Indemnity

If you are a lawyer, an accountant or a financial adviser you must have indemnity insurance in order to trade legally – not having it can lead to large fines.

Other businesses or individuals often take out indemnity insurance as well. Professional Indemnity insurance give you peace of mind. The question is not “why do you need it?” but rather “can you expect to survive without it?”

Examples of businesses where Professional Indemnity insurance is popular include:

• Architects
• Designers
• Software developers
• Advertising and PR agencies
• Consultants
• Contractors

Why? To protect themselves from claims.

The question you might be asking yourself is, should you have it as well?

Business today is about risk management. In recent years, society has become more litigious and defending claims can potentially put you or your company out of business.

If you think you’ll never have a claim made against you by a client, think again. We all make mistakes, and if your client’s business suffers, you’ll be in the firing line. Some clients will even make a claim just to delay paying an invoice!

The legal fees alone can stack up and damages can run into millions of pounds.

If you are in a business selling professional skills, advice or knowledge, the relatively low cost of premiums is often outweighed by the considerable benefits:

• Cover against claims made against you by a client
• Cover for all legal fees, and access to specialist lawyers in the event of a claim
• Possible assistance to correct a mistake before a claim is made against you
• Specialist advice available from your insurer in the event of a claim
• You may be able to reduce your costs of liability insurance if you take it as a package with the same provider
• Makes you look credible and professional