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Tilers insurance

Join over 2,500 tilers like you with cover from £3.19 per month*

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Rated 4.7/5

Based on 39,760 reviews

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Claims paid in 24 hours

For 80% of settled claims

What's on this page

  • Why is insurance important?
  • What does it cover?
  • How much does it cost?
  • How do I choose insurance?
  • How do claims work?
  • FAQs
  • Helpful articles

Why do you need tilers insurance?

From brand new kitchens to restoring something special, tiling is highly-skilled work. Your raw materials, plus the client and any visitors, leave room for accidents, making proper tiler insurance essential. Whether it’s just you or protection for an employee or two, get cover sorted before the next job starts.

  • protection for big accidents like damage or employee injuries
  • support for your business if something stops you working
  • cover for the specifics from your own equipment to hired-in plant

Start your quote

What does insurance for tilers cover?

You’re working with lots of variables – from contracts and clients to delicate materials and the general public. You know the job best, so we put you in charge of what goes into your policy. If you do have a query, we’re here to help.

Public liability insurance

In case you or your employee injure someone or damage their property.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance for tilers?

Claims against your business for:

  • accidental property damage like a scratch or spill (not your workmanship)
  • someone being injured while you’re working, or because of your work
  • accidental damage or injury caused by an employee (remember, if you employ anyone you’re legally required to have employer’s liability insurance)

For example:

  • you’re in a client’s home, on a bathroom tiling job. You run out to the van and drop a box of tiles on the floor, causing cracks
  • you go back to your van for lunch, leaving your radio and toolbox on the client's floor. Their toddler trips over your toolbox, banging their head and injuring their wrist

What you’ll need additional cover for

  • your tools and equipment – make sure you add this specific cover when setting up your policy

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case something happens to an employee while they’re working for you.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance for tilers?

Claims against your business for:

  • an employee, including a temp or casual worker, suing you after falling ill because of working for you, or
  • making a claim for an injury they’ve suffered through working for you

**Employers’ liability insurance is required by law if you have people working for you. Without it, you could be fined up to £2,500 a day for each employee.**

For example:

  • your subcontractor is working on a large job with you at a commercial premises. While removing some old tiling, she slips and makes a hole in the client’s new cabinets
  • you send a contractor to a separate job, while you finish up with a client. The contractor slips and falls down the stairs on his way out, breaking his wrist

Tools insurance

In case something happens to your tiling tools.

What’s typically covered by tools insurance for a tiler?

  • theft of your tiling tools – most claims are for handheld tools and portable electric devices
  • flood, fire or accidental damage

For example:

  • you keep your tools locked in your garage overnight. It’s alarmed and has CCTV installed, but someone breaks in and steals £2,000 worth of tools
  • a leak in your garage causes damage to some of your tools, which will need replacing

Read more about tools insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the products or materials you keep in stock.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

  • loss, damage or theft of the materials you use for tiling, or the items you’re planning to sell

For example:

  • you stop at the wholesalers to pick up tiles for tomorrow’s job. While unloading the van that night, a box of tiles falls out, smashing the contents. You’ll need to replace these, before your job tomorrow

Read more about stock insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

In case things like laptops or office filing cabinets are lost, stolen, or damaged.

What’s typically covered by business and office equipment insurance?

  • theft of the equipment you use to run your operations, while it’s stored on your business premises or out and about
  • accidental loss of your operational equipment
  • flood, fire or accidental damage

For example:

  • you’re working on some invoices over the weekend, when your teenage son spills juice all over your laptop

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Hired-in plant insurance

In case plant machinery, like excavators, you've hired in is lost, stolen, or damaged.

What’s typically covered by hired-in plant insurance?

  • accidental damage to bigger items and equipment you’ve hired (known as ‘plant’)
  • hire charges you still owe even though you’ve damaged the plant

For example:

  • your contractor knocks a hired-in tile cutter onto the floor, jamming it and delaying the job

Read more about hired-in plant insurance

Own plant insurance

In case plant machinery, like excavators, you own is lost, stolen, or damaged.

What’s typically covered by own plant insurance?

  • the bigger items and equipment (known as ‘plant’) you use in your tiling jobs
  • accidental or malicious damage to your own plant items

For example:

  • you’re cutting down tiles for Monday morning’s job. While stopping for lunch, your dog knocks the cutter off the workbench and breaks it
  • your tile cutter is stolen during a weekend break-in

Read more about own plant insurance

Contract works insurance

In case the work you’re doing is destroyed, disrupted or delayed.

What’s typically covered by contract works insurance?

