Restaurant insurance
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Based on 39,800 reviews
Claims paid in 24 hours
For 80% of settled claims
Why is restaurant insurance important?
You might have the cleanest of kitchens – and perfect tens from your last inspection – but accidents will happen. Unfortunately, slips and mistakes tend to come with the territory, but restaurant insurance is designed to protect the business you’ve built. From a customer injury to an employee dispute, wrap it all into one policy.
- restaurant liability insurance from public and product to employers’ liability
- peace of mind for you, your customers and employees
- £1 million public liability cover minimum
What does restaurant insurance cover?
We’ll start off with public and product liability insurance – a popular protection for the restaurant industry. It’s built to cover against someone getting injured or ill because of your business, or expensive claims for property damage. From there, you can add the covers that may suit your business, from employers’ liability to protection for expensive equipment and essential stock.
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Public liability insurance
In case you or your employee injure someone or damage their property.
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Employers’ liability insurance
In case anyone gets ill or injured while working for your restaurant.
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Restaurant building insurance
In case something happens to your restaurant premises.
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Contents insurance
In case something happens to your restaurant’s fixtures and fittings or operational equipment.
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Stock insurance
In case something happens to your prepared food, raw ingredients or other essential materials.
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Business legal insurance
In case you have to pay legal costs while running your restaurant business.
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Personal accident insurance
In case you or anyone you’ve covered has an accident – at work, or elsewhere.
This content has been created for general information purposes. Make sure you have the right level of business insurance by checking your policy documentation for details. Read our full Terms and Conditions
How much does restaurant insurance cost?
The cost depends on the type of restaurant premises you run, how many people you employ, and the services you offer. For example, serving hot food or cooking outside on a BBQ are things that insurers may look at when quoting a restaurant insurance cost. Find out how much you’ll pay by comparing prices for restaurant insurance from a range of trusted insurers. You choose what goes into your policy, so you only pay for what you need.
Prices start from £4.74 per month
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The price is for up to £2 million of public liability insurance – 10% of customers paid £56.82 or less annually between 1st Jan – 31st May 2024. Equivalent to £4.74 a month (and excludes the extra costs for paying monthly). 76% of customers have a £1 million limit and 24% £2 million. If you complete a quote, more types of cover will be available. These all have additional costs.
Example restaurant insurance quotes, real prices
£140.96 /month
£1,409.63 /year
A small, family-run licensed restaurant with live music once a week
- 2-3 years’ experience
- Limited company
- 2 employees
- Based in Swindon
Public liability
£2,000,000
Employers’ liability
£10,000,000
Stock
Not included
£141.26 /month
£1,412.61 /year
A medium-sized restaurant using a fryer (serviced every year)
- 5+ years’ experience
- Limited company
- 5 employees
- Based in Newcastle upon Tyne
Public liability
£2,000,000
Employers’ liability
£10,000,000
Stock
£15,000
How we work out example quotes: These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 01/10/2024). They’re based on a range of factors, like employees and location. Your own quote will be based on what you tell us about your business. Prices may go up or down from day to day, so the prices you’re quoted may differ to the ones you see here.
How it works
Pick what goes into your policy
Only pay for what you need
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How do I choose restaurant business insurance?
Making sure you have the right type and level of business insurance can be the difference between getting a claim paid and having to cover the cost of an expensive accident yourself. Read our tips for guidance on what to consider when buying a policy.
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Which type of workers do I need insurance for?
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Does restaurant insurance cover my work correctly?
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Do I need cover for other types of work?
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Which public liability cover limit should I choose?
Talk to an expert
Our team of UK-based insurance experts are here to help, Mon 09.00am – 05.30pm, Tues 09.00am – 05.30pm, Weds 09.00am – 05.30pm, Thurs 09.30am – 05.30pm, Fri 09.00am – 05.30pm, Sat 09.00am – 02.00pm
Call our team
How do restaurant insurance claims work?
Unlike price comparison websites, we take the hassle out of claims for you. We know how important it is to get your business back on track quickly – and with a minimum of fuss. That’s why you get access to your dedicated claims any time, day or night. Call them on 0333 207 0560 or claim online. They’ll do their best to be fair and supportive.
£51 million in claims paid out in 2023
83% of claims were settled in 2023.
The figure above is rounded across our range of products. “Settled” covers paid, declined or withdrawn. Our claims process may vary for different products and operates on a ‘claim by claim’ basis. Our specialist partner Sedgwick will pay the claims on behalf of the insurer. Reviewed on 24/04/2024.
Example claim
Having restaurant business insurance through Simply Business has saved our customers thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.
Mark saved more than £8,900
Mark (not his real name) was hit by a heavy injuries claim when his chef burned her hand while handling a pan full of hot oil. His employers’ liability insurance covered the cost of exposure to harmful substances.
