What is tradesperson professional indemnity insurance?

Whatever your trade — builder, handyman, electrician, construction worker, carpenter or more — professional indemnity insurance may be for you. If a third party accuses you of negligence on the job, having PI cover may help to cover any associated legal costs.

We all make mistakes, but one incorrect measurement could lead to the collapse of a load-bearing wall or an electrical fault that could leave your client out of pocket.

As an expert in your field, you likely provide specialist advice and expertise — this could be designs, measurements, inspections or plans. This is where a professional indemnity policy comes into it’s own.

Depending on the level of indemnity you select, PI policies can cover payments you may incur rectifying defects in construction work you or sub-contractor have undertaken, that would otherwise have been expected to result in a claim.

Some clients may require you to have professional indemnity insurance as standard, so without it you could lose out on jobs.

The following services can be covered under a tradesperson professional indemnity policy:

✔️ Design
✔️ Professional specification
✔️ Inspection of building or construction works
✔️ Feasibility (other than scientific studies)
✔️ Technical information calculation
✔️ Procurement
✔️ Surveying (including quantity surveying)
✔️ Coordination and integration of design
✔️ Materials measurement which includes testing and/or certification
✔️ Quality control
✔️ Testing and commissioning
✔️ Training and safety management

If there is property damage or injury to a person due to an installation you’ve undertaken, this could be covered under public liability insurance, and not professional indemnity insurance.

Depending on the limits you pick, your policy can cover you for the following:

✔️ Claims of actual or alleged professional negligence or poor quality of work
✔️ Errors or omissions in design, calculations, inspections or surveys
✔️ Payments incurred rectifying defects
✔️ Employee dishonesty resulting in financial loss
✔️ Loss of documents or data
✔️ PR and crisis management costs
✔️ Legal defence costs and compensation

While we'd love to cover everything, as with all insurance policies, unfortunately there are some situations and circumstances that are not included in your cover, such as:

✖️ Cladding, facades or passive fire protection
✖️ Work done by unqualified staff, or not under qualified supervision
✖️ Contractual liability or the liability of directors or officers
✖️ Faulty workmanship or materials, including products that don’t meet the relevant building codes
✖️ Structural work that isn’t supervised by a qualified architect or structural engineer
✖️ Work done outside of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
✖️ Insolvency, bankruptcy, trading losses, loss of money or discounts

How much professional indemnity insurance will cost you depends on the cover you choose and the services you offer. Check out our guide to learn more about the cost of professional indemnity insurance.

Every insurer will offer a different price for their PI cover. You can find out how much PI insurance will be if you took a policy out with us by starting a quote. Building a quote only takes a few minutes and is customised based on your business needs — this means your quote will be unique to you.