A hole in your ceiling is never a welcome sight.
But when I discovered peeling plaster and water damage in my dining room, shortly after a simple plumbing job in the above bathroom, I did at least think there might be a straightforward resolution.
How wrong I was.
If you employ someone to do something, and you suffer damage as a result, naturally you expect that tradesperson to make things right.
Although I was sorry to have to tell my builder that his small tap-adjustment appeared to have caused a critical leak through the bathroom floor, these things are usually straightforward. Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance kick in to protect the tradesman from the cost, and enable the customer to have full repairs.
This time, however, my builder had to admit he had no such insurance policy in place.
This is bad news for him, rather than for me, as I still expect him to make things right, yet it’s going to cost him more in the region of a 4 figure sum to do so, rather than the 3 figure sum it would have cost to take out the right insurance in the first place.
Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance aren’t necessarily a legal requirement for everyone but doing without them leaves you open to limitless claims for compensation. If you are an employer, you DO have a legal responsibility to protect the health and safety of your workforce and these things are an absolute necessity.
If you’re wondering which policies are needed for which eventualities, here is my easy guide:
You need Public Liability Insurance if you have employees who work on your premises, meet your clients or both, OR if you or your employees meet face to face with your clients anywhere, at any time.
You need Professional Indemnity Insurance if your business provides advice or recommendations to clients that could cause them a loss if you get it wrong, OR if you could make a mistake in your work which would cause your clients a loss either financially, by reputation or breach of confidentiality.
To find out more or for help in deciding how much cover your business really needs, call me for a no obligation quote: 0800 690 6990.