  • damage to your ongoing work at domestic or commercial sites
  • theft or damage to trade tools and equipment left on site

For example:

  • you’re the lead contractor on a big commercial job. As the project comes to an end, the premises collapse, causing damage to the ongoing work, tools and stock. You estimate the damage will cause a three week delay, preventing the client from opening

Read more about contract works insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re faced with legal costs from running your tiling business.

  • day-to-day legal costs that come with your business activities, like employee disputes
  • HMRC tax and compliance issues, if they come up
  • claim costs from property damage, nuisance or trespass
  • includes a tax advice helpline, 24/7 confidential legal helpline and crisis PR support to help you protect your reputation

For example:

  • you’ve agreed a three month client contract, but due to unforeseen circumstances the project will take longer, delaying the client from opening. They make a claim against you for breach of contract
  • after ongoing issues and several warnings, you’ve had to let a contractor go. They raise an unfair dismissal claim against you

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at or outside of work.

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

  • injury or death of anyone covered by your policy, at work or elsewhere
  • lost income, medical costs and hospitalisation benefit

For example:

  • you cut your wrist while working on site and have to take two weeks off
  • you sprain your ankle playing football with your kids, and can’t drive to work the next day

Read more about personal accident insurance

This content has been created for general information purposes. Make sure you have the right level of business insurance by checking your policy documentation for details. Read our full Terms and Conditions

How much does tilers insurance cost?

Find out how much you’ll pay by comparing prices from a range of trusted insurers. You choose what goes into your policy, so you only pay for what you need.

Prices start from £3.19 per month

Get your quotes in 7 minutes – prices are guaranteed for 30 days.

Get your tailored quotes in 7 minutes

Start your quote

10% of our customers paid up to £38.32 a year for a public liability insurance policy between 1st April 2023 - 30th June 2023. Equivalent to £3.19 per month based on a monthly cost when paying for the policy in one annual payment. Paying monthly is usually more expensive as you'll pay interest. Most customers pay more than this but some pay less.

Example tilers insurance quotes, real prices

churchill insurance

£8.73 /month

£67.26 /year

A local tiler who specialises in floors and walls on residential properties

  • 1-2 years' experience
  • Sole trader
  • No employees
  • Based in Manchester
  • Public liability

    £1,000,000

  • Employers’ liability

    Not included

  • Tools

    Not included

axa insurance

£68.82 /month

£611.73 /year

A small tiling firm which has employees but also uses a part-time casual worker

  • 5+ years' experience
  • Limited company
  • 1 employee
  • 1 bona fide subcontractor
  • Based in Edinburgh
  • Public liability

    £5,000,000

  • Employers’ liability

    £10,000,000

  • Tools

    £8,000

How we work out example quotes These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 11/01/2021). They’re based on a range of factors, like employees and location. Your own quote will be based on what you tell us about your business. Prices may go up or down from day to day, so the prices you’re quoted may differ to the ones you see here.

What kind of excess should I expect?

An excess is an amount you pay towards any claim you make on your insurance. For example, if your excess is £250 and you make a claim worth £1000, your payout will be a maximum of £750.

Insurance cover

Lowest excess

Highest excess

Public liability

£100

£2500

Employers' liability

No excess

No excess

Tools

£60

£500

Business and office equipment

£50

£750

The figures above are for guidance only and any excess applying to your quote may differ. You’ll get a breakdown of the excesses for each quote when you compare with us.

How it works

  • Pick what goes into your policy

    Only pay for what you need

  • Get prices from a range of insurers

    Choose the best fit for you

  • Buy online in minutes

    Get your documents the same day

Start your quote

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How do I choose insurance?

Making sure you have the right type and level of business insurance can be the difference between getting a claim paid and having to cover the cost of an expensive accident yourself. Read our tips for guidance on what to consider when buying a policy.

Is public liability enough for third party property damage?

In some situations you may need more than public liability to cover certain kinds of property damage. Learn about contract works and hired-in plant.

Can I just cover my most expensive tools?

Make sure you cover the total cost of replacing all your tools or you’ll only get a proportion of your claim paid out if something happens to them. Learn about tool cover.

Which type of workers do I need insurance for?

Employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement if you employ people.

If you have people working for you, including bona fide subcontractors (BFSC), labour-only subcontractors (LOSC), part-timers, or full-time staff, employers’ liability insurance is required by law.

Read on for our simplified guide to the difference between labour-only subcontractors and bona fide subcontractors.

Will tools insurance cover all my equipment?

Depending on what you use to do your work, you may need other covers.

You may need more than tools insurance – for example, business equipment insurance if you have a work laptop, plant insurance if you use machinery.

Does tilers insurance cover my work correctly?

