Public liability insurance provides crucial cover wherever there is contact with members of the public.  It can protect against successful legal action and ensure business continuity even where there has been a claim made against a business that could otherwise prove to be crippling.  If you don’t currently have public liability insurance for your business then there are some key features of this type of insurance that you might need to know about.

Is public liability insurance a legal requirement?

No.  However, it is one of the most popular types of business insurance for good reason.  Public liability insurance provides essential protection if something happens to a member of the public – or their belongings – on your premises. It provides protection for the business and many contractual partnerships may require it.

What does public liability insurance actually cover?

Your business’ liability to the public.  “The public” could be customers who are coming into a physical store, suppliers who are delivering products to you, as well as passers by.  Public liability insurance can be useful for a very wide range of businesses, including restaurants, pubs, hotels, shops, salons and photographers.

Where does public liability insurance provide cover?

There are three main areas where having public liability insurance cover can help:

1. When something happens on your own premises – if something happens to a customer, for example a trip or fall on your site, then this type of insurance will be essential.
2. Incidents on a public site – if your business is something practical, such as a photographer, and you’re engaged on a public site where a member of the public is hurt then public liability insurance could protect you.
3. Problems that occur on client sites – many businesses operate in the homes or offices of clients, such as delivering goods or a home visit by a hairdresser.  Public liability insurance will ensure that if something happens while you or your team is on site there is protection in place.

Do clients expect public liability cover?

This will depend to a large extent on the industry and the clients.  For example, if you are pitching for local government contracts then you will mostly likely find that there is an element of public liability cover required from anyone who is looking to establish this kind of relationship.

Why is public liability insurance so important?

Claims for damage to the person or to someone’s belongings can be incredibly costly.  Compensation could be made up of a number of different elements, including loss of earnings, future earnings, potential damages that are awarded to the claimant as well as legal costs.  As a result, the total value of even a single claim could be crippling for any business and particularly for small or medium sized enterprises.  With public liability insurance you are protected against what could be a financial disaster.

If you’d like to find out more about our packages including public liability insurance and how it’s applicable to your business – as well as the best cover to buy – contact a member of our specialist team today.