Public and product liability insurance for coffee shops

In case you or your team accidentally injure someone or damage their property.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage that you or your employee cause to someone else’s belongings at your coffee shop (remember, if you have staff working for you, you’re legally required to have employers’ liability insurance)
• injury that you or your employee cause to someone else while working, or as a result of your work

For example:

• a customer slips on a spillage on the floor and sprains their wrist
• your barista accidentally knocks a cup of hot coffee onto a child, who then has to be treated for first degree burns
• a customer sues you for an allergic reaction because they ordered a cappuccino with oat milk but you served them a cappuccino made with cow’s milk

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case your employee is involved in an accident or mistake while they’re working for you.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• employees who fall ill or are injured due to their work 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:

• one of your trainee baristas bangs her head walking into a glass door makes a claim against you for providing an unsafe work environment
• a waiter sues you after he gets first-degree burns from spilling a hot drink

Contents insurance

In case something happens to the equipment or fixtures and fittings in your coffee shop.

What’s typically covered by contents insurance?

• accidental damage to the business equipment or fixtures and fittings you use in the running of your coffee shop
• loss or theft of your business equipment or fixtures and fittings
• flood and fire damage to your business equipment or fixtures and fittings

For example:

• a customer stumbles into your display unit and smashes the glass
• your business tablet, moka pot, cake display and toaster are stolen from your coffee shop overnight
• a new employee operates the espresso machine incorrectly and breaks the unit, so it needs to be repaired

Read more about contents insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the items you sell at your coffee shop.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• the cost of replacing your products and raw materials if they’re lost, stolen or damaged

For example:

• your sandwiches go off because of a faulty fridge, so you have to throw them all away
• a pipe bursts in your building and the water destroys the ingredients you keep behind the counter
• your employee accidentally drops a large box of cupcakes as they’re unloading it from the delivery van

Read more about stock 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 face as a result of your day-to-day business activities, such as resolving disputes with your employees
• legal claims and compensation payouts to do with trespass, nuisance or property damage
• investigations by HMRC, as well as tax and compliance disputes
• access to a tax advice helpline, a confidential 24/7 legal helpline, and crisis PR support to help safeguard your brand’s reputation

For example:

• you’re investigated by HMRC or your company is selected at random by audit, and you need help dealing with the tax enquiries – either for business itself, or for you personally and any other directors
• you have to defend your legal rights after a member of staff was dismissed

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

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

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

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

For example:

• you trip over a chair that a customer has left out and break your arm
• your employee drops a kettle and gets boiling water all over their hand
• you suffer a slipped disc on a jog at the weekend

Read more about personal accident insurance

Business interruption insurance

In case your coffee shop is unable to trade for a period of time.

What’s typically covered by business interruption insurance

• loss of income if your coffee shop is out of action following a fire, flood, theft or accidental damage

For example:

• your coffee machine and your custom-roasted coffee beans are destroyed by flooding, so you have to close up for a week while you source replacements

Read more about business interruption insurance

Building insurance

In case something happens to your business premises.

What’s typically covered by building insurance?

• the cost of repairing damage to the structure of your coffee shop (or rebuilding it from scratch)
• damage to fixtures and fittings in or on your premises
• damage to underground pipes and cables you’re responsible for

For example:

• there’s a flood at your coffee shop and the water ruins the floorboards, so they have to be replaced
• your shopfront is vandalised by graffiti, which needs to be removed by a specialist cleaner

What you’ll need additional cover for

• tenants’ improvements – these are changes to the structure of the property that you’ve organised and paid for yourself, such as partition walls or wooden flooring

Read more about buildings insurance

Is public liability enough for third party property damage?

In some situations you may need more than public liability to cover certain kinds of property damage. Learn about buildings and contents.

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.

Does coffee shop 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 Web marketing or Private chef insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Café insurance
• Sandwich shop insurance
• Takeaway insurance
• Restaurant insurance
• Pub insurance
• Fast food insurance
• Shisha lounge / restaurant

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.