Why do need writers and authors need insurance?
A book signing incident
Your book tour creates exciting opportunities to connect with readers, but when you accidentally push a stack of hardbacks onto a local newspaper reporter, the mood may sour. They are unable to finish your promotional interview and legal action is launched to recover the cost of physiotherapy.
Adding public liability insurance to your author policy can help fund expenses if a third party, such as a guest or member of the media, claims for damages related to injury or property damage.
Employee illness
When your writing career begins to take off, you might find it challenging to manage a stream of enquiries alongside your craft.
Taking on a personal assistant seems like the perfect solution, but the pace of work can be unpredictable in your field – at the season’s busiest points, your assistant’s workload becomes excessive. They take a period of leave, saying stress exacerbated symptoms of an existing illness – and you fall back on employers’ liability insurance which can support with
A stolen laptop
Pitching an article idea is just the beginning. Any writer worth their salt wants to see their name in print, but building relationships with publishers is a necessary step. On the way to a meeting with the editor of a major publication, your laptop disappears from the train’s storage rack.
Replacing the equipment swiftly is your top priority – without it, you can’t work as a freelance writer – so it’s fortunate that your portable equipment insurance is there to assist with the bill.
What insurance is available for writers and authors?
Public liability insurance
Public liability insurance helps with the financial pressures a writer or author may face if their activities lead to injury or property damage. If you work with people from outside your business, you can be held liable if you cause them harm, even if your work isn’t directly involved. You might spill coffee on a Dictaphone in a meeting with local media, or leave a wire trailing during a presentation, only for a guest to trip.
Public liability insurance helps protect freelance writers and established authors from the risks that come with meeting people.
Portable equipment insurance
Working as a writer used to rely on pen-and-paper methods, but these days electrical equipment could be even more important than your trusty thesaurus.
If you use valuable equipment such as a laptop, mobile phone or tablet device within your writer business, you may wish to buy insurance in case this is lost, damaged or stolen. Portable equipment insurance, also known as property away and in transit cover, could help in such a case. You can also insure what’s inside your work premises with business contents insurance or add equipment breakdown insurance for financial help if your kit malfunctions.
Legal protection insurance
Legal tight spots are yours to negotiate when you run a small authoring business or work for yourself as a freelance writer. Therefore, tailoring your business insurance to include legal protection could bring reassurance.
If a bookshop fails to pay your invoice, or the library where you booked event space fails to refund you after their last-minute cancellation, this cover could help to fund legal action.
Some writers and authors also tailor their policy with other insurance products, such as cyber and data insurance, which can help protect your business if important documents are compromised by cybercrime. Employers’ liability insurance may also be legally required (external link) if you employ someone else.
Not sure what insurance you need? Tell us more about your work as a writer or author
Build your coverInsurance for writers and authors: FAQs
What insurance do I need as a freelance writer?
A freelance writer might need similar business insurance protection as a writer who is employed by their own limited company, since you may take financial responsibility if something goes wrong.
If you interact with people, for instance by working from a local cafe, then public liability insurance could prove useful. Without this, you could need to personally fund the cost of legal fees and compensation if someone sustained an injury or property damage because of your activities.
Other types of insurance may be especially relevant for freelance writers, such as personal accident insurance. This can provide financial assistance if you’re put out of action. Learn more about insurance for freelancers.
Do book authors need insurance?
Book authors may find they need insurance to counter a range of business risks, including the risk you could be held liable for a member of the public’s illness or injury. Public liability insurance may be especially relevant for authors who attend meet and greet events, speaking gigs or book signings.
If you self-publish and print or sell your books directly, you may choose to add product liability insurance to your policy. This protects your finances if someone says your product was defective and caused injury or property damage as a result – for instance, if one of your children’s books had a sharp edge.
What type of work is covered under Hiscox writer insurance?
Working as a wordsmith can be a varied profession, so it’s good to know several types of writing work are covered under Hiscox writer insurance. This includes professionals who write for websites, who pen magazine articles, put together material for textbooks and e-books or who curate their own novels and non-fiction books. These materials may be published internationally.
Hiscox business insurance for writers and authors also covers you for the work you do away from the desk, such as events, research trips and meetings. To be covered, these activities must take place within the geographical limits of each policy.
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