The world of contractor insurance can sometimes be a little confusing to navigate. Everywhere you look there are people telling you what you need and what you don’t. Here at Kingsbridge we know the contractor marketplace inside out. With fifteen years of experience serving the contractor community, we’re able to provide knowledgeable, trustworthy, and impartial advice.
Below we’ll try and clear up a few of the most common misconceptions that surround contractor insurance. Without further ado:
Myth #1: I’m covered by my agency/end client. I don’t need insurance.
It’s often implied that contractors are covered by the policy held by their agency, or their end client. Unfortunately, in the vast majority of cases, this isn’t correct. The end client will often have a group policy that’ll provide cover for their subsidiaries and associated companies, but it’s unlikely to provide cover for any other parties (including, most prominently, contractor workers.)
As such, it’s strongly recommended that a contractor purchases a policy under which they’re the sole insured person, and where the limits are solely for their protection and are extremely unlikely to be exhausted as they would be in a group policy.
Myth #2: My work is signed off by my end client, so I don’t need professional indemnity cover.
Just because your work is signed off by the person or company you work for, it doesn’t mean that you’ll be covered under their insurance policy. Professional indemnity insurance, or PI, is a very important cover for any contractor to hold.
PI will cover any legal costs and expenses incurred in your defence, as well as any costs that could be awarded, if you are alleged to have provided inadequate advice, services or designs that cause your client to lose money.
It’s also important to remember that even if you haven’t done anything wrong, some clients may be unhappy or disgruntled and still make a claim against you, in which case you’ll have to pay any defence costs to protect yourself. Professional indemnity insurance will cover those costs too.
Myth #3: Contractor insurance is too expensive
Contractor insurance packages, like the one that Kingsbridge provides, are designed to cover all of the main exposures that you and your business may face. Whilst it might seem like a significant initial investment, a policy will prove its worth very quickly if a claim is bought against you.
It’s also worth remembering that insurance is a tax deductible business expense, so the cost won’t be as much as it’ll initially seem.
At Kingsbridge we include all the elements of our policy together in one essential package, allowing us to offer the best possible cover for the lowest possible price. In fact, we’re so confident about this that we guarantee you won’t find identical cover cheaper anywhere else (and if you do, we’ll refund the difference.)
Myth #4: My agency doesn’t require me to be covered
It may well be the case that your agency doesn’t require you to have insurance in place before you begin a contract. Ultimately the risk is yours to take, but holding the right insurance is strongly recommended. It’ll protect you and your business, allowing you to carry on with your work safe in the knowledge that you’re covered.
It’s better to be overprepared rather than underprepared, and holding adequate insurance cover could end up saving you a huge amount of money. Claims are more common than you might think, even if you’ve been trading for a long time, and for the potential costs you could incur the initial outlay for your policy is more than worthwhile.
Kingsbridge have been looking after contractors and freelancers since 2001. If you’d like to purchase a policy, or simply discuss your insurance requirements in further detail, feel free to get in touch on 01242 362183 or at info@kingsbridge.co.uk.
