Passenger Carrying Vehicle Insurance
Passenger carrying vehicle (PCV) insurance covers vehicles that carry people for hire or reward — taxis and cabs, school buses, staff buses, tempo travellers and tourist coaches. Alongside own-damage cover for the vehicle, it carries statutory third-party liability that extends to the passengers you carry, which is the exposure that makes this class different. Assurmate compares PCV rates across 75+ insurance partners and manages the claim end to end.
What it is
A PCV policy is a commercial motor contract for vehicles permitted to carry passengers. The compulsory third-party section covers injury, death and property damage caused to others, and critically includes liability to the passengers travelling in your vehicle, seat by seat as per the permit. The own-damage section covers the vehicle itself against accident, fire, theft and natural calamities up to the Insured Declared Value.
Pricing depends on seating capacity, vehicle age, zone of registration and the nature of the permit — a school bus, a contract-carriage staff bus and a city taxi are underwritten differently. A compulsory Personal Accident cover applies to the owner-driver, and cover for the driver, conductor and attendants is added by endorsement.
Who needs it
Anyone carrying passengers commercially needs a PCV policy: taxi and cab owners including app-based operators, school and college bus fleets, companies running employee transport, tour operators with tempo travellers and coaches, and contract carriage operators.
The stakes here are different from goods vehicles. A single accident involving a full bus can produce multiple injury claims decided by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, and awards for death or permanent disability are unlimited in law. Schools and corporates also increasingly demand proof of adequate cover, valid permit and fitness before a contract is signed, so the policy is a commercial requirement as much as a legal one.
What's covered
- Third-party injury and death liability, including passengers carried
- Third-party property damage
- Own damage from accident, collision and overturning
- Fire, explosion, lightning and self-ignition
- Theft of the vehicle, and riot, strike and malicious damage
- Natural calamities — flood, cyclone, earthquake and landslide
- Compulsory Personal Accident cover for the owner-driver
Typically not covered
- Carrying more passengers than the permit allows, where it contributed to the loss
- Operating without a valid permit, fitness certificate or badge-holding driver
- Use outside the permitted route or geographical area
- Wear and tear, depreciation and mechanical or electrical breakdown
- Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Loss of earnings while the vehicle is off the road, unless a specific add-on is taken
Why buy it through Assurmate
Passenger liability set correctly
Seating capacity and permit type drive the third-party premium and the cover. We make sure what is on the policy matches what is on the permit.
Rates compared, not renewed blindly
PCV pricing differs sharply between insurers by seating capacity and zone. We test the market at every renewal across 75+ insurance partners.
Built for contract compliance
Schools and corporates ask for certificates and adequate limits before awarding transport contracts. We issue what your client needs, quickly.
Fast repair, less idle time
An idle bus is lost revenue and a broken route. We push surveyor allotment and cashless repair to get it back on the road.
Driver and attendant cover handled
Legal liability to paid driver, conductor and attendant is added by endorsement — we make sure it is actually on the policy.
Tribunal claims supported
Injury claims run for months through the tribunal process. We stay on the file with the insurer until it closes.
Optional add-ons
- Legal liability to driver, conductor and attendant. Covers statutory liability to the crew employed on the vehicle.
- Personal Accident cover for passengers. Benefit cover for occupants over and above third-party liability — often asked for in school and corporate contracts.
- Zero depreciation. Full payout on replaced parts without depreciation deduction, on newer vehicles.
- Roadside assistance and towing. Breakdown support on long routes, useful for tourist coaches and staff transport.
How to buy through us
- 1
Share vehicle, permit and route details
Registration copy, seating capacity, permit type (contract carriage, school, taxi), operating area and claim history.
- 2
We compare across insurers
We collect PCV quotes from suitable insurers among our 75+ insurance partners and compare cover, not just price.
- 3
Set IDV and endorsements
We fix a realistic IDV and add driver, conductor and attendant liability plus any passenger cover your contracts demand.
- 4
Issue and diarise
The policy is issued digitally and we track renewal, permit and fitness dates so cover never lapses mid-contract.
Passenger Carrying Vehicle Insurance questions
The things people ask us most about this cover.
Yes. The compulsory third-party section of a PCV policy covers liability to passengers carried, in line with the seating capacity on the permit. Many operators also add a benefit-based Personal Accident cover for occupants, which pays without needing to prove liability.
Both are passenger carrying vehicles, but they are underwritten differently by seating capacity, permit type and usage. The premium and the endorsements differ, so the policy must be issued for the correct class.
Overloading beyond the permitted seating capacity is a breach of the permit. If the insurer establishes that it contributed to the loss, the own-damage claim can be rejected, and recovery may be pursued even where third-party liability is paid.
No. Legal liability to paid driver, conductor and attendant is added by endorsement for a small additional premium. It is worth checking your existing policy — this endorsement is missing more often than owners expect.
Standard motor policies exclude consequential loss, but some insurers offer a downtime or loss-of-hire add-on for commercial passenger vehicles. We check availability at renewal.
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Explore coverNot sure if Passenger Carrying Vehicle Insurance is right for you?
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