Although liability insurance is not enforced by law in Ireland, it is of great benefit to have. Also, more and more clients of tradesmen are insisting that the tradesman is covered with liability insurance. For one it helps protect you financially against any potential claims that are made against you. If you do not have liability insurance and a claim is made against you, there is a high possibility that you could lose everything financially and business wise. Also, if you want to join a trade organisations or bodies, such as the RGII, ECSSA, SEAI, RECI, etc., you are required to have liability insurance.
When you are going about getting liability insurance, there are a number factors that come into play when your premium is generated. These include: Your occupation (plumber, builder, painter, plasterer, etc.), your annual company turnover, the number of employees you have and their annual salaries. These are just some of the bits of information that you will need to supply when purchasing liability insurance.
Although we cannot give you the answers those questions (that will be up to you to answer) we can give you the information to help you understand what some of the terminology means. Having the correct insurance cover is very important as some types of work can be of a high risk which may put your customers and their property at risk, as well as yourself and/or your employees or co-workers.
Our specialists get a lot of enquiries about the different types of liability insurance that apply to different trades. We have pulled together some information on the main types of liability cover you will encounter, in a bid to help you understand each one and how they may apply to your working situation or trade.
The three main types of cover that are required for any kind of tradesman’s business are:
- Public Liability
- Products Liability
- Employers’ Liability
Employers’ Liability
This type of insurance is intended to protect those who work for you in the event they had an accident whilst working on site as one of your employees.
You can include sub-contractors under this, but you will need to make sure you declare any payments/wages paid to Labour Only or Bone Fide Sub-Contractors. If you have any questions or queries that relate to covering sub-contractors then make sure to speak to one of our specialists on 01 660 6900. They will be more than happy to help you out in this area.
Public Liability
If there is a claim made and you are found to be responsible, public liability is there to protect your customers or any member of the public. A situation where Public Liability insurance cover may be required is for Third Party Property damage. An example of this would be where a builder, painter, electrician, or any other tradesman damages a client’s property while working on site. Public Liability will cover these damages up to a certain level. If you are still unsure how Public Liability works our specialist team will be glad to speak to you and inform you have it applies to your situation or type of work. Call them on 01 660 6900.
Products Liability
Products liability is there to cover the customer in the event that a claim is made relating to a part or parts fitted by the tradesman. If a claim is made against you in relation to a part or parts you used, during a specific job, yo