Guide to Business Insurance (Series) - Employers Liability

Employers Liability insurance is the only business insurance product that is required by law as soon as you become an employer. The Government requires that the policy must cover your business for at least 5 million and come from an authorised insurer. Remember, you could be fined £2,500 as of July 2017 every day you are not properly insured (find out more about this legal requirement on gov.uk). It’s not just a legal requirement, it also makes business sense to have an Employers Liability insurance policy.

So, what exactly is Employers Liability Insurance?

Employers’ liability insurance is designed to protect you if an employee claims compensation for illness or injury that they believe has been caused as a result of working for the business. This isn’t just limited to employees; contractors, casual workers or temporary staff can also be covered.

Examples

An office worker is badly injured when they trip over a recently cleaned flooring that has no warning signs.

A former employee is diagnosed with an illness related to asbestos exposure during their work.

The list goes on and in both of these instances, the employee’s have a right to sue the company in question for compensation. This is where your Employers Liability insurance policy will be your saving grace – imagine if you didn’t have this!

We’ve established that it’s important having Employers Liability Insurance, the key now is to reduce your claim risk.

How can I reduce my claim risk?

Let’s be honest, no one loves health and safety, yet it is a critical part of a business that must be taken seriously. Ultimately reducing your claims risk stems from this alone, consider the following:

• Asking for the advice of a health and safety expert
• Require that employees conduct routine risk assessments
• Provide your employees with annual health and safety training
• Ensure employees are well equipped to safely carry out their work