What is  Public Liabilities Insurance ?

Public liability insurance is an essential business insurance cover for  businesses,

it would cover a business if a customer or member of the public was to suffer a loss or injury as a result of its business activities and if that person made a claim for compensation. The insurance would cover the compensation payment plus any legal expenses. more….

(Public liability insurance provides cover in the event that a member of the public is accidentally injured and your business is found to be liable. The cover will also protect you if you damage a member of the public’s property whilst working at their home.

If your business has made a mistake which leads to an incident causing damage to a customer or their property it’s likely that this will result in a public liability claim. Claims for trips, slips and falls are among the most common type of public liability claims.

The cost of legal fees and expenses is all included for both defending the claim and paying out should you be found to be at fault. Public liability will only cover third party damages and does not include injuries to employees. This is dealt with through employer’s liability insurance.

You or your business will have to be found at fault for a customer to receive compensation through your public liability insurance policy.)

Who should buy ?

Business Owner,contractors,

And  why?

Even when a business does everything right there is always the chance of an accident happening. With the right insurance cover, a business can operate knowing that should the worst happen, their customers’ property could be repaired, their possessions replaced and their medical costs paid for.

If you run a shop and have just taken delivery of some stock but have not cleared it away to a suitable area should a customer walk into the shop and trip over the boxes this could lead to a public liability claim if the customer suffers an injury.

As a painter and decorator you are at a client’s newly refurbished home. On a break you place a cup of tea on a rung of your ladder. The ladder gets accidently knocked and tea spills over your dust sheet onto the new carpet. Your customer may be entitled to make a public liability claim against you for the repair of the carpet.

At a coffee shop one of your staff spills a drink whilst waiting on a table. Before your staff has a chance to clean up the spill or put out a wet floor sign another customer slips over and falls hurting her back in the process. The customer may be able to claim compensation for the injuries and associated costs such as loss of income etc.

What is covered ?

Policies are usually tailored to the individual business however as a guide, the insurance covers a business’s legal liability to pay damages to members of the public for death and injury or damage to property or possessions, which has resulted from the business’s activities.

For example:

if you hired a roofing company to re-tile your roof but they didn’t use adequate weather protection, resulting in severe water damage, you could make a claim against them for compensation to pay for repairing the damage. Public Liability Insurance ensures that the company can meet the cost of the claim, along with any legal expenses.