There are many things that could go wrong in your business and threaten your livelihood, but by protecting yourself with Public Liability Insurance you can make sure that you're covered against a range of eventualities. Public Liability claims tend to be expensive, meaning cover of up to at least £1 million can be considered a minimum, but if you work in areas such as the public sector you could be required to prove that your business is covered upwards of £5 million for damages.
Whether you are a plumber, electrician, builder, manufacturer, hairdresser or you just need to insure your own home you should have Public Liability Insurance as, should a third party suffer injury or loss of goods or damage to their property, you could be required to defend your position and possibly pay damages; remember, their claim does not have to be genuine!
If you have Public Liability Insurance should any claim be lodged against you or your business then your insurers will fight your corner. With cover starting from £52.50 there really is no reason why you should avoid having this invaluable cover.
Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 is legislation and you can be criminally prosecuted should you fail to provide appropriate insurance for your employees. You are required by Law to have a policy that must cover you for at least £5 million and come from an authorised insurer who is regulated to trade in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority.
The purpose of Employers Liability insurance is to provide compensation if an employee is injured or becomes ill because of the work they do for you. You can find out more on this government website where every question you may have will be answered
The common problem and misunderstanding we see from our clients is what defines an employee and when are you legally required to provide Employers Liability cover for people that work for you. The key fact here is that regardless of whether you have full time employees, temporary employees, subcontractors or even volunteers, you probably need Employers Liability insurance.
Some key points are:
If you want to find out more about Employers Liability cover, you can read more on our site or you can speak to us and we will be happy to talk through any questions you may have.
The Road Traffic Act 1988 comprehensively covers all areas of road use; you must be insured, taxed, and where applicable your vehicle must pass the ministry of transport test (MOT) each year before you are allowed to drive on a public road. When you buy your car insurance, there is a minimum level of cover you will receive. The RTA 1988 determines this minimum level which includes covering your liability for third party injury or damage.
There are certain exceptional circumstances, whereby you will not require insurance, such as if your car is stored in a garage and declared as legally off-road. However, for the vast majority of people, failing to buy car insurance will result in a driving conviction. At present, the maximum penalty for driving your car without insurance, whether you are involved in an accident or not, is 6-8 penalty points and a fine of up to £5,000.
Statistically, one in five new drivers will have an accident in their first year of driving. To help reduce this number, the Government have created a two year probationary period for any driver who passes their first driving test on or after 1 June 1997. This probationary period is designed to discourage new drivers from committing driving offences, which are the main cause of accidents on British roads. If you commit a certain number of driving offences within this period your driving licence will be annulled and you must resit your driving tests.
RTA 1988 is designed to protect the general public while driving. The complete act can be downloaded from the Office of Public Sector Information's website: Legislation.gov.
Since March 2011 new 'continuous insurance enforcement' rules took force which means that every car now needs to be insured or have a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) – even if it's off road and doesn't pay road tax.
If you haven't got car insurance for your off-road vehicle or SORN-ed it, you need to do so immediately as the penalties are high.
This isn't a wise idea at all. If you are a registered driver and you do not have insurance or have not applied for a SORN you could:
And if you have to pay a fine this does not replace car insurance – you'll still need to pay this as well, or else register your car with a SORN.
Although from a legal stance, a tractor insurance policy will cover your farm vehicle for use even outside the boundaries of your property and for purposes other than the operation of your agricultural business, some limitations do exist depending on the actual interpretation of the word "USE".
If we take a typical village fete as an example, you CAN USE your tractor and trailer to transport you or any products/goods to and from this event; under a typical tractor insurance policy however, you CAN NOT USE your vehicle as part or feature of this event (ie: pull the tractor, tractor parade, ploughing a straight furrow contest, etc).
If you are looking to use your agricultural vehicles to be part of an event, a separate insurance policy is required - Please do not hesitate to contact us to check if your current policy provides the necessary level of cover for you.
