Professional Indemnity Insurance

[Banjolele]

I'd definitely recommend Qdos too. Not only for the PI Insurance, but for things like contract reviews and IR35 advice and stuff. I've found them to be really helpful.

[rd409]

A question on PI. If QDOS can signifcantly undercut Randell Dorling and Chaunce o'Hara (which are both Hiscox policies underneath incidentally), and all three are covering the same thing, what risk are QDOS excluding from their scehdule? It may well be the other two are covering risks that aren't necessary to cover of course, but it would be good to know which.

For most of us i.e. IT Contractors the PI insurance is just a mere formality that the agencies ask to get to tick boxes.
As a developer, I won't really be risking a lot to claim anything against this insurance, if I am developing a real time systems for banking, transport or similar is completely different. I always go with the cheapest option so as to keep the agency happy.

[PolicyBee]

level of cover

Hello,
I've just made the jump from permie to contractor (IT) and just have a few questions about professional indemnity insurance.

What level is it best to get insured for? 1million?
One of the questions is Do I own the building I work from and the rebuild cost. I guess technically I work from home as the client site is not permanent. Although I own my home I already have home insurance. Do I still need to cover this on the professional indemnity insurance or can I just select no?

Is hiscox generally regarded the best for contractors?

Many thanks!

Hi there,

First up our blog piece might help about what level of cover you should go for (regarding professional indemnity) :What level of professional indemnity insurance cover do I need? | PolicyBee Blog on professional indemnity insurance, freelancers and consultants news and risk advice

As for the 'do I own the building question' - this seems pretty irrelevant for professional indemnity insurance. Have you selected that you want office cover too?

Vicky

[scooby]

I got mine from QDOS. They do PI and PL (que argument about if you need it or not) and they will also throw in 3 free contract checks for that.

WNLUKS

[malvolio]

A question on PI. If QDOS can signifcantly undercut Randell Dorling and Chaunce o'Hara (which are both Hiscox policies underneath incidentally), and all three are covering the same thing, what risk are QDOS excluding from their scehdule? It may well be the other two are covering risks that aren't necessary to cover of course, but it would be good to know which.

[Hex]

TLC35 is afaik, the only insurance on the market that covers you for the tax, NI and penalties if you lose an IR35 case. And it applies retrospectively.

AbbeyTax do a product called Survive35 which adds cover for tax, NI and penalties to the PCG Investigation Insurance that comes with membership.

[malvolio]

But I would point out that PCG are a not-for-profit trade body, are not an insurance provider, don't sell insurance and only offer member discounts on related services. They are there to support and protect the freelance contractor workforce and make sure their voice is heard. They will pay for representation for their members in the event of a tax investigation as a key member benefit.

So be sure you're comparing like-for-like before getting all hooked up on the odd hundred quid to protect an income stream worth many tens of thousands

[Waldorf]

I'd vote for Qdos as well, Hiscox are quite expensive last time I looked.

[TaxedToDeath]

Qdos

Since I left the PCG I've found Qdos to be the best - it's actually cheaper for much more.

The key point is that the "statutory" insurances - Professional Indemnity, Public Liability, Employers Liability (PI/PL/EL) have now gone up to the point where they cost over £500 quid a year and these are not part of the PCG membership, so to get cover through PCG membership for tax investigation insurance (TII) etc you'd have to shell out the membership fee (£100-£220 or so) plus, say, £550 for PI/PL/EL - so a total of something like £660 - £770.

With Qdos you get all the "statutory" insurances (PI/PL/EL), along with TII... AND you also get their TLC35, all for around £625 (varies by market sector). ou also get 3 free contract reviews and a help line with a dedicated adviser.

TLC35 is afaik, the only insurance on the market that covers you for the tax, NI and penalties if you lose an IR35 case. And it applies retrospectively.

The only thing you can't get is cover that's ONLY for previous years (which would be useful for people finishing with contracting, who just want cover during the 6 years that HMRC can investigate retrospectively). But I suspect they'd do a deal on that too if contacted directly.

Basically, although many people seem to be PCG members for the "free" insurances, Qdos is a much better deal and doesn't involve supporting a cause that you may not believe in by adding to their membership. Given the IR35 Forum nonsense on the back of the OTS debacle, there may be increasing numbers of people who feel that way.

As far as how much cover you need, take the minimum unless you have a contract that insists on more - unless you're really worried about the quality of your work

P.S. I'm not associated with Qdos in any way (other than as a customer).

Hope this helps.

[SueEllen]

Hello,
I've just made the jump from permie to contractor (IT) and just have a few questions about professional indemnity insurance.

What level is it best to get insured for? 1million?

Depends on a mixture of:
1. What it states in your contract, and,
2. What business your client is in i.e. financial, safety critical systems, and,
3. Whether you touch live systems.

I've had contracts where it's not been stated that I need it to needing £1M of cover. There as others on here have needed £5M.

One of the questions is Do I own the building I work from and the rebuild cost. I guess technically I work from home as the client site is not permanent. Although I own my home I already have home insurance. Do I still need to cover this on the professional indemnity insurance or can I just select no?

You need to tell your home insurance provider that you have a business where you work from home immediately but you don't have any clients who visit you and you don't have any stock. If you have less than £5,000 worth of business office equipment then depending on the insurer they may raise your premium by about £50 or they may refuse to insure you. Most will insure you nowadays.

Is hiscox generally regarded the best for contractors?

Depends on what other insurance you have. Linky

[northernladuk]

I got mine from QDOS. They do PI and PL (que argument about if you need it or not) and they will also throw in 3 free contract checks for that.

A search for Indemnity Insurance will return a plethora of results for you to peruse at your leisure as it is asked about alot. Tips on how to search can be found in the Welcome/FAQ section.

[Nut]

Hello,
I've just made the jump from permie to contractor (IT) and just have a few questions about professional indemnity insurance.

What level is it best to get insured for? 1million?
One of the questions is Do I own the building I work from and the rebuild cost. I guess technically I work from home as the client site is not permanent. Although I own my home I already have home insurance. Do I still need to cover this on the professional indemnity insurance or can I just select no?

Is hiscox generally regarded the best for contractors?

Many thanks!