether your own van is included. Trade plates do not insure a car; you still need motor trade cover.
Is mobile mechanic insurance a legal requirement?
Public liability and tools cover are not legal requirements for a mobile mechanic. But driving any vehicle on a public road needs at least third party motor insurance under the Road Traffic Act 1988, which includes a customer's car you are test driving, and employers' liability is compulsory once you employ anyone.
- Motor insurance is compulsory when you drive. Under the Road Traffic Act 1988 it is an offence to use a vehicle on a road without insurance covering third party injury and damage. That applies to you driving a customer's car on a test drive, not just to your own van. Penalties include an unlimited fine, penalty points and possible disqualification. Northern Ireland has equivalent rules.
- Employers' liability is compulsory for employers. Under the Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969, a mobile mechanic business that employs anyone, needs at least £5 million of cover. Employers without it can be fined up to £2,500 for every day they are uninsured. Northern Ireland has its own equivalent law.
- Public liability is optional in law, though fleet and trade customers often ask for it.
How much does mobile mechanic insurance cost?
As a rough guide, a sole-trader mobile mechanic pays roughly £100 to £300 a year for public liability only, and £250 to £700 with tools and customers' vehicles cover added. A business with staff might pay £600 to £1,500. These figures include Insurance Premium Tax at 12%. Road risks motor trade cover is extra and priced on your age, driving record and postcode.
| Typical set-up | Rough guide price per year |
|---|---|
| Sole trader, public liability only | £100 to £300 |
| Sole trader adding tools and customers' vehicles in your care | £250 to £700 |
| Mobile mechanic business with staff (adds employers' liability) | £600 to £1,500 |
What affects the price of mobile mechanic insurance:
- The work you do. Servicing costs less to insure than engine rebuilds, performance cars, EV work or air-con.
- Turnover and number of jobs.
- Your public liability limit, usually £1 million, £2 million or £5 million.
- Customers' vehicles limit: the highest car value you can have in your care.
- Tools cover: the value of your kit.
- Claims history, experience and staff (employers' liability is priced on payroll).
These are rough guide prices only.
What to check before you buy mobile mechanic public liability insurance
Before buying mobile mechanic public liability insurance, check the policy names you as a mobile mechanic, covers work at customers' homes and the roadside, includes products and workmanship liability, and either covers customers' vehicles in your care or is paired with a policy that does.
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Your trade is described correctly | A general handyman policy may exclude vehicle work entirely. |
| Care, custody and control | Find out whether damage to the car you are working on is covered, and up to what value per vehicle. |
| Products and workmanship liability | Claims often arise weeks after the job, once you have gone. Check the limit and any exclusions for brakes, steering or tyres. |
| Hot works | Welding or grinding can carry extra conditions, such as a fire extinguisher on hand. |
| Tools in the van overnight | Many policies need signs of forced entry, and some exclude overnight theft unless the van is garaged. |
| Hybrid, EV and air-con work | Declare specialist work; insurers may ask for training evidence. |
| Road risks | If you drive customers' cars, you need a separate motor trade policy. |
Rules and regulations for mobile mechanics in the UK
There is no licence to work as a mobile mechanic in the UK, but you must handle waste oil and batteries as hazardous waste under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 duty of care, hold F-gas training before handling car air-con refrigerant, work safely under vehicles, and repair cars with reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
- Waste oil, filters and batteries. These are hazardous waste. The duty of care in section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 means you must store them so they can't leak and pass them only to an authorised carrier or permitted site, with the right paperwork. To carry waste in your own van you may need to register as a waste carrier with the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, SEPA or NIEA. In Scotland hazardous waste is called "special waste". Never pour oil into drains.
- Car air-con regassing. Recovering refrigerant from vehicle air-conditioning is covered by F-gas rules, and you need an appropriate F-gas training certificate for mobile air-conditioning before you do it.
- Hybrid and electric vehicles. There is no legal licence for high-voltage work, but the shock risk is serious. Voluntary training, such as the IMI's electric and hybrid vehicle qualifications, shows customers and insurers you can work safely.
- Working under vehicles. HSE guidance: never work under a vehicle held up only by a jack. Use axle stands or ramps on firm, level ground.
- Consumer rights. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, repairs must be done with reasonable care and skill, or the customer can ask you to redo the work or reduce the price.
- Working in the street. Repairing vehicles on a public road as a business can break local rules, so work on driveways or private land where you can.