Make sure you're picking the right cover to protect you properly. It's important to know that if you have another trade or job, you'll need additional cover. For example, do you need to consider flooring contractors insurance or bathroom fitter insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

If you provide other services, make sure you’re covered:

Other types of insurance

Which public liability cover limit should I choose?

Think about the maximum possible loss your business could face in the event of a claim, and make sure you take legal fees and damages into consideration. You can choose from three levels of coverage – £1 million, £2 million, or up to £5 million.

Talk to an expert

Our team of UK-based insurance experts are here to help, Mon 09.00am - 05.30pm, Tues 09.00am - 05.30pm, Weds 09.00am - 05.30pm, Thurs 09.30am - 05.30pm, Fri 09.00am - 05.30pm, Sat 09.00am - 02.00pm

Call our team

0333 043 8527

Online

Contact us on our website whenever suits you

Phone

Call our insurance experts during office hours (calls are charged at a local rate)

FAQs

Find answers to common insurance questions

How do claims work?

Unlike price comparison websites, we take the hassle out of claims for you. We know how important it is to get your business back on track quickly – and with a minimum of fuss. That’s why you get access to your dedicated claims any time, day or night. Call them on 0333 207 0560 or claim online. They’ll do their best to be fair and supportive.

The figure above is rounded across our range of products. Our claims process may vary for different products and operates on a ‘claim by claim’ basis.

£39 million in claims paid out in 2022

Paying 80% of settled claims within 24 hours in 2022

Example claim

Having insurance through Simply Business has saved tilers thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.

Rich saved more than £4,750

Rich (not his real name) caused damage to a customer’s driveway with his wheelbarrow, while working on a roof repairs job. Luckily, his tilers’ insurance policy covered the accidental damage.

  • Insurance payout

    £4,750

    Covering the cost of accidental damage to the client’s property

  • Rich's costs

    £100

    The excess amount stated in Rich's policy terms

Chosen by 900,000 small businesses and landlords

We started out as a team of five back in 2005. We’ve grown since then with 900,000 customers across 1,500 trades now trusting us to provide their business insurance.

  • Compare and buy in minutes

    Documents arrive today

  • Rated 4.7/5

    Based on 39,760 reviews

  • Here to help

    Help from UK-based experts

  • 24/7 claims

    Make a claim any time

Tiler insurance FAQs

Whether you’re new to buying business insurance or you’ve been trading for a while, here are the answers to some commonly asked questions about tiler insurance. You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.

  • Yes. It’s important to make sure you have the right type and level of insurance for the different types of work you do. For example, if you’re a plumber, you may also do building work on certain jobs – you’ll need additional cover for this, but you can have it all on the one policy. When you start your quote, you’ll have the option to add another trade or profession to your policy. If you need to add a third trade, give us a call on 0333 043 8527 and one of our insurance experts will help you set up your policy in minutes.

  • Yes. You may start offering additional services that require you to use different skills or carry out different tasks. If you find yourself in this situation, it’s important to give us a call on 0333 043 8527 to update your policy before you take on this new work. If you don’t have the correct type of cover in place for the work you do, you may be unable to claim on your policy if something goes wrong.

  • Each insurer looks at CCJs and IVAs differently – some apply stricter rules than others, but having a CCJ or IVA doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be able to buy insurance.

  • You can choose the payment type that suits your business and cash flow best. Some customers prefer to pay in one go, while others prefer to pay a regular monthly amount, like you do with lots of other bills. Simply Business offer three ways to pay for your policy:

    • one-off credit or debit card payment
    • BACS payment
    • Direct Debit

    If you choose to pay by Direct Debit, our credit provider, Premium Credit, pays Simply Business the full amount for your policy up front. You then repay Premium Credit in 10 monthly installments.

  • This will depend on whether you have employers’ liability insurance in place. Public liability insurance is designed to protect your business against the consequences of legal action brought by members of the public for injuries or damage to their belongings. But when it comes to your employees causing injury or damage, this protection only activates if you also have employers’ liability insurance.

    If you employ people, you’re required by law to have employers’ liability insurance.

    There’s one exception here. Family businesses that aren’t incorporated as a limited company are not legally required to have employers’ liability insurance. The government defines a “family business” as one where all your employees are closely related to you (as a spouse, civil partner, sibling, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, step-parent, stepchild or half-sibling). So if you run an unincorporated family business and you choose not to get employers’ liability insurance, it’s important to know that your public liability insurance wouldn’t cover you against damage or injury caused by your team.

We create this content for general information purposes and it should not be taken as advice. Always check policy documentation for details and seek professional advice. Read our full Terms and Conditions

Helpful articles for tilers

Tradesperson's safety helmet on the floor

2 Jul 2020 • 5-minute read

Bona fide subcontractors v labour-only subcontractors explained

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