Public liability insurance
Public liability insurance can help pay compensation if your business is legally responsible for injuring a member of the public or damaging someone else’s property. It covers claims arising from your insured business activities, subject to policy terms, limits and exclusions.
Compare public liability insurance quotes through Simply Business and check the cover against the work you do.
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Does your business need public liability insurance?
Consider how your work could affect other people or their property. Being a sole trader, self-employed or a limited company does not by itself determine the exposure.
Public liability insurance may be relevant if you:
- welcome customers, clients or visitors to your premises;
- work in customers’ homes or business premises;
- use equipment in public or shared spaces; or
- carry out activities that could injure someone or damage their belongings.
The relevant exposure depends on how you work. These situations show what to consider:
- Customers visit your premises: a shopkeeper may face a claim if a customer is injured by a falling display. Think about the areas visitors use and what could cause harm there.
- You work at client sites: cleaners may damage a client’s belongings, while electricians may work around a customer’s fixtures and other people on site. Check that the activities and working methods are insured, including any restrictions on property being worked on.
- You have little physical public contact: an online service business with no visitors or site visits may have fewer opportunities to cause physical injury or property damage. Occasional client meetings can still create exposure. If the main concern is a service error causing financial loss, professional indemnity may be more relevant to that risk.
Working from home does not remove exposure if clients visit or you also work at their premises.
Is public liability insurance a legal requirement?
Public liability insurance is generally voluntary for UK businesses, but some activities have specific requirements. Check the rules and licensing conditions that apply to your work and location.
A client, venue or contract may also require cover and specify a minimum limit before you can start work. That is a contractual requirement, which is different from a general legal obligation. Check it before accepting the job or choosing a policy.
What does public liability insurance cover?
Depending on your policy, cover can apply at your premises or while you work elsewhere.
Injury to other people
Someone may seek compensation if they believe your business caused their injury. For example, a visitor could trip over equipment left across a walkway and claim that your business caused their injury by blocking the walkway. The accident alone does not establish that you are legally liable.
Damage to other people’s property
Cover can apply to accidental damage your business causes to another person’s property. For example, you accidentally knock over and break a client’s display screen while setting up a meeting.
Both examples are hypothetical and do not guarantee a claim will be paid.
Legal defence and compensation costs
A policy may pay compensation and the legal costs of defending a covered claim. Check the insurer’s requirements for reporting claims and obtaining agreement before incurring costs or agreeing a settlement. Legal defence costs may count towards your cover limit or be payable in addition to it.
Read the public liability claim examples for fictional injury and property-damage scenarios and the facts to check.
For goods you make, sell or supply, read the product liability insurance guide and check the selected cover separately.
What does public liability insurance not cover?
Public liability insurance does not replace every other type of business insurance. Check the quote, policy wording, schedule and any endorsements (documents that change your cover) for the gaps and distinctions below.
| Type of claim or activity | What to check |
|---|---|
| Injury or illness suffered by an employee | Work-related employee injury or illness claims are generally an employers’ liability matter. This differs from an employee injuring a customer. |
| Professional advice or service errors | Financial loss caused by professional advice or service errors may require professional indemnity insurance. |
| Your own equipment or premises | Public liability addresses liability to other people. Check separate property cover for your own assets. |
| Use of motor vehicles | Public liability is not a substitute for motor insurance. Check that your motor policy covers the business use involved. |
| Defective work | Correcting faulty work can be excluded. Check separately whether resulting injury or damage is covered. |
| Work outside the insured activities | Check that the business description includes all the work you undertake, including occasional activities. |
Property you are repairing, handling, holding or controlling may have specific restrictions. Check these if your work involves looking after or working on someone else’s belongings. Ask how the policy treats subcontractors and whether it requires them to hold their own insurance. Do not assume either their work or your liability for it is included.
If you make, sell or supply products, check whether products liability is included or needs to be arranged separately. For overseas work, check both where activities can take place and where claims can be brought.
How much public liability cover do you need?
The appropriate limit depends on your work, the potential consequences of a claim and any contractual requirements. A client’s minimum requirement does not necessarily cover every risk your business faces.
When comparing the available limits, consider:
- Your contracts: check the amount and any specific insurance conditions a client or venue requires.
- The potential harm: consider serious injury as well as damage to valuable property.