Rules on waste and street works vary between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, so check local guidance for where you work.
Common claims against mobile mechanics
Common claims against mobile mechanics include damage to the car being worked on, oil-stained driveways, test drive accidents, faulty workmanship such as loose wheel nuts, and tools stolen from the van.
- Stained block paving. An oil drain pan tips over on a new block-paved driveway. The customer claims for relaying the blocks, usually covered by public liability.
- Car off the jack. A trolley jack slips and the car drops onto its sill. That is damage to a vehicle in your care, so it needs customers' vehicles cover.
- Wheel nuts not torqued. A wheel comes off days after you fitted new tyres, and the car hits another vehicle. Claims fall under products and workmanship liability. The cost of putting your own work right is usually excluded.
- Test drive collision. You rear-end another car while test driving a customer's car after a brake job. Without road risks cover, nothing pays and you may have committed an offence.
- Tools stolen overnight. Thieves take around £6,000 of tools and a scanner from your van. Tools cover pays, subject to its conditions.
Starting a mobile mechanic business: checklist
Before your first paid job, register with HMRC, arrange public liability with customers' vehicles and tools cover, add road risks if you will drive customers' cars, and set up legal disposal for waste oil and batteries.
- Register with HMRC as self-employed, or set up a limited company.
- Decide your services and get any certificates needed, such as F-gas for air-con.
- Sort your van: business use declared, occupation as mobile mechanic, and good locks for tools.
- Get insured: public liability with products and workmanship cover, customers' vehicles in your care and tools cover.
- Get a road risks quote if you will test drive, move or deliver customers' cars.
- Arrange waste disposal: an authorised carrier or site for waste oil, filters and batteries.
- Write simple job terms covering parts, price and extra faults.
- Add employers' liability before you take on any employees, including an apprentice.
Should you use a broker or buy mobile mechanic insurance online?
Buying online can work for a mobile mechanic who only needs public liability and never drives customers' cars. A broker is useful if you need road risks, customers' vehicles cover or specialist EV work, because they can compare insurers and spot gaps.
Mobile mechanics often need two or three policies. A broker who arranges cover for mobile mechanics can check that customers' cars are covered both while you work on them and while you drive them,.
For a wider guide to every type of business cover, see our small business insurance guide.
Related guides
Mobile mechanic insurance: frequently asked questions
Do mobile mechanics need insurance?
Public liability isn't a legal requirement, but most mobile mechanics have it. Driving customers' cars on the road needs motor trade cover, and employers' liability is compulsory once you employ anyone.
How much does mobile mechanic insurance cost?
As a rough guide, a sole-trader mobile mechanic pays roughly £100 to £300 a year for public liability only, or £250 to £700 with tools and customers' vehicles cover. A business with staff might pay £600 to £1,500. These figures include 12% Insurance Premium Tax. Road risks motor trade cover is extra and priced on your age, driving record and postcode.
Do I need motor trade insurance as a mobile mechanic?
You need motor trade road risks cover if you drive customers' cars on public roads, including test drives. If you never drive them, liability cover may be enough.
Can I test drive a customer's car on their insurance?
Usually not. Most private car policies exclude the car while it is with the motor trade for repair, so you need your own road risks policy. Driving uninsured is an offence under the Road Traffic Act 1988.
Does public liability cover damage to the car I'm working on?
Usually not. Public liability normally excludes property in your care, custody or control, which includes the car you are repairing. You need customers' vehicles cover.
What happens if a car I repaired has an accident?
If your work caused it, such as loose wheel nuts, injury and damage claims usually fall under products and workmanship liability. Redoing your own faulty work is normally excluded.
Are my tools covered if they're stolen from my van?
Only if you have tools cover, and within its conditions. Many policies need signs of forced entry, and some exclude overnight theft.
How should I dispose of waste oil as a mobile mechanic?
Waste oil, filters and batteries are hazardous waste. Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 duty of care, store them safely and pass them only to an authorised carrier or site.
Do I need a qualification to regas car air conditioning?
Yes. Recovering refrigerant from vehicle air-con is covered by F-gas rules, so you need an appropriate F-gas training certificate.
Do I need special training to work on hybrid or electric cars?
There is no legal licence, but high-voltage systems can kill. Voluntary IMI electric and hybrid qualifications are widely used, and some insurers ask for them.
Do I need employers' liability if I take on an apprentice?
Yes. An apprentice is an employee, so you need at least £5 million of employers' liability from day one.