Public liability insurance for joiners

In case you or your employee injure someone or damage their property.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage you’ve caused to someone else’s property while you’re working, or as a result of something you’ve made
• injury you’ve caused to a third party while you’re working, or as a result of some work you’ve carried out
• damage caused to someone else’s property by a member of your staff while they’re working, or as a result of something they’ve made

For example:

• you’ve made a door frame for a customer and when they open the door, the frame collapses and damages the flooring underneath
• you’re putting up a staircase and you damage your customer’s wall
• your employee is fitting a bay window at a customer’s house and damages the surrounding brickwork by mistake

What you’ll need additional cover for

• any work that’s specifically associated with builders or carpenters, rather than joiners

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:

• injury caused to someone else by a member of your staff while they’re working, or as a result of some work they’ve carried out

**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 leave your saw on the floor and your employee trips over it and hurts their leg

Tools insurance

In case your tools are lost, stolen or damaged.

What’s typically covered by tools insurance?

• you’re working on site and your nail gun is stolen
• one of your employees spills their tea over your tool box

For example:

• tools that are lost, stolen or damaged while you’re in transit
• tools left in your van, hired plant, machinery, stock and contents

Read more about tools insurance

Stock insurance

In case materials you’re responsible for, like noggins, are lost, stolen, or damaged.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• accidental damage to the joinery materials you’re using to carry out your work
• theft of the materials you’re using for a job

For example:

• the wood you’re using to install a window is stolen from the site you’re working on

Read more about stock insurance

Hired-in plant insurance

In case plant machinery you’ve hired is lost, stolen, or damaged.

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

• accidental damage to items of the plant that you’ve hired from someone else
• loss or damage to the hired-in plant
• legal liability for the loss or damage to the hired-in plant and ongoing hiring charges

For example:

• you put the wrong type of fuel into a hired strimmer, which burned out the engine and broke it
• a specialist drill you hired is stolen from your construction site, and you’re responsible for paying the ongoing hiring charges as you wait for a replacement

Read more about hired-in plant insurance

Own plant insurance

In case plant machinery you own is lost, stolen, or damaged.

What’s typically covered by own plant insurance?

• theft of the machinery that you own
• accidental or malicious damage to your own plant items

For example:

• your spindle moulder accidentally tips over and bends the main spindle and locking nut

Read more about own plant 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 expenses resulting from your day-to-day business activities, like disputes with employees
• the cost of legal claims relating to property damage, nuisance or trespass
• HMRC investigations, and tax and compliance disputes
• includes a tax advice helpline, a 24/7 confidential legal helpline, and crisis PR support to help you protect your business’s reputation

For example:

• if you’re investigated by HMRC (or selected at random for an audit), this cover could help with the tax enquiries – for you and any other directors, as well as for the business
• you need to defend your legal rights following the dismissal of an employee

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?

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

For example:

• you lose a finger while you’re working on site
• a casual labourer breaks a leg when they’re on a night out

Read more about personal accident insurance

Is public liability enough for third party property damage?

You may need more than public liability to cover certain types of damage

In some situations you may need more than public liability to cover certain kinds of property damage. Learn about hired-in plant and stock.

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 tools 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 joiners’ 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 builders insurance or bathroom fitter insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Carpenter insurance
• Handyman insurance
• Tradesman insurance
• Plumbers insurance
• Plasterers insurance
• Kitchen fitter 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.