What Type of Insurance Coverage Do You Need for Your Engineering Business?
Posted on: 14 October 2019
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If you have just completed many years of hard study in your chosen university and have graduated as a freshly minted engineer, then you may have decided to go into business for yourself. You will want to use your skills and training, and you will want to take control of your future from a financial perspective. While you may be quite confident that you will find enough clients to make this venture work, you will need to ensure that you are as protected as possible while you do so. In particular, you must make sure that you have the proper level of insurance cover from both a public liability and a professional perspective. What do you need to consider?
Understanding the Risk
As an engineer, you will need to provide some very specific and highly technical advice to your clients in return for certain remuneration. You will need to adhere to best practices in your industry but must understand that other people are fully reliant on your input. Still, mistakes can happen, and things may not always turn out as you would have hoped. In this case, you will need to get professional indemnity (PI) insurance.
Professional Indemnity
PI insurance needs to be tailored to your individual case and will depend on a number of factors. For example:
- What are the risks associated with your advice given the specialised nature of your work?
- What is the scale of the average project, what is the typical invoice amount and what is the value of the building or asset?
- Are there any specific regulations imposed by the industry, a regulator or a government body?
Public Liability
Once you have answered those questions, you will be able to talk to an insurance broker and get a quote for coverage. However, you will also need to get public liability cover, which is an entirely separate area.
With public liability insurance, you will be protected should any claims be made against you related to personal injury or property damage. There are many different risk factors here, but the risks are substantial whenever you interact with a third party at any stage.
Taking Action
Make sure that you start your new career on the best possible footing and protect yourself and your assets from any incoming claim. Start by talking with a broker who fully understands the engineering industry and who can set you up with the right level of protection.
For more information, reach out to a company like Austwide Insurance Brokers.