Join over 900,000 freelancers like you with professional indemnity cover from £1.43 per month*
Get tailored quotes in 7 minutes
You know what it’s like to be pulled in last minute – everything’s urgent and the client is busy. While you're catching up with the brief, freelancer insurance lets you hit the ground running. It provides protection against accidents and errors, plus cover for things like your laptop and other equipment.
From the typical client to next year’s pipeline, you know your business best. So we put you in control of what goes into your policy, whether it’s just cover for accidents and mistakes or you need insurance for things like your laptop too.
Professional indemnity insurance
In case you’ve made a mistake in your work or your service hasn’t met the expected standards.
Public liability insurance
In case someone is injured or property gets damaged because of your freelancing business.
Employers’ liability insurance
In case something happens to an employee while they’re working for you.
Tools insurance
In case something happens to your tools.
Business and office equipment insurance
In case something happens to equipment like your laptop.
Legal expenses insurance
In case you’re faced with legal costs while running your freelance business.
Personal accident insurance
In case you or anyone you’ve covered has an accident, at work or off duty.
In case you’ve made a mistake in your work or your service hasn’t met the expected standards.
Claims against your business for professional negligence causing your client a financial loss, which may include:
For example:
Read more about professional indemnity insurance
In case someone is injured or property gets damaged because of your freelancing business.
Claims against your business for:
If you do employ anyone, you’re usually required by law to have employers’ liability insurance too.
For example:
Read more about public liability insurance
In case something happens to an employee while they’re working for you.
Claims against your business for:
**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:
In case something happens to your tools.
For example:
Read more about tools insurance
In case something happens to equipment like your laptop.
For example:
Read more about business and office equipment insurance
In case you’re faced with legal costs while running your freelance business.
For example:
Read more about legal expenses insurance
In case you or anyone you’ve covered has an accident, at work or off duty.
For example:
Read more about personal accident insurance
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.
Get your quotes in 7 minutes – prices are guaranteed for 30 days.
Get your tailored quotes in 7 minutes
*The price is for customers purchasing professional indemnity insurance - 10% of customers paid £17.10 or less annually between 1st Oct 2023 - 31st Mar 2024. Equivalent to £1.43/month (and excludes the extra costs for paying monthly). If you complete a quote more types of cover will be available, these all have additional costs.
£14.14 /month
£121.36 /year
A freelance writer who contributes to several local publications
Public liability
Not included
Employers' liability
Not included
Professional indemnity
£50,000
£31.76 /month
£282.30 /year
A small freelance writing business which has contracts with several national publications
Public liability
£1,000,000
Employers' liability
£10,000,000
Professional indemnity
£250,000
How we work out example quotes These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 23/09/2020). 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.
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 |
---|---|---|
Professional indemnity | No excess | £2500 |
Public liability | £100 | £2500 |
Employers' liability | No excess | No excess |
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.
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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.
Can I just cover my most expensive tools?
Which type of workers do I need insurance for?
Will tools insurance cover all my equipment?
Does freelancer insurance cover my work correctly?
Do I need cover for other types of work?
Which public liability cover limit should I choose?
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.
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.
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.
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.
If you provide other services, make sure you’re covered:
Other types of insurance
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.
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
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.
83% of claims were settled in 2023
The figure above is rounded across our range of products. "Settled" covers paid, declined or withdrawn. Our claims process may vary for different products and operates on a ‘claim by claim’ basis. Our specialist partner Sedgwick will pay the claims on behalf of the insurer. Reviewed on 24/04/2024.
Having insurance through Simply Business has saved freelancers thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.
Paul (not his real name) was working from home when his drink spilled over his laptop, damaging the screen. His freelance insurance covered the accidental damage, getting him set up again to finish the project.
£1,929.00
Covering the cost of the accidental damage
£100
The excess amount stated in Paul’s policy terms
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.
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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 freelancer insurance. You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
Before you buy insurance, it's important to weigh up the risks and understand the legalities. But what insurance do you really need? And do freelancers need liability insurance?
Public liability insurance is an important cover for many freelancers – it’s designed to protect you if someone’s injured or their property gets damaged because of your business. From tripping over your equipment to hot coffee spilled on a laptop, you’d be surprised how many freelance businesses need public liability insurance.
Professional indemnity insurance can be crucial too if you give advice or provide professional services to clients. It covers you if you give negligent guidance that causes a financial loss. And if you employ anyone, even in your own home, employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement – you’ll face a heavy fine if you’re caught working without it.
It’s usually very straightforward – just start a quote with us right now, and we’ll come back with options from the UK's most trusted insurance brands. If you’d prefer to speak to us on the phone, our team are ready to help on 0333 043 8527.
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 freelance personal trainer, you may also provide a dietician service – 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 0146 683 and one of our insurance experts will help you set up your policy in minutes.
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:
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 instalments.
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
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