Anyone who provides a professional service could have claims brought against them by a client. So whether you operate as a sole trader, freelancer or contractor and whether you are working in a limited company or a limited liability partnership, as a professional providing expertise, skills or advice to clients, you must have insurance. Many members are professionally insured by their employers, we recommend that you check with your employer to ensure you are fully covered.

There are two main types of insurance the you should look to have in place:

1. Public liability insurance covers claims of injury, illness or property damage by a member of the general public against your business. This could include customers, clients, suppliers or passers-by. Examples of a public liability claim include someone slipping on a wet floor on the business premises and injuring themselves, or you spilling a drink on a client’s laptop during a meeting and causing water damage.
    
2. Professional indemnity insurance covers for claims made by a client for professional negligence or mistakes made in the work you have done for them. These may include poor advice, professional errors, defamation or libel, and sub-standard work. Professional indemnity insurance can cover the cost of legal defence, compensation payments, any additional costs for rectifying an issue and loss of income as a result of the claim.

The key difference between public liability and professional indemnity is that while public liability covers for risks of injury or damage, usually through an accident, professional indemnity is focused on the work side of things, covering for professional errors and negligence.

If you aren’t covered by your employer you should look to get your own policy. Many cheaper policies on the market offer public liability only which won’t fully cover you for claims made against you for the S&C services you provide. You should also remember that claims can be brought against you if you are volunteering and not being paid for the work you do. The UKSCA has teamed up with an insurance broker to put in place a policy for our members. It is based on a medical malpractice policy that healthcare professionals use, details can be found here.
 
With James Hallam Insurance Brokers, we have developed an insurance scheme which offers competitive pricing, value and ease of process and understanding. James Hallam is an independent Lloyd’s broker with a dedicated team of experienced insurance professionals who offer insurance for UKSCA members. In addition to providing public liability and professional indemnity insurance for member's core activities, options are also available to include other activities or healthcare therapies, many of which can be included quite easily subject to evident of training and qualifications.

While it is important you are covered, please also remember that claims made against S&C coaches are incredibly rare.

Core areas of cover:

• Up to £5 million professional liability insurance
• Optional employers liability for those engaging others
• Claims occurrence policy
• Public liability included as standard.
   

Additional covers available:

• Corporate professional liability insurance
• Office and business premises insurance.