If you are thinking of hiring a Private Hire Minibus (Minibus with a driver) for a big night out or special occasion then we have put together a guide for you to ensure any vehicle you hire is safe and the driver is fully licensed.

If the operator is unlicensed, their vehicles and drivers may not meet the legal requirements and they could be unsafe and uninsured.

When you hire a vehicle with a driver for the exclusive use of your group, the licence the operator needs depends on the size of the vehicles they have for hire:

* vehicles that carry eight or fewer passengers and are hired exclusively to an individual or group are classed as private hire vehicles (PHVs) – the operating company must have a PHV operator’s licence and the driver and vehicle also need PHV licences

* vehicles that carry more than eight passengers and Minibuses with more than eight passengers are classed as public service vehicles (PSVs) and the operating company needs a PSV operator’s licence.

Always check that the driver of the Minibus has an operators Licence which are licensed by the Traffic Commissioners and make a note of the Operators Licence number.

If you want to check further you can do so by calling the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) helpline on 0300 123 9000 or click here. Ask the VOSA adviser to check the PSV number and confirm the company it has been issued to.

Another point is to make sure that you avoid hiring a PSV from a company that does not supply a driver with the Minibus. If the operator tells you to hire a driver separately and gives you a list of possible drivers, they are likely to be unlicensed and operating illegally.

If you need any further information regarding the Hire of Private Hire Minibuses then we will be more than willing to give help and advice, or if you are a Minibus Operator and require Private Hire Minibus Insurance then please contact us for a free quotation.

The Minibus Blog is a totally independent website run by minibus operators for minibus owners and we are delighted to announce that we have negotiated exclusive insurance discounts for our visitors from some of the UK’s leading Minibus, Coach and Fleet Insurance providers.

Simply complete the form below with your Renewal Date, Name and Telephone number so we know when to get a quote to you.

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Minibus Insurance isn”t always cheap, so we have put together our five top tips to help reduce your minibus insurance quote.

1) No Claims Bonus – The more No Claims Bonus you have available to use the lower the premium will be, remember No Claims Bonus can only be used on one minibus at a time, check to see if you have a spare discount available to use from an old policy.It is worth noting that some insurers will consider accepting No Claims Bonus from a private car policy, if this is the case it may be cost effective to remove the discount from the car policy and apply it to the minibus insurance.

2) Introductory Discounts – If you don”t have any No Claims Bonus you may still be entitled to an introductory discount, which can be equivalent to 3 years No Claims Discount. Some minibus insurers will allow the discount if you can prove an accident free history of driving a similar vehicle, for example as a named driver on someone elses policy. 

3) Avoid Making Claims – If you have a fault accident and your insurers have to pay the repair bill, you will lose some (or all) of your No Claims Bonus, making next years premium more expensive. If you have a bump, think carefully before you decide whether to ask the insurers to pay for it. If there is minor damaged that can be repaired cheaply it may be more cost effective to pay for the repairs to the minibus out of your own pocket.

4) Increase Voluntary Excess – Most minibus insurance policies have a compulsary excess, this is the amount you will have to pay when making a claim. You can normally increase the excess in return for a discount, remember to make sure you are comfortable with the amount you set it at, as you will need to pay it to make a claim.

5) Restrict Driving – Most minibus insurance policies are flexible as to who can drive the vehicle, some allow open driving. By restricting the policy to just one or two drivers will normally result in a discount from the premium.

Finally, speak to a specialist minibus insurance company, the average car insurance broker is not an expert and will not have access to the same special rates.

The survey checked Minibus Insurance quotes from 10 of the leading online insurance companies and Wrightsure Insurance were more than £50 cheaper than the next best quotation. 

The minibus insurance quote was for a 17 seater LDV minibus used for private hire purposes.

I know there a lot of Minibus and Coach Operators who operate more than one vehicle and thought that this might be of some interest to you.

Every time I am in Southampton I see his car whizzing round, not that you can miss him…

It is such a simple, cheap and very effective way of making people aware of your brand that I thought it was a good idea for Private Hire Driver’s, not just to advertise their own company but to rent out the space to a local company who are looking to advertise there services. 

Great to see the guys at Total Insurance have launched a Minibus News Blog on their website.

I have my minibus insurance with Total Insurance and the fact they have a minibus insurance news blog on their website is excellent for keeping customers informed with what is going on in the minibus insurance world. 

I have read the minibus insurance blog this morning and there are some really good articles on there, so I thought I would do my bit to spread the word by putting article on here!

The accident happened outside the English Martyrs School, in Hartlepool, at about 3.30pm yesterday – as dozens of children were heading home for the day.

A Mercedes bus carrying 20 children from the school, which was in collision with a Renault Scenic car, mounted the footpath in Catcote Road, and crashed into a wire fence, leaving its nose embedded in a tree.

Witnesses described how the bus had swerved to avoid hitting a boy who had run into the road.

Pupils were trapped screaming under the wheels as smoke began to pour from the vehicle.

Emergency services quickly declared the crash as a “major incident”. They said at least 22 people had been injured and received hospital treatment, most of whom had been on foot and not in the bus.

An air ambulance and the police helicopter flew the most seriously injured to Middlesbrough’s James Cook University Hospital.

Police, who cordoned off the scene, said two children were poorly but stable last night at the James Cook hospital. They were two 12-year-old boys, both pupils at English Martyrs.

Two other children were said to be comfortable at the University Hospital of North Tees, in Stockton.

All the other casualties, who were taken to hospitals in Stockton and Hartlepool, were released after treatment.

