Motor Trade Insurance
Motor dealerships sit at the centre of one of the busiest sectors in Australian retail. Stock turns over every week, customers walk through the yard every day, and a single test drive can put a $60,000 vehicle in the hands of someone the dealership met an hour ago. The exposure profile is unlike most other businesses, and the cover needs to match. Motor trade insurance is the cover designed for it.
OneSure is a specialist commercial insurance broker for motor dealers. We arrange cover for franchised new car dealerships, independent used car yards, family-owned multi-site dealer groups, and the workshop and servicing operations that sit alongside them. Our brokers work in this sector every week, so we know how cover behaves when a demonstration vehicle is damaged, when a customer's trade-in is hit in the yard, or when a vehicle leaves the lot under demo plates and does not come back the way it left.
What motor trade insurance can cover
Motor trade insurance is not a single policy. It is a coordinated set of cover types arranged to protect every part of how a dealership operates. Cover can typically include:
- Stock cover for the vehicles held for sale, against damage, theft, storm, hail, and fire on the lot.
- Demonstration and road-risk cover for vehicles driven by staff, customers, and visiting prospects.
- Customer vehicle cover for cars left at the dealership for servicing, trade-in inspection, or handover.
- Premises cover for the yard, showroom, workshop, and office.
- Workshop and tools cover for the servicing side of the business.
- Public and product liability for the dealership's operation and the vehicles sold.
- Business interruption cover to support the dealership through a covered loss event.
- Commercial motor cover for the dealership's own service and delivery vehicles.
- Management liability for the company and its directors.
The mix arranged for a given dealership depends on the model, the franchise terms, and whether the business runs a workshop alongside the retail operation.
Stock, demonstration, and customer-vehicle exposure
Three exposures dominate claims activity in the motor trade. They sit on top of every other risk the business carries.
Stock on the lot is the largest single exposure for most dealerships. Stock value can run into the millions across new and used inventory, exposed to hail, storm, vandalism, theft, and incidental damage from customers and staff moving vehicles through the yard. The wording around stock cover matters because insurers treat new, used, demonstration, and trade-in stock differently.
Demonstration drives are the second exposure. Every test drive is a vehicle in the hands of someone the dealership does not know, on roads the dealership does not control. Car dealership insurance typically extends demonstration cover across staff, customers, and visiting representatives, with conditions on identity verification, licence checks, and the form of accompaniment.
Customer vehicles on premises is the third. A car left for trade-in inspection, servicing, or pre-delivery sits at the dealership's risk while it is on the lot. Workshop floors, car-park manoeuvres, and overnight storage all produce claims. The cover needs to extend specifically to customer-owned vehicles on the dealer's care, custody, and control.
Who this cover suits
Motor dealer insurance is generally arranged by:
- Franchised new car dealerships, where franchisor minimum requirements often shape the cover.
- Independent used car retailers, where stock turnover and yard exposure dominate the risk profile.
- Multi-site dealer groups with several yards under one company structure.
- Service and workshop businesses operating alongside or independent of the retail yard.
- Wholesale motor traders who deal between dealerships rather than to the public.
Motor trade is a licensed sector in every state. The licensing scheme governs how the business operates and often shapes the insurance the dealer carries. A specialist broker arranges cover that meets those expectations without overlapping or leaving gaps.
Why work with a specialist broker
Generic business insurance treats a motor dealership as a retailer with stock. It is more than that. The stock is mobile, high-value, and routinely operated by people other than the dealer's own staff. The premises includes a workshop, a yard, and a showroom, each with its own claim profile. Off-the-shelf policies rarely handle that combination well.
OneSure brokers arrange motor trade cover every week. We know the insurers that write the class properly, the wordings that perform when claims are made, and the cover extensions that match how a dealership actually operates. We also handle the claim when one happens, which is when the gap between a specialist policy and a generic one is most visible.
Related cover
- Caravan dealership insurance for caravan and RV retailers.
- Marine dealership insurance for boat and watercraft retailers.
- Truck & trailer dealership insurance for heavy commercial dealers.
- Machinery dealership insurance for plant and equipment retailers.
- Commercial motor insurance for the dealership's service and delivery vehicles.
General advice disclaimer
The information provided by OneSure Insurance Services Pty Ltd on this website is for general information purposes only, and it is not a substitute for professional advice. You should always consider the PDS/policy wording before making a decision. Coverage may differ based on specific clauses in individual policies. Refer to the FSG for our services and remuneration details.
OneSure Insurance Services Pty Ltd is an Authorised Representative (AR No 1242454) of PSC Connect Pty Ltd, ABN 23 141 574 914, AFS Licence No 344648.
Talk to a OneSure broker
Speak to a OneSure broker for an obligation-free conversation about motor trade insurance for your dealership. We will work through the yard, the workshop, the stock, and the cover that fits.
