Freight Insurance UK

Freight and Cargo Disruption Index

A descriptive public-source index for UK freight forwarders, haulage operators, warehouse operators and logistics managers preparing insurance conversations.

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Freight and Cargo Disruption Index

Freight disruption is rarely caused by one issue in isolation. Road volumes, port activity, rail performance, weather warnings, route dependency, warehousing pressure and customer commitments can all affect how a logistics business prepares for risk. This index uses official public sources to organise disruption signals and broker-conversation questions. It does not score an individual business, predict insurance outcomes or replace professional advice.

  • Uses public DfT, ORR and Met Office source anchors.

  • Keeps version one descriptive, with no combined numerical score.

  • Separates road, port, rail and weather planning signals.

  • Designed for broker preparation, not insurance advice or pricing prediction.

Road freight signal

The Department for Transport's 2025 domestic road freight statistics are accredited official statistics covering domestic activity of GB-registered Heavy Goods Vehicles operating in the UK.

Source context

  • In 2025, GB-registered HGVs lifted 1.53 billion tonnes of goods in the UK, 3% less than in 2024.
  • They moved 162 billion tonne kilometres, 4% less than in 2024.
  • They travelled 19.0 billion vehicle kilometres, 2% less than in 2024.
  • Goods lifted varied across quarters in 2025, with 408 million tonnes lifted between April and June compared with 360 million tonnes between January and March.

Operator questions

  • Which routes and customers are most dependent on HGV movement?
  • Are alternative carriers, routes or delivery windows documented?
  • Which goods require special handling, dangerous-goods processes or temperature control?
  • Are delivery records and carrier responsibilities clear?

Mode share, port and waterborne signal

Transport Statistics Great Britain reported that domestic freight in the UK moved 206 billion tonne-kilometres in 2024. Road accounted for the majority at 82%, with water at 10% and rail at 8%.

How to use the signal

  • Use the mode split to explain why road freight remains prominent in a domestic freight index.
  • Do not use the mode split to ignore waterborne or rail exposure where a business depends on those modes.
  • Use DfT port and domestic waterborne tables only as a descriptive source until a specific table, period and cargo category are selected.
  • Do not add port volume figures without documenting the exact table and period.

Operator questions

  • Which shipments depend on port, rail terminal or airport connections?
  • Which customers require timed delivery, evidence of dispatch or special documentation?
  • Which parties are responsible at each handover point?
  • Are goods-in-transit records complete across transfer points?

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Rail freight performance signal

The Office of Rail and Road's freight rail usage and performance release for January to March 2026 reported 4,013 million net tonne kilometres of freight moved, down 3% compared with January to March 2025.

Source context

  • The ORR release reported 16.9 million tonnes of freight lifted for January to March 2026.
  • It reported 7.5 million freight train kilometres for the quarter.
  • It reported freight cancellations of 1.0% for the quarter.
  • Rail data should be used as a mode-specific signal, not as a proxy for all freight activity.

Operator questions

  • Does the business depend directly or indirectly on rail freight?
  • What alternative plans exist if rail-linked movement is delayed?
  • Which contract terms govern responsibility during rail-linked delays?
  • Which customers or depots would be affected first?

Weather exposure signal

The Met Office is the UK's official weather service and issues warnings for severe weather impacts up to seven days ahead for rain, thunderstorms, wind, snow, lightning, ice, extreme heat and fog.

How to use the signal

  • Use warning colour, warning type, affected area, timing and impact guidance as early planning signals.
  • Do not treat a weather warning as proof that a logistics disruption will occur.
  • Check which depots, routes and customers sit inside affected warning areas.
  • Review vehicle, yard, loading and warehouse safety controls during severe weather.

Evidence to prepare

  • Route and depot dependency notes.
  • Severe-weather communication process.
  • Alternative collection or delivery windows.
  • Continuity plans for route disruption.

Broker conversation checklist

The useful output is not a single risk score. It is a structured view of where freight movement is concentrated, which modes a business depends on and which records may help explain the operation clearly.

Business context

  • Business description and operating model.
  • Freight types, commodities and any dangerous-goods exposure.
  • Goods-in-transit values and responsibility points.
  • Vehicle, carrier, subcontractor and warehouse arrangements.

Risk and control records

  • Key routes, ports, hubs or rail dependencies.
  • Customer contract insurance clauses.
  • Claims, incident and delay records where approved for use.
  • Security, tracking, storage, loading and severe-weather continuity controls.

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Why Businesses Choose Insure24 for Freight Insurance

Business insurance page links

These exact-match anchors connect freight pages back into the wider commercial page, pricing and comparison routes rather than leaving freight intent isolated.

Use these freight guides when you need to separate route structure, liability, goods damage and operator exposure before moving into a quote conversation.

Freight operators often need to compare goods in transit, carrier liability, freight liability and cargo insurance together once contracts, customer ownership of goods and operator responsibility start overlapping. Insure24 supports UK commercial buyers as an FCA authorised and regulated broker (FRN: 1008511) with access to insurer-panel options including Aviva, Allianz and Zurich where appropriate.

Main Freight Page

Back To Freight Insurance

Use the main freight insurance page to compare cargo, goods in transit, liability, logistics, haulage, warehousing and supply-chain pages without bouncing between overlapping legacy pages.

Open freight insurance
  • Helps you compare cargo, liability, transit, warehousing and logistics cover without mixing up very different risks.
  • Brings the main freight insurance topics together in one place so it is easier to move between the pages that matter to your operation.
  • Makes it easier to move from early research into a quote with a freight specialist when you are ready.

Freight Insurance Navigation

Use these links to explore the freight insurance section and compare the pages most relevant to your operation.

Related Freight Forwarding Guides

Use these links to move freight enquiries back into broader business insurance UK pricing, comparison and cover-structure pages.

Insure24 is an FCA authorised and regulated broker (FRN: 1008511) with access to insurer-panel options including Aviva, Allianz and Zurich where appropriate.

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