Self-employed insurance
Join over 900k UK customers like you – we offer public liability cover from £4.74*
- UK-based expert support, online and on the phone
- Get covered and all your documents the same day
- Get tailored self-employed insurance quotes in less than 7 minutes
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Rated 4.8/5
Based on 39,800 reviews
Claims paid in 24 hours
For 80% of settled claims
Why is self-employed insurance important?
From a few hundred pounds to tens of thousands, a compensation claim can hit hard. As your own boss, it’s up to you to cover it, so insurance for self-employed is considered vital by most businesses. Our public liability insurance is designed to cover accidents and injuries – you can have it as a single cover or combined with other self-employed insurance options, including tools, stock, and professional indemnity.
- self-employed public liability insurance, from £1 million to £10 million
- rated 4.7/5 based on 39K+ public liability customer reviews
- optional personal accident cover, if an injury could stop you working
What does self-employed insurance cover?
Damaging a client’s property or financial losses caused by your mistakes – insurance for self-employed professionals can cover a range of risks. A public or product liability claim, for example, often runs into thousands of pounds, especially where serious injuries are involved. We provide public liability insurance for self-employed workers, employers’ liability, professional indemnity, tools, plant, stock, and personal accident cover, plus legal expenses.
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 self-employed 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 £4.74 per month
Get your quotes in 7 minutes – prices are guaranteed for 30 days.
Get your tailored quotes in 7 minutes
The price is for up to £2 million of public liability insurance – 10% of customers paid £56.82 or less annually between 1st Jan – 31st May 2024. Equivalent to £4.74 a month (and excludes the extra costs for paying monthly). 76% of customers have a £1 million limit and 24% £2 million. If you complete a quote, more types of cover will be available. These all have additional costs.
Example self-employed insurance quotes, real prices
![chiswell insurance](https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk//wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/05/chiswell.webp?w=100)
£8.46 /month
£64.55 /year
A self-employed bricklayer with less than one year’s experience and no employees
- 1-2 years’ experience
- Sole trader
- No employees
- Based in Swansea
Public liability
£1,000,000
Tools
£1,000
Stock
Not included
![axa](https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk//wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/05/axa.webp?w=66)
£19.35 /month
£171.96 /year
A self-employed hairdresser who rents a chair in a salon
- 5+ years’ experience
- Sole trader
- No employees
- Based in Sale
Public liability
£2,000,000
Tools
£3,000
Stock
£2,500
How we work out example quotes These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 07/03/2023). 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.
Looking for something else?
Depending on your set-up, clients and business type, these expert covers might be helpful too:
- Business buildings insurance
- Business contents insurance
- Business equipment insurance
- Business interruption insurance
- Business legal protection insurance
- Contract works insurance
- Limited company insurance
- Office premises insurance
- Personal liability insurance
- Product liability insurance
- Professional liability insurance
- Sole trader insurance
When you run a quote you can select from a range of covers.
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
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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
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How do self-employed insurance 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.
£51 million in claims paid out in 2023
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.
Example claim
Having self-employment insurance through Simply Business has saved professionals thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.
Michael saved more than £3,800
While fitting some skirting for a client, Michael (not his real name) put a nail through some copper pipes, causing water damage in their kitchen. The self-employed public liability insurance he’d taken out helped provide cover for the damage claim raised by his client.
Insurance payout
£3,833.32
Covering the cost of accidental damage
Insurance payout
Covering the cost of accidental damage
Covering the cost of accidental damage
Self-employed insurance FAQ
Whether you’re new to buying business insurance for self-employed or you’ve been trading for a while, here are the answers to some commonly asked questions about insurance for self-employed workers.
You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
Public and product liability insurance is often an important cover for self-employed workers – it’s designed to protect you if someone is injured or gets sick, or their property is damaged, because of your business.
Do you employ any staff? If so, you’re usually required by law to take out employer’s liability insurance, even if it’s for a contractor team member, or casual and seasonal staff. You’ll face fines of up to £2,500 a day for anyone you haven’t covered correctly.
Professional indemnity insurance for self-employed people is another popular cover, providing protection against compensation claims for an error or oversight which ends up costing a third party money to fix, or causes a financial loss.
From there, you can pick and choose from other specific protection for your stock and equipment, plus legal expenses for things like employee disputes and personal accident cover for the slip-ups that can delay business as usual. Our self-employment insurance policies are flexible – you can bundle everything into one policy or go for just one or two covers, depending on what you need.
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 0146 683 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 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 provide a range of cover options for specific business types, including:
- Builders insurance
- Bricklayers insurance
- Carpet fitter insurance
- Electrician insurance
- Flooring contractors insurance
- Glazier insurance
- Joinery insurance
- Painter and decorator insurance
- Plasterers insurance
- Roofer insurance
- Tilers insurance
Is your profession not listed? When you run a quote you can select your trade from over 1,000 options.
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