Subcontractor public liability insurance

In case someone is injured or their property gets damaged, because of your business.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage to someone’s property, caused by your work
• injuries caused by your business activities
• accidental damage or injury caused by your employees, if you have any

For example:

• while contracting on a new development site, some tarmac you’re laying gets on a resident’s car, causing damage
• your client’s dog eats some cement mix you’ve left unattended and needs urgent vet care

What you’ll need additional cover for

• if you do employ anyone, you’re usually required by law to have employers’ liability insurance too.

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case an employee gets sick or injured while working for you.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• an employee, including another contractor or casual labourer, suing you after falling ill because of working for your subcontracting business, or
• making a claim for an injury they’ve had while working for you

**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:

• you hire another contractor to support on a bigger job, and they injure themselves while using hired plant machinery
• the electrician you’ve hired for a set of summer jobs slips and injures their back while on site

Business and office equipment insurance

In case things like your laptop or phone are lost, stolen or damaged.

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

• theft, flood, fire or accidental damage to the equipment you use to run your subcontracting business
• operational equipment like your laptop, rather than the trade tools you take out and about

For example:

• a fire in your home damages some of your equipment, including your work laptop and tablet
• your contractor drops your phone while locking the van, damaging the screen and delaying the day’s job

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 hand tools, power tools and specialist trade equipment

For example:

• there’s a break-in at your site, and most of the tools you’ve just upgraded are stolen
• a fire in your garage damages tools you’re keeping in stock for your business and another contractor

What you’ll need additional cover for

• larger plant items you use to carry out your trade – you’ll need to add our specific plant cover for these

Read more about tools insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the trade materials you keep in supply.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• loss, damage or theft of your work materials, or items you’re planning to sell

For example:

• while unloading your van, tiles and other materials for the day’s job fall out of the back – they’re damaged and will need replacing
• the glass you’ve just had delivered for a large-scale commercial job is stolen from your locked site unit

Read more about stock insurance

Hired-in plant insurance

In case your rented plant machinery, like a digger, is lost, stolen or damaged.

What’s typically covered by hired-in plant insurance?

• loss, damage or theft of things like dumpers and excavators which you’ve hired in

For example:

• a contractor slips while driving the digger you’ve hired, falling into a groundworks hole and causing damage
• the excavator you’ve hired for a big leisure centre build is stolen overnight

What you’ll need additional cover for

• tools and plant machinery which you own yourself – you’ll need to add our specific own plant insurance or tools cover for this

Read more about hired-in plant insurance

Own plant insurance

In case your own plant machinery, like a digger, is lost, stolen or damaged.

What’s typically covered by own plant insurance?

• loss, damage or theft of things like your own excavator or pick-up hitch

For example:

• you accidentally jam the key into your digger while working, and it needs a new lock system
• you’re loading the cement mixer but accidentally include site debris, causing serious

What you’ll need additional cover for

• plant machinery you’ve rented – you’ll need to add our specific hired-in plant cover for this

Read more about own plant insurance

Contract works insurance

In case your work in progress is damaged by disasters like fire, flood or vandalism.

What’s typically covered by contract works insurance?

• repair costs for the work you have in progress if it’s damaged or destroyed
• labour, materials and tools to get the job back to the stage it was at before it was damaged or destroyed
• damage caused by things like fire, flood, storm, vandalism or theft

For example:

• vandals break into the site and damage your work in progress, which you’ll need to start from scratch
• a thunderstorm causes damage to your site’s scaffolding and works over the weekend, rendering the site unsafe and delaying your completion date

Read more about contract works insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you have to pay legal costs connected with your subcontracting.

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• legal costs attributed to 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
• includes a tax advice helpline, a 24/7 confidential legal helpline and crisis support to help you protect your reputation, as a trusted contractor

For example:

• your client is disputing their contract with you, stating that you haven’t fulfilled your obligations – you end up paying for legal representation
• an employee you’ve hired sues you for unfair dismissal, and you need to pay for legal representation

What you’ll need additional cover for

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at or away from work.

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

• accidental injury or death at work or elsewhere, for anyone covered on the policy
• lost income, medical costs and hospitalisation benefit

For example:

• you trip over a log while running at the weekend, breaking your ankle
• your employee’s wife runs over their foot while leaving for work, breaking two bones

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 subcontractor 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 freelance insurance or it consultant insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

If you provide other services, make sure you’re covered:

• Electrical contractors insurance
• Plumbers insurance
• Flooring contractors insurance
• Labourer insurance
• Joinery insurance
• Painter and decorator insurance
• Handyman insurance
• Builders 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.