SMALL BUSINESS
INSURANCE SOLUTIONS

Employers’ Liability (EL) Insurance with a minimum cover of £5m is a legal requirement for any UK business, although corporate and mid-sized business are likely to require higher level of cover. Standard EL insurance is designed to protect the business from claims of injury or illness made by employees. Typically, this will cover any legal costs incurred and compensation awarded to the claimant.

Public Liability Insurance isn’t legally required, but it’s essential for corporate and mid-sized businesses. Public Liability Insurance covers third-party claims resulting from injury or damage to property, due to an insured’s business activities.

Products Liability Insurance protects against third-party claims for injury or damage caused by any products manufactured, designed, or supplied by a business.

In an increasingly litigious society, there is a growing risk of managers being sued personally in matters associated with their business activities. Individuals are exposed to claims from a wide array of individuals and organisations, including from employees, regulators, customers, creditors and government agencies, all of which can be protected against.

If you own a commercial building of any kind, whether tenanted or used a base for running your own business, protecting the bricks and mortar is essential. Building Insurance usually provides cover against flood, fire, storm damage, subsidence and theft. We can place cover for single commercial properties or commercial property portfolios. Cover can be extended to include Debris Removal, Builders Risk Insurance and Glass Insurance. Contents Insurance cover will protect what is inside the building including fixtures, fittings and items such as furniture and computer equipment.

Business Interruption Insurance is an essential component of any business’s insurance portfolio because fire, flood, equipment breakdown, supply chain disruption, or damage to a partly‑built structure, can halt business operations. Business Interruption is designed to safeguard your income and operations, keeping your business on track. Cover can include protection for:

• Loss of Profits cover during downtime caused by insured events
• Additional expenses to minimise disruption and speed up recovery
• Contingent Business Interruption for supplier or customer failures
• Extensions for Denial of Access due to damage or safety concerns
• Utility Outage cover for power, water, or telecom failures
• Additional interest/financing costs
• Ongoing salaries and expenses.

Professional Indemnity Insurance (PI insurance) protects against financial losses from liability claims made by a client against an individual for alleged errors relating to their professional work.

If your advice or service fails to meet the expectations of a client, you or your business may be faced with a claim of negligence and be held liable for any loss or damage caused.

PI Insurance typically covers liability for injury, damage or financial arising from a breach of professional duty carried out in good faith, professional negligence due to errors or omissions in work, copyright infringement and loss or damage to client documents.

Any business or sole trader providing professional consultancy services, advice or design work to clients is strongly advised to take out a Professional Indemnity Insurance Policy. PI cover is also mandatory for members of some professional bodies and is required by some regulators. This includes solicitors, financial advisers, accountants, architects and some healthcare professionals.’

Fleet Insurance is available for all types of businesses and vehicles including cars, vans, and larger commercial vehicles. Most businesses operate vehicles as an integral part of their activities, with some being unaware that it is possible to obtain a Commercial Motor Fleet Policy for as few as three vehicles.

The benefits of a fleet over individual policies generally include:

• Open driving, ie without having to name all possible drivers
• Business use for all vehicles
• Occasional business use of employees’ vehicles
• Adjustment by periodic declaration, usually quarterly rather than individual endorsement
• Fixed annual rates per vehicle.

For the duration of a journey, Marine Cargo or Goods in Transit Insurance will cover the loss, damage, or theft of cargo between the points of origin and destination. When moving or shipping goods, it covers against loss or damage while in your vehicle or when being transported by a third-party carrier. The sum insured may be a limit for each package, each vehicle or any one consignment.

Delays caused by engineering failures can be extremely costly for businesses.

Cover can include:

• Machinery Breakdown
• Machinery Movement Damage
• Machinery Erection & Commissioning All Risks
• Losses as a Result of Machinery Breakdown
• Statutory Inspection Service
• Delay in Start Up.

Cyber insurance is designed to help your business offset the costs of recovery after a cyber-related security breach, ransomware attack or similar event. A comprehensive cyber policy will cover you for the direct costs and liability to third parties following a cyber-attack. However, policies often exclude financial or asset losses incurred by your business following an attack.

Crime insurance protects your business against the financial losses incurred because of fraudulent activity (many policies include cyber events); criminals (including cyber criminals and employees) taking or misappropriating money, securities or property such as funds taken from your account.

Trade Credit Insurance is also known as Business Credit Insurance, Export Credit Insurance or Credit Insurance. This cover protects businesses’ accounts receivable from loss due to credit risks such as protracted default, insolvency or political risk whether in the UK or overseas and will significantly improve your overall credit management.  This essentially means if your debtors fail to pay, you are protected by your policy.

Terrorism Insurance protects losses and liabilities caused by damage to property, resulting from terrorist acts. A Commercial Terrorism Insurance Policy covers damaged or destroyed property—including buildings, equipment, furnishings and inventory. It may also cover losses associated with the interruption of your business. Standard property and casualty policies exclude terrorism, but this can be separately purchased either as a standalone policy or extension to existing cover.  Policy covers can include Sabotage and Terrorism, Riots, Strikes, Civil Commotion, Malicious Damage, Political Violence, Terrorism Construction, Third-party Liability and Employee Liability, Loss of Attraction and Event Cancellation.

Employers can purchase this type of insurance protection. The policies pay the compensation should they or one of their employees be unable to work as a result of accident or illness.

Policies usually cover Temporary Total Disablement because of accident or illness, ie incidences where the insured is expected to recover. Benefit in these cases are usually paid as a daily or weekly benefit and Permanent Total Disablement (for example loss of sight, loss of limb and even death). Lump Sum benefits are usually paid for Permanent Total Disablement.

Health Insurance or Private Medical Insurance (PMI) is a type of insurance that covers the insured individual’s medical costs and surgical expenses. Depending on the type of health insurance coverage, either the insured pays costs out of pocket and receives reimbursement, or the insurer makes payments directly to the health provider.

Policies can be purchased to cover specific conditions only, for example, Dental Treatment, Surgical Procedures Only, Orthopaedic Treatment or Cancer Treatment.

There are a wide range of Private Medical Insurance products and Healthcare Plans available.

Policies can be purchased by an employer, as an insurance scheme, to protect the health and wellbeing of their employees (many employers offer Private Medical Insurance as an employment benefit) or by individuals and families.