Insurance for journalists
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Rated 4.7/5
Based on 39,717 reviews
Claims paid in 24 hours
For 80% of settled claims
Why is freelance journalist insurance important?
From visiting an interview panel to working at home – wherever the job takes you, journalism carries specific risks. Public liability insurance is a key support for freelancers and other set-ups, providing cover for expensive third party accidents, whether it’s property damage or an injury. From there, you can add protection for other risks, like professional indemnity, employers’ liability, or personal accidents.
- public liability for journalists, up to £5 million
- rated 4.7/5 based on 39K+ public liability customer reviews
- professional indemnity for journalists, up to £2 million
What does journalist insurance cover?
Insurers often start with public liability cover, a key part of many journalist insurance policies. From there, you can choose to add in specific professional indemnity cover, designed to protect you against issues with your work which end up costing the client or others money to fix. There’s also employers’ liability cover and equipment or personal accident protection to factor in – just tell us what you need.
Public liability for journalists
In case your business causes an injury or property damage.
Employers’ liability insurance
In case an employee gets ill or injured while working for you.
Professional indemnity insurance journalists
In case there’s a claim for loss-causing errors or issues with your work.
Business and office equipment insurance
In case something happens to the equipment you rely on.
Legal expenses insurance
In case you face legal costs in connection with your journalism business.
Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at work or elsewhere.
Public liability for journalists
In case your business causes an injury or property damage.
What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?
Claims against your business for:
- damage to someone’s property, caused by your journalism business
- an injury or illness caused by your business activities
- accidental damage or injuries caused by your employees
For example:
- your laptop falls onto a member of the public from an overhead locker, causing a deep cut and bruising
- while interviewing a company CEO for a trade magazine, you spill boiling water on their hand from the dispenser
Read more about public liability insurance
Employers’ liability insurance
In case an employee gets ill or injured while working for you.
What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?
Claims against your business for:
- an injury or illness that happens as a result of working for you (including temps and casual workers)
**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:
- a contractor working for you traps their hand in a door while covering a story, fracturing a finger and causing long-term tendon damage
- your office manager slips down the steps outside your premises which you’ve been meaning to have cleaned, breaking her knee
Professional indemnity insurance journalists
In case there’s a claim for loss-causing errors or issues with your work.
What’s typically covered by professional indemnity insurance?
Claims against your business for professional negligence or a loss-causing breach of contract. This can include:
- advice which turns out to be incorrect
- mistakes in your work that cost others money to fix
For example:
- you write an article for your client which contains inaccurate information, and receive a claim from them for resulting financial losses
- you’re commissioned to supply editorial for a client’s website which causes their search engine rankings to drop, triggering a financial loss
Read more about professional indemnity insurance
Business and office equipment insurance
In case something happens to the equipment you rely on.
What’s typically covered by business and office equipment insurance?
- accidental damage to the equipment you use to run the business
- theft, flood, and fire damage
For example:
- someone breaks into your office safe storage and steals three work phones, a laptop, and two sets of headphones
- you drop your laptop onto a concrete floor while reporting on a story – it’s badly damaged and needs to be replaced
Read more about business and office equipment insurance
Legal expenses insurance
In case you face legal costs in connection with your journalism business.
What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?
- legal costs attributed to your journalism business
- property damage, nuisance, or trespass – specifically, the associated legal claims and compensation payouts
- tax and compliance disputes and investigations you need help with
- access to expert advice – including a tax advice phone line, confidential 24/7 legal phone line, and crisis PR support to help you protect your reputation as a respected journalist
For example:
- you agree a deadline with your client but fall behind and miss a launch date – they take legal action and you need to pay associated costs
- a former employee raises an employers’ liability claim against you, and you need to recover costs
Read more about legal expenses insurance
Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at work or elsewhere.
What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?
- accidental injury or death at or outside of work, for anyone covered on the policy
- lost income, medical costs, and hospitalisation benefit
For example:
- you slip on some rocks and break your leg while reporting on a story, forcing you to delay your next commission
- one of your junior reporters is in a minor car accident at the weekend, and needs time off work for hospital visits
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
Insurance for freelance journalists – how much does it 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
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 journalist insurance quotes, real prices
£25.14 /month
£223.45 /month
A freelance journalist that works for local press
- 1-2 years' experience
- Sole trader
- No employees
- Based in Derby
Public liability
£1,000,000
Employers’ liability
Not included
Professional indemnity
£50,000
£63.12 /month
£561.1 /month
A small journalism firm that works for online publications across a number of industries
- 5+ years' experience
- Limited company
- 2 employees
- Based in Bristol
Public liability
£2,000,000
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 19/04/2021). 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 |
|---|---|---|
Professional indemnity | No excess | £2500 |
Public liability | £200 | £750 |
Contents | £100 | £750 |
Portable equipment | £100 | £500 |
Employers liability | No excess | No excess |
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
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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.
Which type of workers do I need insurance for?
Does journalist insurance cover my work correctly?
Do I need cover for other types of work?
Which public liability cover limit should I choose?
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 journalist 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 copywriter insurance or photography insurance?
Do I need cover for other types of work?
If you provide these services alongside building work, 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
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 below 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 freelance journalist insurance through Simply Business has saved professionals thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.
Noelle saved more than £1,400
Noelle (not her real name) was covering a press event at a football stadium when her laptop was stolen from her bag. The business and office equipment cover she’d added to her freelance journalist insurance covered the replacement cost.
Insurance payout
£1,442.83
Covering the cost of theft
Noelle’s costs
£100
The excess amount stated in Noelle’s policy terms
Chosen by 900,000 small businesses and landlords
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Insurance for journalists 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 journalist insurance. You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
Public liability insurance for journalists
Public liability insurance is often an important cover for businesses, as it can protect you if someone is injured or their property is damaged because of your business. Simply Business offers between £1 million and £5 million in cover, to protect you against this cost.
Professional indemnity insurance for journalists
Professional indemnity insurance is a vital consideration for all businesses that give advice or offer professional services to other businesses. It covers you in the event that you give faulty advice that causes financial loss to a client. You can buy professional indemnity insurance as a stand-alone cover or as part of a combined policy with other covers. At Simply Business we offer between £50,000 and £5 million in professional indemnity cover.
If you have employees, contractors, casual workers or temporary staff, you’re required by law to take out employers’ liability insuranceWe . It’ll cover claims from employees who’ve been injured or become seriously ill as a result of working for you.
The exact insurance you’ll need depends on your business, the clients you work with, and the stories you’re covering.
Professional indemnity (PI) insurance is a key cover for thousands of freelance journalists, protecting against claims for negligent professional errors. As a freelancer, you won’t have the protective weight of an employer’s legal team on hand to take care of expensive claims like these.You can add PI cover to a broader business insurance policy that includes cover for things like accidents, injuries, and damage to your laptop, or buy it as a standalone policy.
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 journalist, you may also do the odd photography job – 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.
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.
If you change your business legal structure from sole trader to limited company mid-way through your policy, give us a call straight away on 0333 043 8527. It’ll only take us a few minutes to cancel your existing policy and replace it with one that correctly covers your new legal structure. It’s worth bearing in mind that your insurer and premium amount may need to change.
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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