What Is Professional Indemnity Insurance, And How Does It Help Tradies?

Professional Indemnity Insurance isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of insurance for those working in the trades industry. 

Public Liability Insurance is much more common for tradies and although similar to Professional Indemnity Insurance, there are some differences. 

While Public Liability Insurance ensures you are financially covered for any damages or injuries that occur as a result of your work, Professional Indemnity Insurance covers you for the consequences of the advice you give your clients. For more info on the two, check out our blog on What type of Liability Insurance is right for my business? 

When it comes to Professional Indemnity Insurance in particular, here are some things to consider... 

How is it Helpful?

For tradies that provide professional advice to their customer for a fee, Professional Indemnity Insurance will ensure that you are protected financially should an incident occur as a result of the advice provided.

When giving advice, there are always the possibilities of errors or omissions that can have unfortunate and unintended consequences. Third parties can make claims if the advice given eventuated in financial loss due to negligence or a breach of profession duty. 

What Does it Cover?

Professional Indemnity Insurance can cover a range of costs associated with Indemnity claims. These may include:

• Legal expenses
• Investigation costs
• Damages

These things can be quite costly, so getting insured can save you money long term. 

Does it Apply to My Work?

Professional Indemnity Insurance should be something to consider if you do have customers that rely on your advice, so be sure to make an informed decision.

As many tradies don’t offer advice services at an extra charge, or leave the consultation process up to the engineers or architects involved, it can be easy to feel like Professional Indemnity Insurance isn’t necessary for you.

However, you can be liable for an Indemnity claim, even if you don’t offer advisory services for a fee. The line between professional advice and personal opinion can sometimes cause disputes, so it’s important to talk to an insurance professional to find out what is best for you.

If you have concerns about anything relating to insurance in the trade industry, get in contact with our team at Tradesure.