Public liability insurance for estate agents

In case your estate agency causes an injury or property damage.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage to someone’s property, caused by your estate agency
• an injury or illness caused by your business activities
• accidental damage or injuries caused by your employees

For example:

• a client comes into your office and trips over some loose flooring, banging their head and bruising their wrist
• you spill tea on the desk, covering your client’s phone which now won’t function properly

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case anyone gets ill or injured while working for your estate agency.

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:

• one of your employees electrocutes their hand while showing potential buyers around an open house
• your assistant manager falls down some stairs while managing one of your viewings

Professional indemnity insurance for estate agents

In case there’s a claim for negligence, or breaches in your duty of care.

What’s typically covered by professional indemnity insurance?

Claims against your estate agency for professional negligence or a loss-causing breach of contract. This can include:

• advice which turns out to be incorrect
• mistakes in your work that cost others money to fix

For example:

• you recommend a solicitor, who makes multiple errors on some paperwork, delaying the exchange date and costing your client money – your client makes a claim against you for bad advice
• you advise a client on their property sale and they claim against you for direct financial losses

Read more about professional indemnity insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

In case things like laptops or office filing cabinets are lost, stolen, or damaged.

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

• accidental damage to your fixtures and fittings, or the equipment you use to run the estate agency
• theft, flood, and fire damage

For example:

• your company laptops, scanners, and card machines are damaged during a fire
• a leak in your small office kitchen goes unnoticed, causing damage to office equipment stacked against the adjoining wall

Read more about business and office equipment 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 attributed to your estate agency
• property damage, nuisance, or trespass – specifically, the associated legal claims and compensation payouts
• tax and compliance disputes and investigations you need help with
• access to expert advice – including a tax advice phone line, confidential 24/7 legal phone line, and crisis PR support to help you protect your reputation as a popular estate agent

For example:

• you offer a standard guarantee to sell a client’s house in four months or less, but due to multiple delays can’t secure the sale – your client takes legal action and you need to pay associated costs
• an employee raises a legal suit against you, disputing their contracted bonuses and breaks

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?

• accidental 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 on your way into the office and roll your ankle – you won’t be able to drive or run viewings for at least a week
• your office manager traps their finger in a car door at the weekend, and needs time off work for hospital visits

Read more about personal accident insurance

Building insurance

In case something happens to the premises where you run your estate agency.

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 flood in your small office kitchen leaks into the main office area, damaging carpets, woodwork, and flooring which will need to be replaced
• there’s a small fire in your office – it’s dealt with quickly, but you need to close for a few weeks for refurbishment

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.

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 estate agent 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 property management insurance or property professional indemnity insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

If you provide these services alongside estate agency work, make sure you’re covered:

• Handyman insurance
• Freelance insurance
• Consultant insurance
• Self-employed 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.