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Tradesman Liability Insurance – Why is it needed?

If you are a tradesman or if you work for yourself, you will probably know by now that one simple mistake or mishap has the potential to be very costly, even to the extent of closing down your business.

For this reason, tradesman insurance is essential if you want to safeguard your livelihood.

For the most part, tradesman insurance covers people like builders, plumbers, electricians or carpenters. However, tradesman insurance is available for scores of different professions.

For most tradesmen, some level of insurance is compulsory by law. For example, if you use a vehicle or vehicles for your trade, these must be insured as business vehicles with third party liability cover as a minimum. Even if you use your own personal vehicle for your business you will need to tell your insurer that you are doing so. In addition, if you employ staff you will need employers liability insurance. This covers you as a business for legal liability for any loss or injury caused to your staff in the course of their duties. ‘Employees’ usually includes anyone working for you, including contract workers and apprentices. You are also obliged to display your employers liability insurance certificate at any place of work.

The standard tradesman insurance products available should cover what is legally required for most tradesmen. However, in reality it is necessary to obtain a significantly better level of cover than simply what is required by law in order to really protect your clients and your business. It is a fact of business life that things can go wrong, whether by human error or the failure of a piece of equipment. For a tradesman, a simple mishap could result in the flooding of someone’s kitchen or even a fire in their home. Accidents of this scale are not common, but when they do happen they can be very, very expensive. A good tradesman insurance policy will protect you against the costs arising from such mishaps.

Public liability insurance for tradesmen is very important. This covers against your legal liabilities for loss, injury or death to members of the public which may happen in the course of your business activities. Many tradesman insurance policies offer public liability insurance cover of up to £10 million which should be enough to cover most eventualities, but you should always check with your insurance broker to get the right advice about this.

If you sell equipment or products in the course of your business you may want to take out cover for any injury or damage caused by defects in this equipment and as a tradesman, the last thing you will want to lose is your own equipment. The tools of the trade can be expensive and if they are stolen you may not be able to work until they are replaced, so insuring all your vehicles, equipment and tools is a very good idea.

Of course, you will also want to be sure that you are covered against injury to yourself and that your income is safeguarded if you can’t work.

There are a wide range of tradesman insurance products available. Some of these can be purchased online with the minimum of fuss. The products will generally cover everything that the average tradesman needs, as well as include additional features such as insurance for hired tools and more.

If you are thinking about taking out tradesman insurance or even if you are thinking about changing your current tradesman cover, take a close look at your business and your personal situation first to determine your requirements. Once you have done this you can move to buy your tradesman insurance. Contact us for assistance.