Insurance payout
£8,901.00
Covering the cost of employers’ liability
Insurance payout
Covering the cost of employers’ liability
Covering the cost of employers’ liability
Chosen by nearly 1 million small businesses and landlords
We started out as a team of five back in 2005. We’ve grown since then, with nearly 1 million customers across 1,500 trades now trusting us to provide their business insurance.
Restaurant insurance FAQs
Whether you’re new to buying business insurance or you’ve been trading for a while, here are the answers to some commonly asked questions about insurance for restaurants. You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
Public and product liability insurance is often an important cover for restaurants – it’s designed to protect you if someone is injured or suffers an illness, or their property is damaged, because of your business.
Are you hiring staff? If so, you’re usually required by law to take out employer’s liability insurance, even if it’s for a contractor team member, or casual and temporary staff. You’ll face fines of up to £2,500 a day for anyone you haven’t covered correctly.
From there, you can pick and choose from other specific protection for your restaurant’s stock, equipment, fixtures and fittings and the building(s) you use. Our restaurant insurance policies are flexible – you can bundle everything into one policy or go for just one or two covers, depending on what you need.
If you employ any staff, employers’ liability insurance is almost always a legal requirement for your business, and you could be fined up to £2,500 a day for anyone who isn’t covered properly.
Alongside this crucial employers’ protection, a restaurant insurance quote will usually give you the opportunity to cover lots of different risks, specific to your business, from public and product liability – in case of things like food poisoning, injuries or damage – to personal accident and stock damage.
It can do – but you’ll need to make sure you take out public and product liability as part of your policy.
Public and product liability insurance is built to protect you against claims relating to accidental injury or illness caused by your business. The “product’ part refers to the items a business sells, which for you means food and drink.
And it’s important to know that if you employ people at your restaurant or takeaway (including family members), you’ll only be covered for their actions if you have employers’ liability insurance too.
A deep fat fryer is a high-risk piece of kit, so there are lots of safety measures you have to follow when you use one. If you’re claiming for unexpected costs through your insurance and you’re discovered not to have met these conditions, it could invalidate your policy. This means you wouldn’t get a payout.
To avoid this, you’ll need to check the requirements for the make and model of the fryer you’re planning to use at your restaurant. If you don’t have access to the manual, you can call the manufacturer and ask them for the information.
The top six criteria you may need to comply with are:
- cleaning schedule
- service record
- safety equipment
- volume of use
- replacement of oils
- contractors who are registered to work on fryers
A bar or pub carries different licenses and risks to a restaurant, but it’s easy to insure both. If your restaurant runs a bar, as many do, you’ll need to select “public houses / restaurant – licensed” in our trade/profession search box, when starting a quote with Simply Business.
We cover a range of restaurants, from fine dining to fast food establishments. If you’re not sure if your business is covered, please get in touch to learn more.
You’ll need to estimate the value of your stock when taking out stock insurance as part of your restaurant insurance policy. This means working out how much it would cost you to replace your stock (not how much you sell it for).
Your ‘sum insured’ amount is the total value of your stock based on how much it would cost you to replace it. Bear in mind times of the year when you might have more stock and factor that into the value so you’re not underinsured. Seasonal stock adjustments are sometimes included within policy wordings, but it’s important to check your documents carefully.
Running a pub or restaurant comes with a range of everyday risks and it’s important that your business is protected in case something goes wrong.
Restaurant insurance covers anything from the cost of replacing broken kitchen equipment or a burst pipe spoiling your ingredients to customer or employee injuries.
This will depend on whether you have employers’ liability insurance in place. Public liability insurance is designed to protect your business against the consequences of legal action brought by members of the public for injuries or damage to their belongings. But when it comes to your employees causing injury or damage, this protection only activates if you also have employers’ liability insurance.
If you employ people, you’re required by law to have employers’ liability insurance.
There’s one exception here. Family businesses that aren’t incorporated as a limited company are not legally required to have employers’ liability insurance. The government defines a “family business” as one where all your employees are closely related to you (as a spouse, civil partner, sibling, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, step-parent, stepchild or half-sibling). So if you run an unincorporated family business and you choose not to get employers’ liability insurance, it’s important to know that your public liability insurance wouldn’t cover you against damage or injury caused by your team.
An excess is an amount you pay towards any claim you make on your insurance. For example, if your excess is £250 and you make a claim worth £1000, your payout will be a maximum of £750.
Insurance cover | Lowest excess | Highest excess |
|---|---|---|
Main building | £200 | £4000 |
Stock | £200 | £4000 |
Contents | £200 | £4000 |
Employers liability | No excess | No excess |
Public liability | No excess | £750 |
We create this content for general information purposes and it should not be taken as advice. Always check policy documentation for details and seek professional advice. Read our full Terms and Conditions
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