Practical Reasons Self-Employed Tradesmen Need Insurance

There’s a common misconception that floats around the trade industry, and it’s that tradesman insurance is primarily made for construction businesses and the like who work on massive projects and employ hundreds, if not thousands of people. Now, this couldn’t be any further from the truth. In the UK, there are close to 4.5 million self-employed citizens, and a majority of them are trade-related. That’s why today, we wanted to look at why self-employed tradesmen need trade insurance and the perks of having such a policy in place. Let’s get ready to rumble! 

8 Reasons Self Employed Tradesmen Need Insurance

Sub-Contractors Requirements

No matter if you are a plumber, builder, bricklayer or any other trade. When working with a contractor, you will be required to sign a contract. Usually, to join the job and work on-site (or get paid), you will find that you need to have trade insurance in place.

Although our intro stated otherwise, should you be bricklaying on a large project, plumbing for a major home builder or contracting for a kitchen fitting company. You will find that the more significant the project, the more stringent the insurance requirements are that you must comply with. When joining forces with a contractor, you will want to be clear from the start whether you need additional trade insurance (on top of the fundamental policy - Public Liability Insurance). 

It May Be Required By Law

Although not all insurance products are needed by law, some are in certain situations and in good old Rhino fashion. We are here to give some examples. 

For a self-employed tradesman, you most likely will be out and about in your van daily, carrying tools, materials and your sleepy apprentice. However, serious stuff - you must have third-party van insurance as a minimum, better yet, go fully comprehensive. 

Adding to this, if you have employees in your business, driving your vans and working on jobs you have booked, you need (by law) to have Employers’ Liability Insurance. This specific policy protects any trade employees you have if they fall ill or are injured on a job. You must make this certificate visible to staff, so make sure to get yourself to Dunelm and buy a nice frame! 

Employers Liability Insurance with Rhino Trade Insurance

Proof of Trade Insurance Requirements

Similar to our first point, however, if you are self-employed or run a trades company, it makes perfect business sense to have Public Liability Insurance in place. Not only will it protect you in the event of damage caused or accidental injury or death, but it will also take care of any legal costs that come as a result. 

Another fundamental reason to consider a business insurance policy is that local councils employ self-employed tradesmen to work on many jobs. However, a major stipulation with these contracts is that you must have trade insurance in place. For instance, if you are a plumber and fit several bathrooms across council buildings, you would need to have Public Liability Insurance in place should you mistakenly cause a leak or cause damage to one of the properties.

Watching Your Own Back

At Rhino Trade Insurance, Public Liability Insurance is one of our more popular trade insurance policies. However, for self-employed tradesmen, we’ve found that Personal Income Protection Insurance is one of the more popular add-ons to protect themselves and their business. 

The reason? If you happened to be working on-site and had a bad accident that left you unable to work, you’d be worried about where your next paycheque will be coming from. Let alone any other costs that could stack up whilst you are out of action. Income Protection is, therefore, your safety net should you not be able to physically work. So whilst you’re on the mend, we’ll have you covered with this policy. 

Protecting Your Prized Assets

Every tradesman has their own style, whether that’s the way they work, the work clothing they wear or the way they build up their tool kit. It can take years to get to a point where you have every tool your ever dreamed of. You may have a particular brand that you stick to or have sentimental tools from friends or family. Whatever they are, they are valuable to you. 

Just this year, Volkswagen commissioned research and found that over 25% of tradesmen in the UK had their tools stolen from their vans in the last year alone. That’s why most self-employed tradesmen will search for some form of Tool Insurance to make sure their vital weapons are protected should they go walkabout. A policy like this will help you get back on your feet quicker, minimising the downtime whilst you are left without your tools. 

Tools Insurance with Rhino Trade Insurance

Protecting Your Customers

Anybody offering a service to a customer will have to abide by the duty of care to that individual, their property and those around us. Even if they haven’t offered you a brew, customers will always expect a tradesman to leave their property in the same condition as you entered it. 

Here are a few examples of what could be covered with trade insurance:

• Property Damage
• Injury
• Accidental Death
• Slips, trips and falls.

Let’s say you are contracted to work on-site to build an extension or replace an old kitchen. You will always risk the possibility of causing property damage, injuring the client or a member of the public with your line of work. It’s not a reflection of your work. It’s simply down to the nature of the trade game. It’s an industry rife with risks and hazards. Therefore, another positive for having Public Liability Insurance is precisely that. It protects you and your business from all of the above risks should the worst happen. 

Keep Your Business Up And Running

Trade businesses can juggle many projects at any one time, and having a claim against you can throw everything into chaos. If you didn’t have any insurance in place, you could be liable to pay compensation and risk financial ruin. With the daily strains of running a business, having the correct insurance cover in place will give you peace of mind knowing that should something go wrong, your business is protected. 

An example of this could be if your business gives out any designs, advice or expertise as part of their trade. If you give bad advice to a customer, be that incorrect or a mistake in your design, a client could claim compensation for any losses incurred. To keep your business up and running, having a popular trade insurance add-on like Professional Indemnity Insurance in place would offer protection to your business should this happen. Leaving more time for you to focus on your trade or teasing the apprentice with age-old trade jokes.  

Professional Indemnity with Rhino Trade Insurance

Make You Look Uber Credible

We all love to look good. Some of the chaps in the Rhino office try with ‘cool’ haircuts, ‘nice’ clothes and whatnot, and your trade businesses are just the same. Having that framed insurance document makes your business feel invincible, like the Arsenal team of 2004. It also encourages more potential customers and contractors to trust that you have it all together and take risks very seriously! 

Nobody likes a dodgy trader or a cowboy builder, and employees are in the same boat. Having the right level of protection adds trust and helps build a relationship with your team. You want a happy site, not a ‘worried about what could happen’ site. 

And one final point, with all the positives above, having trade insurance in place is cost-effective. Not only does it protect you in case of a claim being made, but it also covers any compensation owed by you or any legal costs that need to be paid. Not only that, Rhino’s cover won’t leave you out of pocket. We offer insurance cover for as little as £6.07 a month - the cost of a pint of lager and a packet of crisps! 

It’s Time, To Get Covered!

It’s safe to say that if you’ve made it this far, you are really interested in our insurance! If you are a self-employed tradesman or woman looking for the correct type of cover, we have specialists ready for you to talk to. 

We have worked with thousands of plumbers, builders, sparkies, joiners, and many more trades for over 20 years. Quite simply, we are veterans in this game, so give us a call now or get a quick and easy quote online now.