Limited company insurance
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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 limited company insurance important?
Getting the right insurance for your limited company is important. From a public liability case to lawsuits raised by employees, it's the back-up your business needs if a compensation claim is made against you. Your limited company insurance requirements depend on the type of Ltd company you run and the risks you face.
- company public liability insurance, with cover for the public and your products
- rated 4.7/5 based on 39K+ public and product liability customer reviews
- tools, accident, and employee cover – you choose what you need
What does limited company insurance cover?
There are three main types of business insurance available to limited companies in the UK. Public liability insurance (also known as business liability insurance) is a key cover for many, designed to protect against property damage or illness and injuries caused by your business. There’s also professional indemnity cover for loss-causing errors, plus employers’ liability insurance – this is a legal requirement for most employers.
Public liability insurance
In case your limited business is blamed for an injury or property damage.
Employers’ liability insurance
In case an employee gets sick or injured because of working for your limited company.
Professional indemnity insurance
In case there’s a claim for loss-causing errors or issues with your work.
Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at work or elsewhere.
Contents and office equipment insurance
In case something happens to your fixtures and fittings or operational equipment.
Tools insurance
In case your trade tools are lost, stolen, or damaged.
Stock insurance
In case something happens to the materials and products you keep in supply.
Building insurance
In case something happens to your business premises.
Own plant insurance
In case your own plant machinery, like a floor sander, is lost, stolen, or damaged.
Hired-in plant insurance
In case your rented plant machinery, like an excavator, is lost, stolen, or damaged.
Legal expenses insurance
In case you have to pay legal costs connected with your limited company.
Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at or away from work.
Public liability insurance
In case your limited business is blamed for an injury or property damage.
What’s typically covered by public liability insurance for limited company?
Claims against your business for:
- damage to someone’s property, caused by your limited company
- injuries caused by your business activities
- accidental damage or injury caused by your employees, if you have any
If you do employ anyone, you’re usually required by law to have employers’ liability insurance too.
For example:
- you’re running a catering business, and a customer gets food poisoning after eating your products
- a customer’s wooden coving gets damaged by your welding business
Read more about public liability insurance
Employers’ liability insurance
In case an employee gets sick or injured because of working for your limited company.
What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?
Claims against your business for:
- an employee, including a contractor or casual labourer, suing you after falling ill because of working for your limited company, or
- making a claim for an injury they’ve had while working for you
For example:
- an apprentice burns their hand while working with you, and makes a compensation claim
- a former employee, who broke her knee in your office, raises a claim against you for ongoing complications with her recovery
**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.**
Professional indemnity insurance
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:
- a client misses a deadline in their new product launch, and claims this is due to an error on your part
- your limited company receives a claim for compensation, after an employee sends an email containing sensitive data to the wrong recipient
Read more about professional indemnity 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 sprain your ankle while jogging, and can’t work at full capacity for four weeks
- your secretary trips over while working at an event, fracturing their wrist
Read more about personal accident insurance
Contents and office equipment insurance
In case something happens to your fixtures and fittings or operational equipment.
What’s typically covered by contents and office equipment insurance?
- accidental damage to your fixtures and fittings, or the equipment you use to run the business
- theft, flood, and fire damage
For example:
- your business partner drops your laptop from a height, damaging it beyond repair
- a flood in your premises damages your furniture and office equipment, which all needs replacing
Read more about business and office equipment insurance
Tools insurance
In case your trade tools are lost, stolen, or damaged.
What’s typically covered by tools insurance?
- loss, damage, or theft of your hand tools, power tools, and/or specialist equipment
For example:
- your tools are damaged in a flood over the weekend, and you need to replace them for a job the following week
- you invest in new tool kits and contents for your team, which are stolen from your locked garage
Read more about tools insurance
Stock insurance
In case something happens to the materials and products you keep in supply.
What’s typically covered by stock insurance?
- loss, damage, or theft of your work materials, or items you’re planning to sell
For example:
- you own a window installation company and your stock is destroyed in a fire at your garage unit
- a large order of food and drink products goes bad when a power surge disconnects your fridge-freezer unit
Read more about stock insurance
Building insurance
In case something happens to your business premises.
What’s typically covered by building insurance?
