What Is Employers Liability Insurance?
Running a business today can appear to be a minefield of health and safety regulations, with the risk of lawsuits and compensation claims ever present. Such risks can arise when members of the public have an accident on your premises or which is caused by the actions of your business, and subsequently pursue a compensation claim against you for any injuries or loss they have suffered.
But it can also occur as a result of an accident (or alleged accident) suffered by an individual within your team and on your payroll. Fortunately, employer’s liability insurance can protect you from the financial consequences of this, as well as providing for any employees who suffer a genuine accident while working as part of your business.
Who needs employer’s liability insurance?
In short, if you have people working for you as full-time or part-time employees then you need employer’s liability insurance. In fact, it is a mandatory legal requirement for all UK businesses that have employees.
For some types of businesses, the need for employer’s liability insurance might be more obvious than for others. For example, in the case of anyone who works with farm equipment, machinery or in a hazardous environment, it is clear that they have an increased risk of suffering an accident at work in which they experience injury, psychological trauma or loss. But even in workplaces that might be considered relatively safe, the risk of an accident is never far way.
In a salon, for example, an employee might suffer an electric shock or burn as a result of malfunctioning equipment. In an office meanwhile, one of your members of staff could trip or fall as a result of poor office layout or improper safety procedures and risk assessments. Furthermore, they might claim to suffer from a repetitive strain injury as a result of typing at a keyboard or sitting on a chair which is not set up correctly.
In instances such as these, the employee in question may choose to pursue a compensation claim against you, and if you didn’t have employer’s liability insurance then this would come out of your own finances (aside from being in breach of employment law).
What does employer’s liability insurance do?
Having employer’s liability insurance will protect you against the financial risks of any such accidents, and will mean that they will have far less of an impact upon your business and its future prospects. Such insurance will pay out in the event that an employee successfully claims for compensation in an accident which is deemed to be the fault of the business or its employees. In this way, your business is financially protected, and your employees get access to the funds they need to recover or rebuild their lives.
Other types of insurance that all UK employers should consider
Though public liability insurance is not a mandatory requirement as is the case with employer’s liability insurance, it is still highly recommended for many businesses. Those business which have regular contact with the public, such as taxi firms and hair salons, should protect themselves with public liability insurance as a matter of course, while other businesses with less contact should still consider protecting themselves.
The premises in which you carry out your work are of course essential to your business, and so you should get property insurance which will cover you against risks such as fire or vandalism. Finally, if you carry significant amounts of stock at any one time or have expensive specialist equipment you should consider insuring this.
If you want any further advice about employer’s liability insurance or any other type of business insurance, get in touch with Park Insurance.