Do Hastings do Food Delivery Insurance?

Like most other large car insurance companies in 2026, Hastings doesn't cover food delivery or courier driving on their standard personal policies. Furthermore, they have a strict stance regarding policyholders buying a supplemental, app-based insurance policy to cover their delivery driving. Is it allowed? Here's what you need to know.

Does Hastings cover delivery or courier driving?

No, Hastings categorically does not cover delivery driving on their personal policies. Their 2026 acceptance criteria explicitly states that they will not cover drivers who use their vehicle for a driving occupation such as being a courier or delivering fast food.

Furthermore, Hastings has confirmed to us that they do not allow policyholders to buy a top-up Hire & Reward (H&R) insurance policy from a PAYG company like Zego or INSHUR to cover their delivery driving on the side.

This is a firm stance; while they may have tolerated top-up H&R cover on a case-by-case basis many years ago, today they strictly forbid it.

H&R insurance is required by law for anyone earning money for making deliveries. You can learn more about H&R cover in our in-depth guide to delivery driving and food delivery insurance.

When we communicated with Hastings, here is exactly what they told us about their top-up policy:

"We do not allow top up insurance or Zego on our policies."

A Hastings policyholder confirmed this was their experience, informing us that Hastings wouldn't permit them to have a Zego policy. Here's what they said, "Hi. Please be aware that Hastings DO NOT accept Zego... I have just tried as they are my current provider and [I've] recently signed up to Just Eat..." You can read their full comment, which was left on another page here.

You can learn about the handful of big insurers who still allow top-up cover here.

Can I make deliveries without hire & reward cover?

No, it is critical that you do not make any deliveries until you've secured your commercial H&R cover. Doing so is illegal and will immediately invalidate your underlying SD&P policy. If you have an accident or are caught by the police (who actively check for this), it will result in 6 penalty points, a £300 fine, the seizure and impounding of your car, and potentially devastating financial ruin if you are sued for damages.

What do I do now?

If you want to work as a delivery driver or courier and you currently have Hastings insurance, you will need to buy a different policy altogether and cancel your Hastings policy. Be aware you will incur cancellation charges. For 2026, cancelling a Hastings policy mid-term generally involves a £45 cancellation fee, plus the loss of your £20 initial arrangement fee (which is non-refundable). You will also be charged a pro-rata rate for the days you were insured.

Just be sure that going forward you are covered for both your Social, Domestic and Pleasure driving (i.e. your personal driving) as well as your work-related Hire & Reward driving—either via an all-encompassing commercial policy or a combination of SD&P from one provider and top-up H&R from another.

For the first option, you'll either need to use a specialist broker or look to mainstream providers like Admiral, who now offer this cover directly. For the second option, just be absolutely sure that your new SD&P provider is ok with you having the top-up cover. (Read more about that here.)

Read more about these two options for finding delivery driver insurance:

You can read our full Zego review to learn more about the company and the product. The way Zego top-up cover works is that a driver has a regular car insurance policy (say, with Admiral) that covers their personal driving, and then they buy Zego PAYG top-up H&R insurance which covers their delivery driving.

What about the commute?

If you split the cover and buy SD&P insurance from one insurer and your H&R insurance from a top-up provider, be sure one of them covers your commute between home and your delivery area. But they shouldn't both cover the commute, as "dual insurance" can lead to massive confusion and disputes regarding which insurer is liable if you have an accident on the way to or from work. If a policy covers you for commuting, this will show up on one of your certificates of motor insurance.

Final thoughts

Getting covered for delivery driving is confusing and it's typically a good idea to call up and confirm with your providers that you are properly covered.

Finally, if you'll be working full-time as a courier or delivery driver, it is almost always more cost-effective in 2026 to buy an annual, combined H&R and SD&P policy from a specialist delivery insurance provider rather than separating SD&P and top-up H&R. To get an idea of prices for your profile, you can fill out a quote form with our comparison partner QuoteZone below.