Public Liability Insurance For A Sole Trader – Is It Worth It?

Anyone who operates a small business or works as a sole trader will no doubt want to consider very carefully any expense such as insurances. If your business means that you ever have clients or members of the public on your business premises (even if it is your home), or if your work requires you to visit other premises besides your own workplace you should seriously consider having a good public liability insurance policy in place.

Regardless of whether you have a service or sell products, these policies will cover you against many things that can happen in almost any line of business. It will cover property damage that you may accidentally cause to someone else’s property and it will also cover any personal injuries that happen as a result of you carrying out your work. It also covers you for anything that occurs in your own place of work, such as when a client comes to visit you to discuss some aspect of your work. Even the simplest of accidents can result in substantial claims.

What Such A Policy Will Protect You Against

A sole trader’s public liability should cover such things as hospital treatment, ambulance costs, expenses from an accident, legal fees and any other costs associated with an accident. Damages you do to someone’s property while working there will be covered by the policy too. If you have property where the public will be coming on to those premises and someone gets injured or hurt, your cover will pay the cost of any claims for damages made against your business.

Who Needs Public Liability Insurance Cover?

There is no law that says you must carry this kind of protection against risk (apart from a few specialist areas), unlike with employers’ liability, which is mandatory for anyone who employs other people. It is up to you to decide whether your business could cope with a significant claim for personal injury, with the associated legal costs and potential awards for damages. The number of such claims, and the costs of settling claims has risen dramatically in recent years and it now makes good business sense to have protection against such injuries and accidents.

In some industries people will not deal with a business that does not have proper insurance, which in effect makes it compulsory in those sectors. Businesses that provide any type of service in the world beyond their own premises should always carry third party insurance because you just cannot control when and where an accident may happen.

Businesses that sell products may want to carry product liability insurance as well as covering the third party liability aspect. With this cover you will be protected in case the product is faulty due to something you did or did not do. You will also have coverage if you import the product from another country. If you sell a product and cannot identify the manufacturer of the product, product liability cover will cover you for faulty products. Even if you buy the items from a manufacturer in the UK you will want to carry this cover along with your other standard business protections.

With this type of policy being so important for sole traders, you are going to want to talk with professionals who specialise in this type of product. Ask questions so you can make sure the insurance you purchase is going to cover all your needs. Check on your policy often once you purchase it to make sure legislation has not changed anything. You want to have adequate cover that will protect you against all contingencies.