Hi everyone ,i have couple of questions ,pls do not judge hard .So planning to start transport/recovery with touareg gen2 2010 and 3.5 trailer.Just bought recently touareg.I know i do know that i need tacho fittet but will do that after i will sort with Insurance .Trying to contact about 10 motor trader companies today and some of them refuse to give me quotes as i have no claim bonus discount from trade Insurance ,some of them just taking my details telling me that will give me a call back which never happen,couple of companies offered me insurance for 16k a year.I knew the insurance will be expensive but come on 16k?its ridiculous .
I have to mention that i have full uk license for about 4.5 years and im 28 years old.
Can anyone advise legit motor trade company that will ask for an arm and an leg and could someone explain what insurance do i actually need?Planning to make recovery and car transport.Any advise will be very helpful or tips from who is industry all ready .Thank you
not what you want to hear I’m sure, but what does your Toureg weigh when it’s unladen?
If it is over 2040kg, then I’ve got bad news for you: You’d also need an O-licence. A quick look at t’intyweb suggests you’re well inside O-licence territory
Spoke with couple of people who is industry,they told me that every over 2040kg need o license except dual purpose vehicles
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"## Dual purpose vehicles
A dual purpose vehicle is a vehicle constructed or adapted for the carriage both of passengers and of goods and designed to weigh no more than 2,040 kg when unladen, and is either:"…
So, as @zac_a says if over 2040kg it is doesn’t seem to be a dual purpose vehicle under the act.
Ah… My Mate Reckons… Well they’re wrong
“Dual purpose” vehicles
Under Schedule 3 (2) of the goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Regulations 1995 “a dual purpose vehicle and any trailer drawn by it” is identified as exempt from goods vehicle operator licensing.
The dual purpose category generally includes cars, estates, pickups (with a second row of seats (crew cab) only), and domestic 4×4 vehicles such as Land Rovers, Jeeps, and other similar vehicles below 2040kgs unladen weight.
THIS is why I asked about the weight of your Toureg, which as far as I can see is highly unlikely to weigh in at less than 2040kg
ok i get that.How i said insurance companys offer me insurance for 16k a year .I was talking to some of my family friend and got an idea to make policy in his name with as additional driver.How legit this is ?I mean a lot of people do that on private car would this work in my case?tia
Quote
"#### What is fronting?
‘Fronting’ is when someone takes out a car insurance policy on their own car, but only adds themselves as the named driver and someone else as the main driver to get a cheaper premium.
This is illegal, and could result in a conviction for driving without insurance, as well as your car insurance policy being invalidated in the event of the claim.
That’s why it’s important that all the information you provide to us is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge, and that you let us know as soon as you have a change in circumstances – such as a change of address or occupation."
What is a named driver? | Endsleigh.
While we’re scraping the bottom of the legality barrel, might as well add that there is also O-licence “fronting”, so if any of these “friends” suggest getting your enterprise up and running by putting your vehicle onto someone elses O-licence, both you and the O-licence holder would be up in front of the TC; no tea, no biscuits, bring your own KY jelly…
They tend to be quite keen on seizing assets in such a situation, so it would be bye-bye Touareg at that point
As a general comment, there are a lot of operators chasing the work that is out there.
The www means that often only the very cheapest rate will be accepted, unless it is a very valuable vehicle when well established companies will be preferred, and honest operators will be in direct competition with those on the fiddle.
I know of someone who does make a good living from a 4x4 and trailer, but that is with a good contact in a specialist field, not in general and car movements.
It is doable but far from easy.
Ok, so you insurer in another person/ company name (oh so many risks), now how do you deal with the O licence?
From a business perspective, if the business cannot support its running costs such as insurance and O licence, then it’s either a hobby, bankruptcy waiting to happen or a scan on its customers
That’s a terrible description of a dual purpose vehicle. (A single cab pickup could qualify so long as it is 4WD). But unfortunately that doesn’t help the OP
Government’s classification, nothing you can do about it.
I regularly see quite a few of these kind of outfits blatantly disregarding the rules of the road - most notably doing comfortably over 70 on a motorway in the outside lane (limit is 60 when there’s a trailer on, and like us not allowed to use the OSL on a three-lane motorway) to say nothing of the shoddy looking load securing as they whizzing by 
- they’re not my favourite people to share the A1(M) with.
try the a2 i regularly see a coach that’s over 20 years old tearing down the motorway weaving in and out of traffic with a tiny single axle trailer that could easily and legally pulled by a corsa going to the tip piled high with luggage swinging wildly side to side even in a straight line
That wasn’t a government website that you linked to. The simple description is :-Car-derived vans and dual purpose vehicles - GOV.UK
And official description:-https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1986/1078/regulation/3/made
The 2040kg limit is correct, but it only needs to be a crew cab if it’s not 4WD.
No it wasn’t a gov.uk site, sometimes I find alternative sites display “must know” info more clearly and simply - and sometimes I might be posting as a break from regular work so I don’t delve into the official sites, especially when it looks like an OP might benefit from something “quick and dirty”.
Most of these guys probably shouldn’t be doing this work, they try to do it dirt cheap and therefore avoid any expense they feel is unnecessary, like Public Liability insurance. A TM friend of mine once tried to help one of these guys run legally but had to give up fairly quickly as the guy was as bent as a nine-bob-note, I wouldn’t even consider one of these guys as a client.
I just worry that sites that get confused by the words “and” & “or” what else are they describing that they don’t actually understand.
Fairy snuff, I would never discourage anyone from seeking out the official sources, but I suspect OP has probably had enough ‘rain on his parade’ and may well have chosen to either abandon his plan, or extensively alter his “business model” in ways that he won’t want to discuss on social media 
If the cost of insurance was an unpleasant shock, then the costs of O-licencing (especially the hefty Financial Standing required) might require ready access to a defibrillator.