Professional Indemnity Insurance

[Newby]

We all hate P4!!!!

P4 charge 8% of Gross Income too for the priveledge, no wonder they sponsor the tubes, and every sandwich bag in London!


Admin note: professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance available here :-)

[Money Money Money]

No I don't use them.

Some of my contractors use them. They used to be really bad so we stopped suggesting them.

But one of our contractors started using them and reported good feedback about 6 months ago. We now have about 30 contractors working through them.

I thought it was 6% of the gross invoice, which they offset as a business expense?????

I can't remember, give them a call.

No I don't get anything for referring to them .... Well a pen and a mouse mat!

[Mordac]

No I don't use them.

Some of my contractors use them. They used to be really bad so we stopped suggesting them.

But one of our contractors started using them and reported good feedback about 6 months ago. We now have about 30 contractors working through them.

I thought it was 6% of the gross invoice, which they offset as a business expense?????

I can't remember, give them a call.

No I don't get anything for referring to them .... Well a pen and a mouse mat!

I'd be quite surprised if each P4 contractor had £5m PI insurance. I slightly suspect that they have one policy pot for £5m which covers all of them. If that is the case then it fits with some of their other slightly misleading claims, such as not needing receipts to claim expenses. 6% is shark territory, bearing in mind all they do is process your payroll. They also have (unless its changed recently) a minimum fee of £1500 which can really f**k you up if your contract gets cut short. I can't say what I really think about P4 for reasons of libel and public decency.

[Money Money Money]

Yeah, it’s changed now, there are 2 contract types. They came in and gave us a run down.

You need receipts for public transport, hardware, software, uniforms, professional subscriptions etc....

He said the things that you don’t need receipts for are Food and drink, Mileage, and Overnight stays.

That’s all I know, you would have to ask if you need more info.

[Swamp Thing]

I am currently negotiating a contract and the company offering me work are asking that I have Professional Indemnity insurance of £5m. All the websites I have looked at only offer cover to £2m. Is £5m excessive and do you know anyone who can offer reasonable priced cover on £5m.

Thanks

Sounds to me like the client has just plucked a figure out of the air because ‘it feels right’ or because their risk team told them so. They probably didn’t do a risk assessment when deciding the figure. From the info you’ve given, I’d go back to them business-to-business like, and propose £0.5mn cover. The context is that there are all sorts of SMEs out there who aren’t asked to provide more than £2mn cover. Something like £5mn is just not proportionate to the risk. I’m currently producing the contract between my client and a mobile marketing provider, and really the contract only requires £1mn PI. We are just lowly contractors with professional services companies or operating thru' middlemen. If pushed, £1mn tops is as high as you need to go.

[where did my id go?]

Caunce OHara used to do over the top insurance requirements. Wasnt on the web site but if you ring them. Years ago I needed£5m public liability and some silly PI amount - worth checking that your customer doesnt mean public liability rather than PI. Ask them what they expect to be covered.

[Millwall]

They will not negotiate the £5m down, its a straight pass through from the contract between the software company and end client being passed to me.

I was told to try Donald Robertson & Partners and also that the premium could be reduced if I dont have access to Production systems, just test systems, which is probably the case.

[Newby]

Cauche O hara are good, very contractor oriented. They have off the shelf stuff, but they can do one offs.
Good Contractor PI

[Millwall]

I suspect that I would give a two word reply, one of which is "orrrff".

You do realise that you'll need to keep this policy in force for 6 years following the end of the gig?

No I didnt, I will check that out.
Thanks

[John Galt]

You would need to keep a record of mileage just in case HMRC came to call...

And keeping receipts for hotels & stuff is also a strikingly good idea.

It doesn't matter a jot to them coz it's you that gets crucified.

I agree with Zeity - as far as I was aware the only thing you don't need a receipt for is the £5 overnight allowance - isn't P4 that says that you can claim about £30 per day for food or something without receipts? £150 a week with no receipts - don't think I'd risk it for a swiskit

Hang on a minute - on my daily rate 6% is £126 per week - bloody hell


Admin note: professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance available here :-)