What is interior designer insurance?

If you’re working as an interior designer, you may be wondering what interior designer insurance is and whether you need it. The insurance industry phrases and terminology can feel complex, so this FAQ aims to break the topic down into the key facts.

Interior designer insurance is a general term sometimes used to describe several types of insurance policies.

When you are buying your insurance, look carefully at what is included. As an interior designer, the sorts of insurances you may need to consider:

• public liability insurance 
• employers’ liability insurance 
• professional indemnity insurance 
• insurance for your tools.

Some insurance bundles may also include temporary total disablement benefit, third party financial loss and capital death benefit.

Why does an interior designer need public liability insurance?

Public liability insurance is designed to cover you should something you do as part of your work cause injury to a third party or damage to their property. These types of claims are common and have the potential to add up to thousands of pounds.

If you work for any big companies, they may insist you have public liability insurance as a term of your contract. Professional bodies you belong to or wish to join may also require you to have it.

Why does an interior designer need employers’ liability insurance?

You will need employers’ liability insurance if you employ anyone. That includes admin staff, part-time staff, and trainees. It can also include some sub-contractors you work with.

Employers’ liability insurance protects you if an employee working for you suffers an injury or illness. You can be fined £2,500 for each day you don’t have it when you should.

Why does an interior designer need professional indemnity insurance?

Professional indemnity insurance provides protection in the event you give professional advice about things like design, materials or specifications which turns out to be wrong and causes a financial loss for a client.

It’s not a legal requirement to have it, but it is good practice to consider it.

What other types of insurance should an interior designer have?

This will depend on who you work for, how you work and what is important to you. If you have tools that you need to do your job, then you should always make sure they are insured so that they can be replaced quickly if needed.

If you’re not sure what else you may need, it’s a sensible idea to contact your insurance company or an insurer that is experienced in dealing with professions like yours.

Blind installation can involve risks that may not be immediately apparent. Therefore it’s always important to be properly insured. Of course, you will want to make sure your cover reflects the unique nature of what you do.

When is it a legal requirement to have liability insurance?

If you have any employees, including part-time staff, admin and clerical staff, and trainees, then you are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance. This protects you if an employee suffers harm while working for you.

It’s important to note that some sub-contractors may also be classified as ‘employees’ for insurance purposes. If you’re not sure, you should speak to your insurance company. You can be fined £2,500 if you don’t have cover when you should.

When am I contractually required to have liability insurance?

This will depend on the individual contracts you have with different clients. However, you may find that larger clients and public sector organisations require you to have public liability insurance as a standard term of their contracts.

Public liability insurance protects you should something you do cause injury to a third party or damage to their property. This covers all sorts of situations, such as members of the public who happen to be injured due to an accident for which you are liable.

If you’re found to be at fault by a court, the damages, compensation, and legal fees can quickly add up to thousands or hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Is there any other type of liability insurance that I must have?

If you provide professional advice to clients, then you might want to consider professional indemnity insurance.

Professional indemnity cover protects you if the advice you provide about things like design or specifications turns out to be wrong and causes a financial loss for the client.

You should also consider insurance for your tools so that, if they get damaged, lost or stolen, you can quickly replace them and get back to work.

There may be other types of insurance you need that are specific to what you do. If you’re not sure what you need, it’s always worth contacting your insurance company.

If you work as a fitted furniture installer, you may not be sure exactly what insurance you need to be legally compliant. For example, you may think you don’t need employers’ liability, but this requirement is often misunderstood.

What is employers’ liability insurance?

Employers’ liability insurance protects you if a current or former employee suffers harm or develops an illness as a result of working for you.

If you are found to be at fault, you could be ordered to pay damages and compensation. Depending on how serious the injury or illness, this could be anything from a few thousand pounds to hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The costs may include lost earnings, medical treatment, and adaptations to the employee’s home to accommodate living with their injury. Your insurance will cover these costs, as well as the cost of legal fees.

When must you have employers’ liability insurance?

You must have employers’ liability insurance if you employ anyone. This includes any part-time staff, seasonal workers, clerical and admin staff, trainees, and apprentices. It can also include some sub-contractors that you work with.

