What is public liability insurance?
Public liability insurance (otherwise known as general liability insurance) will protect against claims arising from injury or property damage of persons other than your employees in the course of your business activities.
The business insurance will pay legal costs incurred in defending allegations and damages arising from any award or settlement. We've produced a useful guide: What is public liability insurance? Explained 1O1
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Get indemnity™ public liability
If your business interacts with members of the public (including any customers, suppliers, contractors) you have a duty of care to maintain a safe environment and should purchase public liability cover.
Get indemnity™ public liability insurance quotes can be combined with a number of additional covers such as professional indemnity and product liability to meet your needs.
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to acheive cost savings and ensure your organisation is financially protected from an accident that causes injury or property damage.
Get a public liability insurance quote.
Who needs public liability insurance?
It is not a legal requirement to purchase
public liability, unlike
employers liability. However, it is commonly purchased because it offers cost-effective protection against potential liabilities at a cost-effective premium.
All businesses, no matter their size, whether they operate from offices, showrooms, warehouses or construction sites, or even a home office should consider buying public liability.
The no win, no fee system makes legal advice more accessible with no upfront costs means public liability allegations occur with greater frequency. In addition, the public is generally more aware of their rights and will tend to pursue compensation.
Who does public liability insurance cover?
Public liability insurance will cover claims from any person, excluding your employees, with whom you interact as part of your business. Including, but not limited to: customers, suppliers, contractors and other third persons.
Purchasing business liability insurance means your organisation is protected from having to make significant compensation payments as a result of injury or property damage.
Personal injury claims under public liability insurance can be very costly when you consider that compensation can include expenses incurred, loss of earnings, possible loss of future earnings, pain and suffering.
Can you provide public liability insurance claim examples?
Public liability insurance claims usually occur when someone is injured, or property is damaged because those responsible have failed to ensure its safety.
Below are common public liability claim scenarios, with slips, trips and falls the most frequent:
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Slips, trips and falls
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Exposure to hazardous chemicals
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Falling objects
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Inhalation injuries
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Burns or scalds
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Dangerous pathways
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Glass injuries
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Door injuries
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Lift / escalator accidents
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Whiplash injuries
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Hazard objects
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Crashes and collisions
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A member of the public was injured while using the stairs and they sustained a brain injury requiring long-term care from the fall: The total cost of the claim for long-term care totalled £8.2 million.
How much public liability insurance do we need?
The minimum public liability insurance typically offered is a £1 million limit. However, most businesses or organisations will typically purchase a minimum of £5 million or £10 million limit, unless you work in a high risk industry.
The limit you purchase will depend on your business activities, perception of the exposure and how much you are prepared to spend to mitigate the risk.
Zurich have identified
4 Simple steps to choosing Public Liability Limits. Prudent businesses or organisations are increasingly purchasing an Excess of Loss policy to provide increased limits for public liability and employers liability and
fleet insurance.
How does a public liability insurance policy work?
Public liability policies work on an occurrence basis, whereby the policy period in which the loss occurred will respond, irrespective of when the claim is made.
In addition, public liability is only intended to cover the injury or damage which is accidental. If the word accidental is not used when specifying the public liability definitions, there is usually an exclusion for injury or damage which results from a deliberate act or omission.
To compare public liability quotes from the wholesale market and benchmark whether you purchase the most cost-effective cover, please complete our
online application.
Work away from your premises
Public liability insurance will protect your company against compensation claims and legal costs if a third party suffers injury or property damage while on your premises.
The majority of public liability policies offer cover while working away from your premises. This is typically provided to accommodate a wide range of business activities, however sometimes the cover is removed.
PL certiticate requirements
Unlike a certificate of employers liability insurance, UK companies are not required by law to display a public liability insurance certificate.
At get indemnity™ we can provide your company a certificate if required, as proof your public liability coverage.
How to compare public liability insurance cost?
Compare public liability cost from the wholesale market with our
online application. At
get Indemnity™
we have the digital tools to access a wide range of insurers to provide competitive quotes.
We continue to see soft to stable market conditions for public liability insurance, driven mainly by an abundance of insurer capacity and stable claims environment. It is common to purchase public liability under a package insurance policy.
As a specialist public liability
insurance broker, we can tailor your cover to meet your specific needs. Please contact us and we can discuss your requirements.

This guide is for information purposes and based on sources which we believe are reliable, the general risk management and insurance information is not intended to be taken as advice with respect to any individual circumstance and cannot be relied upon as such.