Free fleet explainer
Claims experience letter explained, line by line
Insurers ask for a claims experience letter before quoting most fleets. Step through a clearly labelled sample to see what each part means, how an underwriter reads it and what to check before it goes to a broker.
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SAMPLE ONLY. Fictional business, insurer and figures, made up to show the layout.
To: Example Haulage Ltd, care of its insurance broker
Claims experience: commercial vehicle fleet
Vehicles insured by policy year
| Policy year | Vehicles | Claims |
|---|---|---|
| 2021/22 | 9 | 2 |
| 2022/23 | 11 | 1 |
| 2023/24 | 12 | 1 |
| 2024/25 | 12 | 1 |
| 2025/26 to date | 14 | 2 |
Claims notified in the period Swipe the table to see every column
| Date of loss | Claim type | Fault | Paid | Reserve | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14/06/2021 | Windscreen | N/A | £320 | £0 | Settled |
| 02/11/2021 | Own damage and third party property | Fault | £4,850 | £0 | Settled |
| 19/05/2022 | Third party property (recovered) | Non-fault | £2,180 | £0 | Settled |
| 08/09/2023 | Theft of vehicle | Fault | £14,500 | £0 | Settled |
| 27/01/2025 | Third party injury | Fault | £3,600 | £18,400 | Open |
| 12/08/2025 | Windscreen | N/A | £410 | £0 | Settled |
| 03/02/2026 | Accidental damage | Non-fault | £0 | £2,900 | Open |
This letter is issued at the policyholder's request to support insurance quotations. Figures are correct at the date of issue and may change as open claims develop.
Commercial Claims Team
Sample Insurance plc (fictional)
Walk through the letter
Note 1 of 10: Who issued it and when
A genuine claims experience letter comes from the insurer, or from the broker on the insurer's behalf, on headed paper with a clear issue date. Insurers asked to quote usually want a recent one, because open claims keep moving and an old letter may not show what has been paid since. The issue date is also the date the figures are correct to.
The name on the letter needs to match the business asking for quotes. If the company has changed its name, been bought or moved vehicles between group companies, the letter may show a different entity, and a broker will want that explained. The policy number lets a new insurer or broker check details with the issuing insurer.
Underwriters normally want several years of history, running right up to the date of the letter rather than stopping at the last renewal. A gap between policies, or a letter covering only the current year, usually leads to extra questions or a request for letters from previous insurers as well.
Fleet size by year lets an underwriter compare the number of claims with the number of vehicles on the road. A rising claims count on a growing fleet reads very differently from the same rise on a fleet that stayed the same size. If the letter leaves this out, the vehicle schedule from each renewal can fill the gap.
Claims are listed by date of loss, meaning the day the incident happened, not the day it was reported or paid. Underwriters look at how claims cluster: several in the latest policy year can suggest a worsening trend even when the totals look modest.
The type shows what went wrong: windscreen, theft, damage to the fleet's own vehicle, damage to someone else's property or injury to a third party. Injury claims tend to take longest to settle and carry the largest reserves. A run of similar incidents, such as low-speed reversing damage, points to a risk the business may be able to manage.
A fault claim is one where the insurer could not recover its costs from anyone else. Non-fault means another party was responsible. Windscreen claims are often shown separately because they rarely involve blame. The share of fault claims usually affects terms more than the overall number of claims.
Paid is money already paid out. The outstanding reserve is the insurer's estimate of what an open claim will still cost. Underwriters add the two together as the incurred cost, so a large reserve counts against the fleet even though none of it has been paid yet. Reserves can rise or fall as a claim develops.
Settled claims are closed and their cost is final. Open claims are still being handled, so their cost can change. Brokers often ask for an update on any open claim, especially injury claims, because a reserve that has been reduced or closed since the letter was issued can make a real difference to how a renewal is viewed.
The totals pull the history together: number of claims, total paid, total outstanding, total incurred and any money recovered from other parties. Underwriters compare these with the premium paid over the same years and with fleet size. Totals that add up to the rows above save a round of questions.
Why insurers ask for a claims experience letter
A fleet is usually priced on its own track record rather than on a no claims discount. Before quoting, an insurer wants to see what has actually happened on the fleet's existing policy: how many claims, what they cost, who was at fault and which are still open. The claims experience letter is the document that shows it, and it comes from the insurer that holds the records, not from the business itself.
Without one, most fleet insurers will not offer terms, or will quote on cautious assumptions. Having it ready, checked and up to date is one of the simplest ways to keep a renewal or a first fleet quote moving.
Reading the letter the way an underwriter does
Underwriters rarely stop at the bottom line. They tend to work through the letter in this order:
- Exposure. How many vehicles were insured each year, so claims can be set against fleet size.
- Frequency and trend. Whether claims are becoming more or less frequent, with the latest year given the most weight.
- Severity. Paid amounts plus outstanding reserves, with particular attention to injury claims.
- Fault mix. How many claims the insurer could recover from someone else, and how many it could not.
The sample above is laid out the same way, so stepping through the numbered notes mirrors that reading order.
Putting context around a difficult year
A single large claim can dominate the totals. A short covering note, sent alongside the letter, gives the underwriter the story the figures cannot. Useful points to include are:
- what happened, in a sentence or two, and whether the driver is still with the business
- what has changed since, such as driver training, cameras, telematics or a revised company driving policy
- whether any open claim has moved on since the letter was issued
Insurers decide for themselves how much weight to give a note like this, but it often answers questions before they are asked.
Gaps that hold up a quote
The most common delays are a letter that stops at the last renewal, a missing year from a previous insurer, and open claims with out-of-date reserves. Each of these is easy to spot by comparing the letter with your own records before it goes to a broker. The checklist in the tool covers them, and the fleet insurance glossary explains any term on the letter that is unfamiliar.