How long do tradesmen insurance policies last?

So, you want to take out insurance to protect your business. Well done, it’s one of the smartest decisions you can make as a self-employed tradesperson.

But how long can you expect to be covered? And what happens if you change your mind?

Why is an insurance policy important?

At Rhino, we love nothing more than spreading the word to tradesmen and women across the UK about the importance of a good solid trade insurance policy. 

But why is insurance for tradesmen so important?

Reason #1 – You’re self-employed

If you’re a guy or girl working in the trades, you’re likely either a sole trader, the director of your own limited company or in a business partnership.

There are some great benefits to these business structures, but the major downside of operating as your own boss is that you have no safety net when it comes to things going wrong.

Sick pay, accident cover, redundancy pay, legal cover and replacement equipment are things salaried employees take for granted. 

If you’re a tradesperson, you don’t have this luxury. If you’re hurt, fall ill, your tools or equipment get stolen or damaged or you have to fight off or settle a legal claim, you could lose every penny your business has.

Reason #2 – You face risk

Think of your average working week. You probably face plenty of risk in the course of your business activities. Whether this is working at height, using chemicals, deploying power tools or dealing with a boiler that hasn’t seen a service since Euro ’96, risk is a part of your daily life. Accidents, injuries and property damage are real possibilities every time you step onto a job.

So, this is the second big reason why you need tradesmen insurance. To put it bluntly, you’re likely to need it.

How long do trade insurance policies last?

Generally, tradesmen policies last one year. At the end of the year, you can choose to renew your trade insurance policy if you’re happy with the way things are going. Alternatively, you can switch to another provider – we don’t know about others, but Rhino makes switching to us a seamless transition. 

A year is the perfect amount of time for a policy to last. Any less than that, and you might feel that you’re having to deal with renewal too frequently – you probably have better things to do than worry about your trade insurance expiring. But any longer than one year, and you could face issues if you’re not happy with the cover.

We can’t speak for other insurers, but Rhino makes it easy for customers to keep their policies rolling. With us, you can renew your policies up to 30 days before your actual renewal date. We also allow our customers to choose to auto-renew, so they don’t need to worry about remembering to renew when the time comes.

What if I was too hasty in taking out a policy?

In the UK, all insurance policies come with a handy cooling-off period. This essentially enables the policyholder to change their mind at any time for up to 14 days after they’ve taken out or renewed their policy and cancel for a full pro-rata refund. This doesn’t apply if you’ve already made a claim… obviously!

This is reassuring for those of you who might want a second look at the small print in your policy documents or review them at your convenience. Remember, insurance is there to protect you, not lock you in.

Does policy length differ amongst trades?

No. Not with Rhino at least. In our many years of experience providing insurance to people in your line of work, we’ve found it’s easier to have policies of the same length across all trades. 

We also know that some of our customers work in more than one trade, so it’s beneficial for them to have their policies approaching the renewal date at the same time.

So, whether you’re looking for carpenter’s insurance, bricklayer’s insurance, gardener’s insurance, plumber’s insurance, electrician’s insurance, cleaner’s insurance or one of the hundreds of other trades we cover, you can expect to see your policies valid for one year. 

When you take out an insurance policy, you’ll get a Policy Schedule document which will set out the terms of your coverage, including the dates that your coverage applies. 

Can I switch providers?

It’s always possible to switch insurance provider. If you’re unhappy with the policy terms, claims process or customer service, you should look into switching to a top-rated, high-satisfaction insurer like Rhino.

You may need to check the policy documents from your current provider carefully to see if there are any cancellation fees or exit clauses. Ideally, you should be able to give notice and exit your policy without penalties so long as you stick to the terms of your agreement. 

Depending on the insurer, you may get a refund of your unused policy cost. When it comes to switching, our best advice is to speak to both your current and preferred insurer to find out what they can do to help smooth the transition.

Why choose Rhino Trade Insurance for your tradesman policy?

Rhino Trade insurance are industry leaders in the UK for low-cost, high-quality trade insurance. We’ve won awards for what we do, and you only have to take a look at our hundreds of five-star reviews to see how much our customers love us. 

Unlike other big names offering trade insurance, we actually understand our customers and what it means to have a career in the trades. 

Here are some of the great benefits we offer our customers:

• Pay premiums monthly or annually – we won’t charge you penalties for spreading the cost
• Documents are sent to your email address instantly on taking out cover – you can sort it in your lunch break
• Friendly, expert UK-based team available to answer your questions six days a week
• Cover designed specifically for your trade
• Simple, transparent policies meaning you only pay for the cover you need.

At Rhino, we’re the trade insurance experts. That means we can advise you on all matters to do with trade insurance policies, from taking out cover, renewal, switching to us and much more. 

Call us today on 0116 243 7904. We’ll tell you everything you need to know.