Business insurance for Estate and letting agents


For estate agents and real estate professionals, insurance can help to withstand lawsuits and unforeseen issues while they work hard to help their clients buy and sell property. 

Professional indemnity insurance may be helpful for times when estate agents are accused of making mistakes or cyber insurance could assist with restoring systems. 

As an estate agent, you constantly balance the needs of tenants, vendors and company targets. Business insurance can protect you from the cost of incorrect pricing allegations or liability for an accident at a viewing.

Online quote in 5 minutes

Get a quote

 

Why choose Hiscox for estate agents' insurance?


1

Buy online in minutes

We make it easy to buy insurance online. From quote to cover, the process takes minutes.

2

An award-winning team

If you face a problem, our experts are on hand it's why we've won awards for customer service. 

3

Professional indemnity cover up to £10m*

Professional indemnity insurance covers estate agents for errors and omissions up to £10m for legal fees.

*Figures based on policies from at least 10% of our customers.

Get a quote for your business in minutes

Tell us about your business – We’ll help you to build your quote and explore your insurance needs.

Get a quote
Easy to arrange, comprehensive cover.
Timothy John Salmon
Read all reviews

Why do estate agents need insurance?


A viewing mishap

Taking customers to viewings is a core part of your work, but it always involves a degree of risk. If someone hits their head on a low staircase or a new build fixture falls on them, they could attempt to make a claim against an estate agent’s business – fortunately, insurance can help. With public liability cover, we’ll assist with your defence costs and any compensation settlements made against you, so you can get on with the day-to-day.

Unhappy clients

You work hard to keep vendors happy, but complaints can sometimes come with working as an estate agent. Someone might feel you undervalued their property and sue for their losses, or a landlord could allege you failed to conduct appropriate tenant checks. Not every deal goes smoothly, so if a customer feels they’ve received bad advice, they may bring a claim against your letting business. Even if their allegations are incorrect, your professional indemnity insurance can help with legal fees.

Property problems

If your estate agency offices are damaged by fire, flood or burglary, you might find it difficult to continue business as usual. Without the necessary equipment to complete contracts, perform credit checks, list properties or schedule appointments, everything could stop.  Tailoring your estate agents’ insurance to include commercial buildings insurance means investigations and repairs to the bricks and mortar can happen swiftly and you’ll be assisted with the cost. Plus, contents insurance helps to repair or replace what’s inside your office so you can be back to normal as soon as possible.

What insurance is available for estate and letting agents?


Every estate agent’s business is unique, so you may also like to add public liability insurancepersonal accident coveroffice insurance or portable equipment protection. If you’re in a leadership position, you might consider directors’ and officers’ insurance too.

Insurance for estate and letting agents: FAQs


How much professional indemnity insurance do I need?

Estate agents often find they’ll need enough insurance cover for the costliest potential lawsuit. If you’re a member of an association such as ARLA Propertymark or the NAEA, which now sit under a single brand, then there are also minimum professional indemnity cover (external link) limits to be aware of. 

If you don’t let or manage properties, then the minimum limit of indemnity for estate agents who are association members is £100,000 – but this rises to £150,000 for those who do administer property lets. If your business lets or manages properties and has an annual fee income above £150,000, then again this rises to £500,000 for members of ARLA Propertymark.

What’s the difference between professional indemnity and public liability?

Professional indemnity insurance relates to service-based complaints, while public liability insurance helps if someone faces an injury or property damage as they interact with your business. PI steps in if the complaint or allegation comes from a client and is related to work you provided, while public liability insurance can cover you if someone files for compensation for injury or property damage.  

Both insurance types can be beneficial for estate agents who need to defend their business from compensation claims. Learn more about the difference between professional indemnity and public liability insurance.

 

What insurance do I need for working from home?

Professional indemnity insurance could still be beneficial for estate agents who work from home since the nature of your work is still service-based and you’ll be making pricing judgements. Even from a home office, employers’ liability insurance is usually a legal requirement for companies with staff. 

Some types of cover, such as cyber insurance, might even become more important while you’re working remotely, since your colleagues will be uploading property listings and emailing vendors via home networks. They might not have secure IT systems like you would in the office. Read about home-based business insurance to find appropriate cover options.