How much does goods-in-transit insurance cost in Europe?
Goods in transit insurance cost in Europe runs EUR 100-300 a year for a van, rising to thousands for larger fleets based on cargo value and risk.
Logifie Team
Logistics Technology Experts
Goods-in-transit (cargo) insurance for road freight in Europe typically costs EUR 100-300 a year for a single van or owner-operator with basic cover, rising to several thousand euros annually for larger fleets, with the exact premium set by cargo value, commodity risk, mileage and claims history rather than one fixed rate.
What factors set the price of goods-in-transit insurance?
Insurers price goods-in-transit (GIT) cover by estimating the likely size and frequency of claims. Declared cargo value sets the baseline, since the sum insured caps what the policy pays out per load or per year. Commodity type matters almost as much: general palletised freight is cheap to cover, while electronics, pharmaceuticals, alcohol and other high-value retail goods carry theft premiums that can double or triple the base rate. Mileage, route risk, vehicle security and claims history round out the underwriting picture. A carrier that can show a clean claims record when it applies to work with shippers through Logifie's carrier network will typically see lower quotes than one with a patchy record.
Cover limits scale with fleet size, and premiums scale with them. The table below gives a typical euro-denominated range for road freight operators in Europe as of 2026; actual quotes vary by insurer, country and broker.
| Cover limit | Typical annual premium range |
|---|---|
| Up to EUR 10,000 (single van / owner-operator) | EUR 100-250 |
| Up to EUR 50,000 (small fleet) | EUR 250-700 |
| Up to EUR 100,000 (mid-size fleet) | EUR 700-1,500 |
| EUR 250,000+ or high-risk/high-value cargo | EUR 1,500-5,000+ |
For reference, UK entry-level GIT policies advertised premiums from around 67 pounds a year for 1,000 pounds of cover as of 2026, showing how steeply price scales with the sum insured even at the low end of the market ( Adrian Flux goods-in-transit cover ).
Is goods-in-transit insurance a legal requirement for hauliers?
No single EU or UK law forces a haulier to buy goods-in-transit insurance. What is mandatory is an EU Community operator licence, which under Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009 requires operators to demonstrate financial standing, currently EUR 9,000 for the first vehicle and EUR 5,000 for each additional one, plus good repute and professional competence ( Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009, EUR-Lex ). GIT cover is not part of that test. In practice, most shippers will not book a carrier without proof of adequate cargo cover, and platforms serving shippers, such as Logifie's customer portal , routinely check a carrier's insurance status before confirming a load, so the market makes GIT insurance a de facto requirement even where the law does not.
How is goods-in-transit insurance different from CMR insurance?
CMR insurance and goods-in-transit insurance solve different problems. Under the CMR Convention, as amended by the 1978 Protocol, a carrier's liability for loss or damage during international road carriage is capped at 8.33 SDR per kilogram of gross weight, regardless of the goods' actual value ( UNECE CMR Convention text ). CMR insurance covers the carrier for that capped liability. GIT insurance covers the actual value of the cargo, which is usually far higher than the CMR cap for anything but light, low-value freight. A shipper carrying high-value goods typically wants both the carrier's CMR cover and its own or the carrier's GIT policy layered on top. Readers unsure which policy applies can compare cargo cover against CMR liability before choosing.
Frequently asked questions
Is goods-in-transit insurance a legal requirement in Europe?
No. EU and UK law require an operator licence with proven financial standing and, for international hauliers, CMR liability exposure, but neither mandates a standalone goods-in-transit policy. Most shippers require proof of GIT cover as a condition of booking, which makes it a practical necessity even without a legal mandate.
What does goods-in-transit insurance actually cover?
GIT insurance covers the value of goods carried against loss, theft or damage while in transit, typically from loading to delivery. It usually extends to loading and unloading, temporary storage en route and, depending on the policy, goods left in an unattended vehicle overnight.
Does a UK goods-in-transit policy cover EU deliveries?
Not automatically. Standard UK GIT policies are often written for domestic cover only, so a haulier running international EU routes needs to confirm the policy explicitly extends to European territory and check for mileage or country exclusions before relying on it.
How much cargo value can I insure under a standard GIT policy?
Standard policies typically insure up to EUR 50,000-100,000 per load or per vehicle as a default limit, with higher limits available for high-value or high-risk cargo, usually at a proportionally higher premium.
Carriers and shippers who want cover matched to an actual route and fleet profile can get a tailored quote today.
