Why do financial and legal businesses need insurance?
Accidents or illness
Heading out on a sailing weekend may not seem like a high-risk activity, even to an actuarial consultant who deals with the fine detail of financial risk every day. Slip on a rain-soaked tiller, however, and a broken collarbone could sink your plans for an exciting new overseas project. When personal accidents leave you unable to get the job done, specialist cover can provide a weekly business income supplement and help with rehabilitation expenses, giving you time and space to recover.
Technical problems
Floods, fires and overnight robberies can leave a financial institution out in the cold – especially if recovering investment records from your damaged server may take a while. Arriving to the office to discover the power is down, computers are missing, or live display screens damaged is a business leader’s nightmare. With comprehensive property insurance, however, you’ll get help with the cost of repair or replacement so you can quickly get back to business as usual.
Slips and spills
Working as a mediator requires close contact with families or industrial bodies – if a child is scalded by coffee from your desk, there’s a chance the family could file a claim. A trade union representative may say they slipped on unmarked wet flooring – even if the case wouldn’t stand up in court, you might still need to fund a defence. Insurance helps offset public liability risks by paying fees and, if necessary, compensation.
Key types of insurance for finance and legal businesses
Employers' liability insurance
Working as an actuary means you’re comfortable with the language of risk – after all, you crunch numbers to pinpoint the probability of serious threats to business. Sometimes, hazards arise from the most everyday of practices, however – such as employing staff. If you have employees or interns, even on a casual basis, then employers’ liability insurance may be a legal requirement. This cover could protect your business in the event someone sues for an illness they claim was brought on by their work.
Personal accident insurance
Many factors may have shaped your legal career – perhaps you became a self-employed solicitor because autonomy appeals or launched your own firm to maximise earnings. The possibility of facing a serious personal accident is rarely top of the agenda, but it could be worth considering as a potential source of business risk. Personal accident insurance provides welcome financial backing if an accidental injury prevents you from practicing. This help may be especially welcome in smaller firms or if you are the sole employee.
Office insurance
Even in a world where business is often conducted online, knowing your premises are protected can provide welcome reassurance to a financial or legal business. Insurance to cover your offices against the risk of fire, flood and theft provides reassurance that, should the worst happen, you’ll receive assistance with repair costs. Speedy recovery means replacing broken computers swiftly and restoring the environment to meet professional standards – office insurance does just this.
Some financial and legal enterprises may also benefit from insurance to cover public liability, professional indemnity and cyber risks.
If you’re not sure what you need, tell us a little more about your finance or legal business. We’ll help you to build your quote and explore any other insurance needs.
Build my coverInsurance for financial and legal businesses: FAQs
What business insurance do I need for working from home?
A lot of the standard insurance types remain relevant when working from home and often your standard home insurance policy won’t cover you for business activities at home. Our home-based business insurance page outlines some of the key considerations.
Depending on the type of work you do, covers such as public liability insurance could remain relevant – for instance if you still hold client meetings in your home.
If your remote working is temporary or part-time, then standard office insurance might still be required to safeguard your commercial premises.
When would a financial institution need employers’ liability insurance?
Employers’ liability insurance is legally required for most UK businesses which employ staff, so a financial institution would typically take out this cover as soon as it has its first employee.
Even voluntary and casual staff can bring liability risks, but there are a few exceptions to the requirement (external link) – for instance, for family helpers.
Nonetheless, in most cases you will need to consider employers’ liability insurance as soon as your financial institution receives staffing assistance from anyone other than yourself.
Do financial and legal directors need insurance?
As a legal partner or the director of a financial institution, you shoulder additional responsibility. This means you may stand to benefit from directors’ and officers’ insurance, depending on the nature of your field and company structure.
This cover works by providing personal protection to those in charge of an organisation – the idea is to guard your personal assets from the impact of events such as legal action.
If you hold a position of responsibility and answer to investors, shareholders or regulatory bodies, then this type of cover could help if you make an error that leads to a complaint.
Related articles and guides
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What is the difference between employers’ liability and public liability?
Employers’ liability and public liability are two of the most common cover types – learn the difference with our guide.
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