- Where you work: note public access, shared spaces and the property around you.
- How the limit applies: check whether the limit applies to each claim or to all claims during the policy period. Also check whether related claims share a limit and whether legal defence costs count towards it.
For a fuller assessment, read about how much public liability cover you need.
How does the excess work?
The excess is the amount your business must pay towards a claim when the policy requires a contribution. Different excesses may apply to different types of claim.
Check the quote and schedule for the excesses that apply. Consider whether your business could afford that amount if a claim arose.
How much does public liability insurance cost?
The price depends on the work you do and the cover you choose. Insurers consider both how likely a claim is and how much it could cost. The factors below help explain why businesses can receive different quotes.
| Factor | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Activities and working methods | Manual work around other people or their property creates different opportunities for injury or damage from desk-based work. Insurers assess the activities you actually undertake. |
| Contact with people and property | Frequent visitors or work at client premises can increase opportunities for an incident. The surroundings also affect how serious the damage or injury could be. |
| Business size or turnover | Insurers may use turnover or staffing to help assess the scale of your work. More work can mean more exposure, although turnover alone does not describe the risk. |
| Claims history | Previous claims help insurers assess the risk they are being asked to cover. Their treatment of that history varies. |
| Cover limit | A higher limit increases the amount the insurer could have to pay for a covered claim, which can affect the price. |
| Excess and other cover | The excess determines your contribution where it applies. Additional insurance sections also affect what is included in the total price, so compare the same combination of cover. |
Compare prices alongside limits, excesses, exclusions and included cover. A lower price may come with differences that matter to your work. If you are comparing annual and instalment payments, check the total payable and any payment charges.
Read more about public liability insurance costs.
For budgeting across different types of cover and payment options, read our business insurance cost guide.
Public liability, employers’ liability and professional indemnity: what’s the difference?
Public liability, employers’ liability and professional indemnity address different kinds of claims.
| Insurance type | Main purpose |
|---|---|
| Public liability | Your business’s legal liability for injury to third parties or damage to their property arising from insured business activities. |
| Employers’ liability | Claims by employees for injury or illness arising from their work. |
| Professional indemnity | Claims arising from professional advice or services, such as an error that causes a client financial loss. |
A business may need more than one policy because each addresses a different risk.
For more detail, compare public liability vs professional indemnity or public liability vs employers’ liability.
What information do you need to compare quotes?
Have the following information ready when you compare quotes:
- the work you undertake, including any additional trades or services;
- business details, turnover and the people working for you;
- relevant claims history;
- the cover limit you want to compare;
- your preferred start date; and
- any insurance requirements in a client or venue contract.
Describe all your business activities accurately.
When arranging business insurance, you must make a fair presentation of the risk. This generally means clearly disclosing material information your business knows or ought to know, or providing enough information to alert the insurer to make further enquiries. Answering the questions alone may not be enough.
If a business description does not fit, or you are unsure what to disclose, ask the broker or insurer before buying.
Requesting a quote does not start insurance. Check confirmation of cover and its start date before relying on a policy.
Our guide to how to compare business insurance quotes explains what to check when reviewing your options.
Find cover for the work you do
Compare public liability insurance quotes
Compare public liability quotes through Simply Business. Check that each quote covers your business activities, then compare the price, cover limit, excess and exclusions.
Your questions
Public liability insurance FAQs
These answers address arranging cover for a new business, a specific event and changes after purchase.
It may be possible to arrange cover before you start trading, depending on the business and insurer. Describe your planned activities and provide expected turnover where requested. Confirm the agreed start date and whether any preparation work is insured. Do not assume that a policy starting on your first trading day covers earlier work.
Specialist event or short-term policies are available for some one-off events. The suitable product depends on whether you are organising, trading at or otherwise taking part in the event. Check the dates, activities and venue requirements. Do not assume a standard business policy or this comparison journey offers one-day event cover.
Simply Business states that a certificate of insurance is included with the documents provided when you buy a policy. Obtain it from Simply Business using the document-access instructions supplied after purchase. Before sharing it with a client or venue, check that the business details, insured dates and cover limit match their requirements.
Contact your broker or insurer before taking on the new work and explain what is changing. Ask whether the activities can be insured and whether the price, terms or excess will change. Do not assume the revised work is covered until the change is agreed and you have confirmation of the cover and effective date.