Public liability insurance

In case someone suffers property damage or injury because of your IT business.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance for IT contractors?

Claims against your business for:

• damage you’ve caused to someone else’s property while working, or as a result of your work
• someone else being injured while you’re working, or because of your work
• accidental injury or damage caused by your employee (if you employ anyone, you’re legally required to have employers’ liability insurance too)

For example:

• while installing new software on a client’s system you trip on a cable you’ve just put in, pulling the monitor off the desk and damaging it
• you’re fitting some new equipment in a client’s office, but while fitting a cable you accidentally damage the wall

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 – even if they’re a temp or casual worker – suing you because they fall ill through working for you
• any of your employees suing you for injury

**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 employees is installing new hardware but you’ve provided a faulty cable, which electrocutes them and burns their hand
• you’ve supplied an employee with a faulty chair, which collapses when they sit down

Professional indemnity insurance

In case you make a mistake in your work or your service doesn’t meet the client’s expectations.

What’s typically covered by professional indemnity insurance for an IT contractor?

Claims against your business for:

• financial losses suffered by your client due to professional negligence
• advice you give that’s incorrect
• other errors in your work that cost your client money

For example:

• you set up your client’s security software but miss a gap in their network, exposing their data and causing a GDPR breach
• you’re contracted to set up the hardware for an entire business but the job takes longer than your original quote, delaying their start-up date

Read more about professional indemnity insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

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

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

• theft, loss or damage to the equipment you use to run your business

For example:

• hardware you’re storing for a client is destroyed in a fire, and needs replacing
• your laptop is stolen during an office break-in

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Portable equipment

In case something happens to your equipment while you’re off-site.

What’s typically covered by portable equipment insurance?

• loss, damage or theft of your portable equipment such as your laptop, tablet or phone

For example:

• your work phone is stolen on your train commute
• you leave your bag in a taxi, which contains your client’s new cables

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re hit with legal costs while running your business.

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• legal costs resulting from your normal business activities, like an employee dispute
• the cost of legal claims due to property damage, nuisance or trespass
• HMRC investigations or tax and compliance disputes
• includes a tax advice helpline, a 24/7 confidential legal helpline, and crisis PR support to help protect your professional reputation

For example:

• a client is over two months late on payments for a contract, forcing you to take legal action
• HMRC investigates your business tax accounts

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

In case you or anyone you’ve covered has an accident.

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

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

For example:

• you trip over the curb on your way into work, breaking your arm
• an employee twists their ankle at a weekend event, and can’t drive into the office

Read more about personal accident insurance

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 IT contractor 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 cctv installer insurance or electrical contractors insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Computer repair insurance
• Insurance for web publishers
• Consultant – computer software
• Consultant – database management
• IT insurance
• Software developers’ insurance
• Consultant – management & business

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.