Public liability for opticians insurance

In case your optician’s practice causes an injury or property damage.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

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

For example:

• your client accidentally traps their finger in their chair during an appointment, causing a fracture
• a client slips on your practice floor after you spill some water, falling and causing a lower back injury

**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 anyone gets ill or injured while working for your optician business.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• an injury or illness that happens as a result of working for you (including temps and casual workers)

**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:

• an employee suffers a head injury while reaching for a piece of equipment from a shelf
• one of your employees trips over a vacuum cleaner cable on your premises floor, breaking her arm

Building insurance

In case something happens to your premises.

What’s typically covered by building insurance?

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

For example:

• a tree falls through one of your external walls, causing structural damage
• your shop windows are smashed during a break-in, and need to be replaced

What you’ll need additional cover for

• tenants’ improvements – changes to the property’s structure which you’ve organised and paid for yourself, like partition walls or wooden flooring

Read more about buildings insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

In case something happens to equipment like your laptop or phone.

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

• theft of the operational equipment you use to run your business, rather than tools of the trade
• accidental loss of your equipment
• flood, fire, or accidental damage

For example:

• you lock your office up for the night and your employee calls to say a leak from the shop next door has damaged your equipment
• you drop your phone onto the tarmac while unloading your car, cracking the screen and damaging the microphone

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to your products.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• loss, damage, or theft of things like designer glasses, contact lenses, and other products you sell to customers

For example:

• a fire destroys your stock, and you need to replace everything
• someone breaks into your opticians and steals a large amount of product

Read more about stock insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re hit with legal expenses connected to your opticians.

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• legal costs attributed to your opticians
• 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 PR support to help you protect your reputation

For example:

• you haven’t been registered correctly with HMRC, and need to pay associated legal costs
• an employee’s wrongful termination lawsuit results in legal costs for your opticians

Read more about legal expenses 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 opticians 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 bookkeeping insurance or recruitment consultant insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Online retailer insurance

Other types of insurance

• Limited company insurance
• Self-employed insurance
• Freelance insurance
• Sole trader insurance
• Contractors 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.