Public liability insurance for fast food restaurants

In case your fast food business causes injury or property damage.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage that you or your employee cause to someone else’s belongings in your fast food restaurant (remember, if you have staff working for you, you must have employers’ liability insurance – it’s a legal requirement)
• injury that you or your employee cause to someone else while working, or as a result of your work
• illness suffered by a customer as a result of consuming food or drink from your fast food restaurant
• accidents and injuries related to food delivery (including theft, damage to customer property, slips and trips) but not incidents involving a vehicle

For example:

• a customer slips on a ketchup spillage on your restaurant floor and breaks their wrist in the fall
• a member of your staff accidentally spills a scalding hot tea on a customer who’s waiting to collect an order
• a customer sues you because you served them spoiled food, or because they suffered an allergic reaction to your takeaway delivery

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case an employee gets sick or injured while working for you.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• employees falling ill or getting injured as a result of being employed by your fast food business

**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 trainee chef cuts their hand open while trying to clean a blender in the kitchen, so they’re suing you for providing an unsafe work area
• one of your delivery drivers is assaulted when delivering food, so they’re suing you for damages

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the products or materials you keep in stock at your fast food restaurant.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• the cost of replacing your prepared food items and raw ingredients if they’re lost, stolen or damaged

For example:

• your fresh vegetables and meat go off due to your fridge developing a fault, so you have to throw them all away
• a burst pipe in your kitchen causes a flood, and the water destroys the dry ingredients you keep in the storage room
• a large food order gets ruined in transit because the boxes topple over in your van as you’re delivering them to the venue

Read more about stock insurance

Business and office equipment insurance

In case something happens to your fast food restaurant’s business and office equipment.

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

• accidental damage to the business equipment or fixtures and fittings you use in your fast food restaurant
• loss or theft of your business equipment or fixtures and fittings
• flood and fire damage to your business equipment or fixtures and fittings

For example:

• a customer stumbles into your food display unit, smashing the glass
• your pressure fryer, barbecue grill, dough mixer and toaster are stolen from your restaurant overnight
• a new employee operates your kebab machine incorrectly and breaks the unit, so it needs to be repaired

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Legal expenses insurance

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

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• legal costs you’re responsible for paying as the owner of your fast food business, such as resolving disputes with your employees
• legal claims and compensation payouts to do with trespass, nuisance or property damage
• investigations by HMRC, as well as tax and compliance disputes
• remote support in the form of a tax advice helpline, a confidential 24/7 legal helpline, and crisis communications expertise if your restaurant’s reputation comes into question

For example:

• your fast food restaurant is being investigated by HMRC, and you need help dealing with the enquiries into your tax affairs
• an ex-employee is accusing you of harming their mental health due to the working practices at your restaurant, so you need to defend yourself in court

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, outside work as well as at work, for anyone you’ve named on the policy
• lost income, medical costs and hospitalisation benefit

For example:

• you get first degree burns after accidentally splashing yourself with hot oil from your deep fat fryer
• your employee falls off their bike and suffers multiple fractures while riding to work
• you get concussion playing rugby with friends at the weekend

Read more about personal accident insurance

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 stock 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.

Does fast food 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 caterer – excluding mobile vans) or cleaning insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Restaurant insurance
• Takeaway insurance
• Pub insurance
• Wine bar insurance
• Sandwich shop insurance
• Coffee shop insurance
• Shisha lounge / restaurant
• Private chef 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.