Public liability insurance civil engineers

In case your engineering business causes an injury or property damage.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• injury or damage to someone’s property, caused by you or as a result of your work
• accidental damage or injury caused by your employees, if you have any

For example:

• you’re using some equipment on site which malfunctions, accidentally injuring the architect you’re teamed with
• you reverse into your client’s wall while parking in their driveway, causing extensive damage

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case something happens to an employee while they’re working for you.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• an employee suing you because they’re injured or fall ill as a result of working for you (includes temp staff and casual workers)

**Employers’ liability insurance is required by law if you have people working for you. Without it, you could be fined up to £2,500 a day for each employee.**

For example:

• your employee traps their hand in your car door, breaking three fingers
• a contractor you’ve hired cuts their hand on a tool you pass them, and needs several stitches

Professional indemnity insurance for civil engineers

In case there’s a claim for negligence, or breaches in your duty of care.

What’s typically covered by professional indemnity insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• advice which turns out to be incorrect
• mistakes in your work that cost others money to fix

For example:

• a client has agreed your plan, but it ends up not being fit for purpose, and they raise a claim against you
• you recommend another contractor to your client but they do a poor job, losing your client money

Read more about professional indemnity insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

In case something happens to equipment like your office hardware.

What’s typically covered by business and office equipment insurance?

• theft of the operational equipment you use to run your business, rather than tools of the trade
• accidental loss of your equipment
• flood, fire, or accidental damage

For example:

• you lock your office up for Christmas and your assistant calls to say a leak from the kitchen has damaged your hardware
• you drop your laptop on its side, causing it to malfunction

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Tools insurance

In case your tools are lost, stolen or damaged.

What’s typically covered by tools insurance?

• loss, damage, or theft of your engineering tools and equipment

For example:

• your tool kit is stolen from your car while you’re refuelling
• an overnight break-in on site causes damage to your tools, and a few have been lost completely

Read more about tools insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re faced with legal costs from running your business.

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• legal costs that you’re responsible for, within your business
• property damage, nuisance, or trespass – specifically, the associated legal claims and compensation payouts
• tax and compliance disputes and investigations you need help with
• access to expert advice – including a tax advice phone line, confidential 24/7 legal phone line, and crisis support to help you protect your professional reputation

For example:

• an employee raises a contract dispute with you, and you need to pay for legal representation
• HMRC begin an investigation into your tax affairs, incurring costs which you need to recover

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at or outside of work.

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

• accidental injury or death of anyone you’ve chosen to cover in your policy – whether this happens at work or elsewhere
• lost income, hospital bills, or other medical costs associated with the accident

For example:

• while playing tennis you dislocate your shoulder, and are finding it difficult to carry out work as normal
• your employee bumps their head while on site, causing ongoing health complications which stop them from working

Read more about personal accident insurance

Can I just cover my most expensive tools?

Make sure you cover the total cost of replacing all your tools or you’ll only get a proportion of your claim paid out if something happens to them. Learn about tool cover.

Which type of workers do I need insurance for?

Employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement if you employ people.

If you have people working for you, including bona fide subcontractors (BFSC), labour-only subcontractors (LOSC), part-timers, or full-time staff, employers’ liability insurance is required by law.

Read on for our simplified guide to the difference between labour-only subcontractors and bona fide subcontractors.

Will tools insurance cover all my equipment?

Depending on what you use to do your work, you may need other covers.

You may need more than tools insurance – for example, business equipment insurance if you have a work laptop, plant insurance if you use machinery.

Does civil engineers insurance cover my work correctly?

Make sure you’re picking the right cover to protect you properly. It’s important to know that if you have another trade or job, you’ll need additional cover. For example, do you need to consider electrical engineer insurance or engineering consultant insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

If you provide these services alongside building work, make sure you’re covered:

• Engineering business insurance
• Engineers insurance
• Mechanical engineering insurance
• Heating engineer insurance
• Freelance insurance
• Consultant insurance
• Contractors insurance
• Sole trader insurance

Other types of insurance

• Limited company insurance
• Self-employed insurance
• Freelance insurance
• Consultant insurance
• Contractors insurance
• Sole trader insurance

Which public liability cover limit should I choose?

Think about the maximum possible loss your business could face in the event of a claim, and make sure you take legal fees and damages into consideration. You can choose from three levels of coverage – £1 million, £2 million, or up to £5 million.