This article has been written for the Koru Kids Nanny Service for nannies.
If you’ll be using your car to drive the children, you need to have proper insurance in place.
If you do not inform your insurance provider about using your car for your role, this may also mean you won’t have insurance protection through the Public Liability insurance policy that Koru Kids pays for on your behalf.
What insurance do I need?
Your current car insurance policy almost certainly covers you only for regular usage - social, domestic and pleasure use, and perhaps commuting to and from one place of work as well.
If driving children is part of your work, you also need to make sure to have cover for business use as well.
Most insurance companies will charge extra for this so we suggest checking with your insurance company to find out what the charge will be.
Who is responsible for this charge depends on your specific situation. We suggest that you discuss this with the family and explain how the process works so you both can make an informed decision.
You will need to provide the family with a quote for the additional premium from the insurance company so they can agree (or not) to this payment
Once agreed with the family, you need to make the necessary arrangements and pay the insurance company for this addition
You need to notify Koru Kids about this and provide us with proof as to the amount paid. We will contact the family to make sure everything was agreed by both parties
Koru Kids will then invoice the family and you will receive the reimbursement in your salary. As mentioned above, this is a taxable benefit
Another option is for the family to pay for the policy directly to the insurance company. We will then add that cost to your earnings and will deduct national insurance from the total and provide you a P11D form. You may need to declare this on your personal tax return.
What about mileage?
You are expected to cover your own travel costs to and from work. This typically involves travelling to the child / children's school or family home. However, any travel costs incurred during your shift, e.g. bringing a child / children home from their school to the family home on a bus/car should be reimbursed by the family.
It would be best to discuss it with the family and then add it as an expense to your timesheet.
The HMRC mileage rate may be of use when discussing this with the family.
Please note, you should only add expenses that have been pre-agreed with the family.
We recommend that nannies follow these basic principles:
Be 100% clear in advance what your employer expects you to spend the money on, and what the maximum budget is
Photograph the receipt of anything you buy (showing the breakdown of items)
Return any cash change or the card to your employer at the end of your shift, along with any receipts
Never use your employer’s personal credit or debit card. If a prepaid card is not available, ask for cash.
What if my family aren't sure about the process?
Koru Kids have some helpful help centre articles for families to explain car insurance and petrol expenses here:
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