- the cost of repairing damage to the structure of your building (or rebuilding it from scratch)
- damage to fixtures and fittings
- damage to underground pipes and cables you’re responsible for
For example:
- a fire caused by a deep fat fryer causes serious structural damage to your building
- your windows and roof are damaged during a storm, and you need to temporarily close the business
What you’ll need additional cover for:
- tenants’ improvements – changes to the property’s structure which you’ve organised and paid for yourself, like partition walls or wooden flooring
Read more about business buildings insurance
Own plant insurance
In case your own plant machinery, like a floor sander, is lost, stolen, or damaged.
What’s typically covered by own plant insurance?
- loss, damage, or theft of larger equipment like excavators, skips, and sanding machines
For example:
- the sanding machine you’ve recently bought is stolen from your works site, and needs replacing
- your cement mixers are damaged in a fire
What you’ll need additional cover for:
- plant machinery you’ve rented – you’ll need to add our specific hired-in plant cover for this
Read more about own plant insurance
Hired-in plant insurance
In case your rented plant machinery, like an excavator, is lost, stolen, or damaged.
What’s typically covered by hired-in plant insurance?
- loss, damage, or theft of things like drilling units and saws which you’ve hired in
For example:
- you hire an excavator for a job and your employee reverses into it, causing damage
- the saws you’ve hired for a big hotel renovation contract are stolen from your locked garage
What you’ll need additional cover for:
- tools and plant machinery which you own yourself – you’ll need to add our specific own plant insurance or tools cover for this
Read more about hired-in plant insurance
Legal expenses insurance
In case you have to pay legal costs connected with your limited company.
What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?
- legal costs attributed to your limited company
- property damage, nuisance, or trespass – specifically, the associated legal claims and compensation payouts
- tax and compliance disputes, and investigations you need help with
- includes a tax advice helpline, a 24/7 confidential legal helpline, and crisis PR support to help you protect your company’s reputation
For example:
- your business hasn’t been correctly registered for tax with HMRC, and you begin to incur legal costs
- one of your part-time employees is classified incorrectly as a contractor, and you need to hire expert legal support
Read more about legal expenses insurance
Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at or away from work.
What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?
- accidental injury or death at work or elsewhere, for anyone covered on the policy
- lost income, medical costs, and hospitalisation benefit
For example:
- you break your leg while running at the weekend, and need time away from the business for hospital treatment
- an employee, who you’ve covered on the policy, injures her hand on a piece of machinery in your workshop, and needs a few weeks off work for physio and recovery
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 limited company 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
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 limited company insurance quotes, real prices
£12.24 /month
£102.37 /year
A training consultancy limited company offering services to medium and large-sized businesses
- Less than 1 years' experience
- Limited company
- No employees
- Based in Glasgow
Public liability
£1,000,000
Employers’ liability
Not included
Professional indemnity
£50,000
Stock
Not included
£29.44 /month
£261.70 /year
A small ICAS accredited accountancy company working for small to medium-sized businesses
- 5+ years' experience
- Limited company
- 2 employees
- Based in Sunderland
Public liability
£2,000,000
Employers’ liability
£10,000,000
Professional indemnity
£100,000
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.
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 |
Stock | £100 | £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.
Looking for something else?
Depending on your set-up, clients and business type, these expert covers might be helpful too:
When you run a quote you can select from a range of covers.
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How do limited company 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.
£39 million in claims paid out in 2022
Paying 80% of settled claims within 24 hours in 2022
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.
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.
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Rated 4.7/5
Based on 39,717 reviews
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Ltd company public liability insurance FAQ
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 limited company insurance.
You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
Public and product liability insurance is often an important cover for limited companies – 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.
Limited company professional indemnity insurance is another popular cover for ltd businesses, 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 limited company’s 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 limited company insurance policies are flexible – you can bundle everything into one policy or go for just one or two covers, depending on what you need.
If you employ anyone, even from home, employers’ liability insurance is usually a legal requirement.
Other than that, there’s no legal requirement in the UK to have specific business insurance in place. However, most limited companies face a range of risks, from third party injuries to employee claims, so expert cover helps ensure you’re protected if a claim was made against you. Certain regulatory bodies and trade associations may also require you to have specific insurance – like professional indemnity cover – sorted out.
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.
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 0146 683. 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.
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.
At Simply Business we have insurance covers all kinds of trades such as:
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
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