A spokesman for the North-East Ambulance Service said: “At 3.38pm we received a 999 call to Catcote Road, in Hartlepool, for a road accident involving a bus, where a number of people were reported trapped under the vehicle.

“In total, six ambulances, one rapid response unit, an air ambulance, along with the police helicopter and two ambulance officers, attended the accident.

“Eight casualties with cuts, bumps and bruises were taken to Hartlepool Hospital.

“Two casualties with serious injuries were airlifted by both helicopters to James Cook and a further ten were taken to North Tees General Hospital, in Stockton, including two people with serious head and neck injuries.

“The rest have neck, leg and other injuries – broken bones and soft tissue injuries.”

The driver of the bus, which is owned by Richardsons, was being questioned by police last night.

Witness Peter Murphy, 14, a year nine pupil at English Martyrs, who was standing yards from where the bus crashed, said one of his friends had been injured.

The GCSE pupil said: “I was standing by the road when I looked and saw the white minibus heading towards me.

“There was loads of other groups of kids, who had just left school, standing around too.

“Then one boy ran out into the road in front of the bus and the driver swerved to try to avoid him. It went off the road and crashed into the school fence, hitting a load of kids as it went.

“When it stopped, some of them were trapped under the wheels. People were screaming and running away.

“There was blood everywhere – it was horrible so I did not want to look. I turned away.

“One of my friends was taken to hospital. I do not know if he is badly hurt or not.”

Jodie Waller, 14, was on a bus travelling in front of the one that crashed. She said: “I was sitting forward on the bus and briefly looked round.

“I saw the white bus swerve suddenly and plough into the fence. Immediately, thick black smoke was billowing from it.

“I was the only one on the bus who saw it. I was just in total shock and could not speak.

“As our bus kept on driving, I was trying to point to alert people.

“Eventually, others saw what happened and were screaming ‘the bus has crashed, the bus has crashed’. Our bus just carried on and took me home to Hartlepool.

“I came back to see what had happened.”

English Martyrs headteacher Joe Hughes said: “Everyone is very concerned and very worried, and our thoughts are with the students in hospital.

“We will be praying through the night that the outcome is the best one.”

Mr Hughes said he believed there were 26 pupils on the bus, who are thought to be aged 12 and 13, and he understood the vehicle was fitted with seatbelts.

English Martyrs teacher Alex Price said staff at the school rushed to help those injured.

He said: “Some of the teachers have gone down to the scene of the accident.”

Another witness, a woman in her 30s who works for a local supermarket, said: “It has been total chaos. One minute it was a lovely summer afternoon, the next the road was full of helicopters, fire engines, ambulances and police cars.”

Sergeant Paul Dee, of Cleveland Police, said: “Police from the crash investigation unit are trying to establish what happened, but I am led to believe that a vast majority of the casualties were children walking on the pavement.

“Casualties were children from both the Martyrs School and nearby Catcote Road School.

“The driver of the bus has been questioned by police and given an account of what happened.”

A police spokeswoman confirmed the accident involved a minibus and a Renault Megane Scenic car.

She said: “A major incident was declared by the emergency services. Numerous ambulances were called to the scene and air ambulances also used a nearby rugby club as a landing zone.”

Jackie Gough, of Cleveland Fire Brigade, said: “Three of our vehicles attended the scene, along with 20 firefighters.

“I have been told that no cutting equipment was used.”

Bus company Richardson’s said it could not comment.

A Hartlepool Borough Council spokesman said: “It is a major incident and we are treating it as such.”

Father James Tuckwell, the priest in charge at St Patrick’s Catholic Church, which has strong links to the school, said: “This was a shocking, terrible thing to have happened.

“We are praying for the families and for the children.”

English Martyrs is a catholic voluntary aided comprehensive and incorporates a sixth-form centre.

It describes itself as a specialist arts college and has 1,480 pupils of both sexes, aged 11 to 19.

The minibus blog has been told how a group of schoolchildren were taken to their prom in a minibus after their limousines turned up on the wrong day.

Mum Caroline Jones booked two limos to take her 16-year-old daughter Emily and 29 of her friends as a special touch for their big night.

But, the cars turned up a whole month early and because it is prom season, they could not book another one – so they ended up hiring a trusty minibus instead.

The company through which the Hummer limos were booked, has denied the error was theirs, claiming Mrs Jones booked the wrong date.

The 43-year-old, of Lisvane, Cardiff, said: “It was so disappointing.

“Unfortunately there were three major proms in Cardiff on the same night, so we couldn’t get another limo for love nor money. All the girls were looking beautiful, the boys were in their dinner suits and there they were in a minibus.”

The Hummer limos, complete with soft drinks, lights and music, were meant to drive the party around Cardiff for an hour before taking them to the Llanishen High School prom.

A £180 deposit was paid over the phone on the day of booking to Limobroker and on the night when the limousines did turn up, Mrs Jones says another £360 was taken from her credit card.

While the Limo company claim the wrong date was booked by Mrs Jones and was confirmed by two e-mails, the medical receptionist insists she booked the correct date and they received no correspondence or receipt from the company.

She has since reported the matter to trading standards.

Mrs Jones said: “I’m seriously out of pocket. The girls spent all week getting spray tans and choosing their dresses. The limo would have finished it off. It’s a major disappointment.”

Cardiff council has confirmed trading standards is investigating the matter.

A spokesman for the limo company said the mistake was on the customer’s side and they offered alternative hire on alternative days. The company advise customers to check their e-mail confirmation and to contact them if it is not received or if the details are incorrect. The spokesman added: “As per our terms and conditions agreed to at the time of booking, the card originally used as payment was debited.”