Public Liability Insurance
If damage or an accident occurs while you’re providing a service, a third party can sue your business. Get coverage through Ian Jones Insurance Brokers.
What is a Public Liability Insurance Risk?
As a business owner you are accountable to third parties that come into contact with your business (customers, employees, suppliers, etc.). If damage or an accident occurs while you’re providing a service, a third party can sue your business, which can result in costly legal fees as well as the obligation to pay for the damage or injury you may have caused.
These costs are often devastating for businesses, which is why Public Liability Insurance exists to help protect you in the event of an incident. Whilst many businesses ensure that all due care and responsibility is granted, accidents do happen. Even where the incident is not the fault of the business, they may be dragged into a claim due to association of interests (e.g. A contractor causes a loss or injury so the blame is levelled at you as the principal) where you need to defend yourself in the courts.
Public Liability is an insurance class that has been known under different terms such as general liability, Broadform liability, legal liability and products liability, to name a few.
When tailored to suit a business, public liability will cover areas such as import liability (if a product is imported by the insured directly from another country, then that business may find itself to be the ‘deemed manufacturer’ of that product and any claim may be bought about under the laws of that State or Territory or Commonwealth). It can also be extended to cover exporting of goods, goods sold, pollution liability, statutory liability, goods in the insured’s care, custody or control among other extensions where necessary.
The current sum insured trend for sums insured under a liability policy stands at $10 million although $20 million is becoming common and preferred by many large national and multi national companies. $50 million or even $100 Million cover may also be warranted by some.
IMPORTANT – If your business requires that you sign contracts before undertaking any work, you must advise our office immediately (prior to signing) as there may be clauses that mean you may sign away any rights in relation to insurance. In short, this may mean that you are signing away the insurers rights and therefore any claim may be rejected.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Public Liability Insurance is an insurance a business or someone would take where there is a possibility of causing property damage to a third party or causing injury or death to a third party during the course of their business or occupation activities.
Any one conducting business, owning a business or property or otherwise where a possibility of any third party becoming exposed to some sort of injury or property damage.
The cost of public liability insurance is governed by many things such as the risk of the business occupation and activities, the revenue of the business, staff numbers, products and materials used or sold, wage roll and more.
The amount of public liability needed can depend on the potential risk exposure, however, in Australia, the more common or generally accepted sum insured is $10 million. A sum insured of $20 million is usually required by those under some sort of contract or those working in an industry where a higher value id preferred.
Yes, you may cancel a public liability policy at any stage.
Those who need public liability insurance are generally operating a business of some description or some other activity where a chance of any third party interaction may lead to property damage or personal injury to the third party.
Public liability covers a business owner who may have an action bought against them or their business for damage to third party property or third party personal injury or death. There needs to be a level of negligence on the part of the business owner and if this is the case, financial damages would be covered under the public liability insurance.