Delivery Insurance Explained: What Actually Covers Your Items?

By the Smart Taurus team · Updated 14 July 2026

Two policies matter when someone else drives your belongings across the country — and they cover completely different things. This is the customer's-eye view of transport insurance, minus the jargon.

In short: Goods-in-transit (GIT) insurance covers the items being carried; public liability covers damage the transporter causes to people and property around the job. From the customer's side, the questions that matter are: what is the cover limit per load, does it match your goods' value, and what is excluded. Smart Taurus lets customers ask these questions in-app before booking a verified transporter, and photographing item condition before handover is the single best claims protection anyone can arrange. Policies differ — always confirm specifics with your transporter.

What is goods-in-transit insurance?

Goods-in-transit insurance is the policy that responds if your items are damaged, lost or stolen while the transporter has them — in the vehicle, being carried, or during loading and unloading, depending on the wording. Three features of GIT cover shape what a customer can actually expect:

A limit per load: the policy pays up to a stated total for everything in the vehicle. If your goods are worth more than the operator's limit, the gap is your exposure.
Exclusions: typical carve-outs include cash, jewellery, documents, fine art above thresholds, improperly packed items and anything not declared. The overlap with what operators refuse to carry is no coincidence — see what movers won't move.
Basis of settlement: some policies pay repair or market value rather than replacement-as-new, and older furniture's market value can be a fraction of what buying again costs.

Cover levels vary enormously between operators — a large removals firm and a solo van owner may carry very different limits, which is one of the practical differences explored in man and van vs removal company.

What does public liability insurance cover?

Public liability responds when the transporter's work injures someone or damages property that isn't the cargo — the gouged staircase, the cracked bannister, the neighbour's wing mirror, a visitor tripped by a strap. It exists because moving heavy objects through occupied buildings creates risks well beyond the objects themselves. For the customer the distinction is simple to hold onto: GIT is about your things, public liability is about everything around your things. A transporter working in your home should sensibly carry both, and asking about both is normal, not rude. Neither policy, incidentally, covers the customer's own lifting — if you help carry and drop your own television, that's on you, which is a quiet argument for letting the professionals do the carrying.

What is declared value and why does it matter?

Declared value is what you tell the transporter your goods are worth, and it quietly anchors everything that follows: whether the operator's cover limit is adequate, whether high-value pieces need special arrangements, and how a claim gets assessed. Under-declare and you risk being underinsured; leave a genuinely valuable item unmentioned and it may fall outside cover altogether. The habit that serves customers best is itemising: when posting a job, list the significant pieces with honest values — the piano, the designer sofa, the inherited dresser — rather than gesturing at "household contents". For individually precious items, transporters may propose extra cover, extra packing, or advise a specialist; a dedicated service like antiques delivery exists precisely because ordinary cover fits ordinary goods.

Honesty pays twice here: accurate declarations make quotes realistic and make claims straightforward. Surprises discovered mid-claim rarely resolve in the customer's favour.

What should I ask a transporter about insurance before booking?

Five questions cover the ground, and a professional will answer them without flinching:

Do you carry goods-in-transit insurance, and what is the cover limit per load?
Do you carry public liability insurance for work inside properties?
What is excluded — and are any of my listed items in the exclusions?
Does cover apply if I pack boxes myself, or only to items you pack?
How do I report damage, and within what timeframe?

That fourth question surprises people: owner-packed boxes are commonly covered against vehicle-level events (crash, theft) but not against breakage inside the box, since the insurer never saw how the contents were padded. On Smart Taurus these conversations happen in the app before you book, alongside each transporter's verified profile and review history, so the answers are on record — more due-diligence context lives in how to choose a transporter.

Why are condition photos so important?

Because a claim is an evidence contest, and photos taken before handover are the only neutral witness. Shoot each significant item from several angles in good light on the day of collection — including existing scuffs, so nobody later attributes them to transit — and photograph the packed boxes and the loaded items where practical. Timestamped phone photos are fine. At delivery, inspect before the crew leaves and photograph anything concerning immediately, from the same angles as the before shots. This ten-minute ritual converts "my word against theirs" into a documented sequence, and it protects honest transporters just as much as it protects you — which is why good ones photograph condition too.

How do I handle a damage claim properly?

Promptly, factually and in writing. Note damage at delivery if at all possible — on the paperwork or in the app — and follow up with photos and a clear description within the operator's reporting window, which can be short. State what happened, what item, and what you're asking for; let the transporter respond and involve their insurer if needed. Etiquette genuinely matters: most damage is accidental, most operators want to resolve it, and a calm, documented request gets settled while an opening broadside gets defended. Keep receipts or valuations for the affected item if you have them, don't repair anything before the claim is agreed, and keep all communication where it can be referenced later — one more reason the in-app message thread beats phone calls for anything contractual. If a dispute stalls, the documentation you built at every earlier step is what resolves it.

Frequently asked questions

Is my furniture automatically insured when I book a delivery?

Never assume so. Cover depends on the individual operator's goods-in-transit policy — its limit, exclusions and conditions — not on the booking itself. Ask for the cover limit and check it against your goods' value before you book; the answer takes a professional thirty seconds to give.

What's the difference between goods-in-transit and public liability insurance?

Goods-in-transit covers the cargo — your items, while the transporter has them. Public liability covers harm the work does to everything else: walls, floors, bystanders, neighbouring property. A transporter handling household jobs should carry both, and each answers a different kind of mishap.

Are boxes I packed myself covered for breakage?

Often only partially: owner-packed boxes are commonly covered for load-level events like theft or a crash, but not for breakage inside the box, because the insurer can't verify the packing. If something fragile matters, either let the transporter pack it or accept the risk knowingly.

What if my belongings are worth more than the transporter's cover limit?

You have three options: ask the operator about increased cover for the job, arrange your own transit insurance for the difference, or split high-value items into a separately covered specialist delivery. What you shouldn't do is stay silent and hope — an undeclared gap is the customer's gap.

How quickly do I need to report transit damage?

Report at delivery whenever possible, and always inside the operator's stated window, which may be only a few days. Late reports weaken claims because the damage can no longer be tied to transit. Photos at collection and at delivery are what make the timeline provable.

Does a marketplace like Smart Taurus insure my delivery itself?

Cover is carried by the transporter, not the marketplace — Smart Taurus verifies transporter profiles, hosts their reviews, and keeps your pre-booking questions and agreements in the app, which is exactly the paper trail you want if a claim ever arises. Confirm each operator's insurance details directly before booking.

Should I repair a damaged item before the claim is settled?

No — repairing first destroys the evidence the insurer needs to assess. Photograph the damage, report it in writing, and wait for the claim to be agreed before arranging repair or replacement. Get a written repair quote in the meantime if you want to speed the settlement conversation.