Personal Liability Insurance
Join over 900k UK customers like you – we offer public liability cover from £4.74*
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- Get tailored 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
What is personal liability insurance?
Personal liability insurance can cover compensation claims made against you if someone sues you for injury or damage to their property. This isn’t a very common type of insurance in the UK, but most businesses will have liability cover such as public liability insurance or employers’ liability insurance as a core part of their insurance policy.
- public liability insurance for self-employed pros, from £1 million to £10 million
- 24/7 UK-based claims support from an expert team
- rated 4.7/5 based on 39K+ public liability customer reviews
What does personal liability insurance cover?
Personal liability insurance is designed to cover the cost of a claim made against you by a third party for property damage or bodily injury. For example if a neighbour claims you’re responsible for breaking their garden fence, a personal liability policy could cover the cost of damages or compensation. It’s uncommon for people in the UK to take out personal liability insurance on its own, although it’s sometimes included as an extra cover in insurance packages.
What type of business insurance do I need?
We’re a business insurance broker. This means we don’t offer personal liability insurance, as it only covers individuals. However, here’s an overview of some of the most popular covers businesses add to their insurance policies.
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Public liability insurance
In case your business causes an injury or property damage.
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Employers’ liability insurance
In case anyone gets ill or injured while working for you.
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Professional indemnity insurance
In case there’s a claim for loss-causing errors or issues with your work.
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Personal accident insurance
In case anyone you’ve covered is accidentally injured, at work or elsewhere.
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 business 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.
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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 personal liability insurance quotes, real prices
£20.13 /month
£178.93 /year
A part time baker who owns a small bakery
- 1-2 years’ experience
- Sole trader
- No employees
- Based in Manchester
Public liability
£1,000,000
Employers’ liability
Not included
Professional indemnity
Not included
£39.03 /month
£346.89 /year
A small and independent coffee shop located on a small village high street
- 5+ years’ experience
- Limited company
- 3 employees
- Based in Liverpool
Public liability
£5,000,000
Employers’ liability
£10,000,000
Professional indemnity
Not included
How we work out example quotes These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 14/09/2021). 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 |
|---|---|---|
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:
- Business legal protection insurance
- Contract works insurance
- Insurance for the self employed
- Limited company insurance
- Product liability insurance
- Professional liability insurance
- Sole trader insurance
- Tools 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
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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 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.
Personal 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 personal liability insurance.
You can also check out our business insurance FAQs.
The cost of personal liability coverage will depend on your insurer and the level of coverage you need. If you’re looking for liability cover as part of your business insurance, our prices start at £6.56 a month for public liability and £5.56 a month for employers’ liability.
It’s unusual for people in the UK to take out independent personal liability cover. If you work for someone, it’s likely their public liability insurance will cover any damage or injury to a third party that you’re responsible for. Meanwhile, if you’re self-employed, it’s likely that employers’ liability and public liability cover will make up a core part of your business insurance.
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 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:
- 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