An ‘employee’ is defined as any individual “who has entered into or works under a contract of service or apprenticeship with an employer, whether by way of manual labour, clerical work or otherwise, whether such contract is expressed or implied, oral or in writing.”

If you’re not sure whether a sub-contractor you work with is an employee, check with your accountant or insurance company. You can be fined £2,500 for every day that you don’t have it when you should.

As an occupation, French polishing may seem absent of risk. However, as with any trade or profession, it’s still important to make sure you are properly insured, just in case something goes wrong, and to ensure legal compliance.

Does a French polisher need insurance?

In some cases there is a legal requirement to have employers’ liability insurance. You may also need public liability insurance, either as a term of your client contract or as a term of your professional memberships.

When are French polishers legally required to have employers’ liability insurance?

You must have employers’ liability insurance if you employ anyone, including part-time staff, trainees, apprentices, and clerical staff. It makes no difference whether the position is a casual arrangement with no written contract.

Some sub-contractors you work with may also be considered ‘employees’ for insurance purposes. 
Employers’ liability insurance protects you if an employee suffers harm or illness while working for you. This could be a minor medical issue, like a reaction to a certain polish, or something much more serious.

If you don’t have insurance when you should, you can be fined £2,500 a day.

When do French polishers need public liability insurance?

It’s always important to consider public liability insurance because it is designed to protect you in the event something you do (or fail to do) causes damage to a third party’s property or injures them.

These types of claims are common. If you don’t have insurance you can end up paying thousands of pounds in damages, compensation, and legal fees.

You may also find that having public liability insurance is a standard term of some of your client contracts, especially if you’re working with larger companies or public sector organisations. 
If you’re a member of a trade association or professional body, they may also require you to have public liability insurance as a term of your membership.

Are there any other types of insurance a French polisher should have?

You should always make sure you consider insurance for your tools so that, should they be stolen, damaged or lost, you can get them replaced quickly and get back to work

You may also need to consider professional indemnity insurance. This safeguards you against claims for financial loss resulting from professional advice you give which turns out to be negligent.

If you work as an upholsterer, it’s essential you have the right insurance. But while you’ll want to make sure you have sufficient cover, you don’t want to pay too much – especially when you have other overheads to manage.

What upholsterer insurance do I need?

First, if you employ anyone, you are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance. It protects you in the event an employee suffers an injury or illness as a result of working for you.

You will need employers’ liability insurance even if you only have one employee, or they are a part-timer, trainee, or work in a clerical position.

Do I need public liability insurance?

You should always consider public liability insurance, although it is not a legal requirement. It covers you if something you or an employee does causes damage to a third party’s property or injures them.

Larger clients may require you to have public liability insurance as a term of your contract with them.

Are there any other types of insurance I need?

You may also need professional indemnity insurance. It protects you if you give any professional advice about things like materials or specifications. If that advice turns out to be negligent and causes financial damage, the policy will cover the court-ordered costs.

You should also consider getting insurance for your tools. If they are lost or stolen, you need to be able to replace them as quickly as possible.

There may be other types of insurance you want or need, such as temporary total disablement benefit. It’s worth speaking to your insurance company about this if you’re unsure.

How much cover do I need?

You are required to have at least £5 million of employers’ liability cover.

For public liability cover, it is normal to have between £2 million and £10 million in cover. How much you need will depend on the nature of the projects you do and the level of risk associated with them.

With professional indemnity insurance, you may need anything from between £50,000 and £500,000 of cover, depending on the nature of what you do.

Insurance for your tools will depend on the value of your tools and the cost of replacing them. It’s common to have tools insurance of between £10,000 and £15,000.

How do you work out the cost of your upholsterer insurance?

Once you know what kind of insurance you need, and how much cover you require, the next thing to do is to apply for a quote.

The insurance company will need a variety of information, such as:

• how the business is set up (limited company, partnership, or sole trader)
• how many employees you have
• where you work
• whether you have made any previous claims
• what sort of work you do.

When the insurer has this information, they can calculate your premium. It may be possible for the insurer to provide a single quote for a bundle of the different types of insurance you need.