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If you are a contractor / subby you should have Professional Indemnity Insurance & Public Liability. These will cover against negligence and accidental injury to the public. If you employ anyone you must also have employer’s liability cover
Buildsafe offer insurance policies that help sole traders and limited companies protect themselves should things go wrong. ‘Going wrong’ may include injury to the public, damage to a client’s property, or injury to yourself or an employee as a result of negligence, accident, or the installation of unsafe materials or products.
Builders insurance is applicable to any tradesperson conducting any sort of building work from minor property repairs to major building renovations and extensions.
There are many different types of builders insurance available, each with a different level of coverage. Some of the most comprehensive policies will usually include:
Public liability insurance: This protects your business should a client or a member of the public be injured as a result of your work, or if their property is damaged.
Products liability insurance: This protects your business should you supply, sell, or install products that injure a client, or that cause damage to the client’s property.
Employer’s liability insurance: This protects your business should an employee suffer injury while on the job, or if their own property is damaged during work.
You don’t have to buy everything, you can pick and choose.
The only legally required form of builders insurance is employer’s liability insurance, and this is required if a business employs one or more people from outside the family. Commercial van insurance will also be required if a vehicle is used for work purposes.
However, it’s important to remember that builders work in a high risk trade, and accidents can – and certainly do – happen. Should something go wrong, without insurance you’ll need to pay for any repairs, compensation, and legal fees from your own pocket. Having the right insurance is key to protecting your building business.
This will depend on your contracts and nature of business. However, most builders hold Professional Indemnity Insurance at £1m, Public Liability at £1m and Employers Liability at £5m. If you work through an agency they will generally tell you the minimum levels required, however you should always assess your business risk.
Consider that the average cost of building disputes across the UK is steadily rising, and grew from £12.6 million in 2019 to a whopping £27.4 million in 2020. Builders are facing more challenging times than ever before, and insurance can help them to recover.
Also consider that building disputes are becoming more widely publicised, and that homeowners are increasingly wary about partnering with ‘rogue’ traders. Being able to demonstrate that the appropriate business insurance is in place not only provides you with peace of mind that you’re protected, but also provides your clients with peace of mind that they can make a claim should work not be up to the expected standard.
As there are many different options available when it comes to builders insurance, there is no standard or set price that builders can expect to pay. Premiums will vary significantly depending on the insurer, and on individual circumstances. However, builders insurance and business coverage will almost always be less than you think.
Costs are usually determined by:
Obtaining and comparing quotes is the best way to find a great deal.
At BuildSafe, we see our role as an independent advisor, who reviews the merits of each policy to help you make well-informed comparisons. We also save you time in procuring quotes, analysing and comparing quotes, and negotiating the commercials.
The procurement of quotations is a time-consuming process. From form filling, providing documentation, chasing, reviewing and comparing terms, negotiating and finalising; we take the weight out of all of this for our clients allowing you to focus on actually developing your business.
No. Our business is built on retention and referrals. It is essential to state that the insurer will release the same terms to us, as they would to you directly. We are able to use our position within the market to gain leverage with providers. This means we can generally gain more favourable terms than the market price and often help our clients save as much as 30%. We are paid by the insurer for introducing the business to them and this cost is included in the price quoted.
Build Safe is a trading name of London Belgravia Brokers Ltd, Registration Number: 9069586 . Trading address is 60 Margaret Street, London, W1W 8TF. London Belgravia Brokers Ltd is an appointed representative of Ten Insurance Services Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
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