It seems obvious that we should insure our houses and our house contents. We have to insure our cars by law. Strangely many people do not believe in insurance for their businesses.
Of course it is true that many contractors under the control of other people or businesses (such as builders) have to have their own Public Liability Insurance. Many business owners, worried about the cost, skimp on this. Yet the insurance is not expensive. The consequence of not having it can be catastrophic if a customer has an accident and sues, because the cost of defending can be disastrous.
If a mistake in the work we do can result in a loss to a client, we need to be insured against that. Professional Indemnity Insurance covering being sued for at least a few hundred thousand seem sensible. I wouldn’t be without mine, though, touch wood and taking care, I have never had a claim. Again, even if we have done nothing wrong, the cost of defending an action can be terribly expensive and destroy a business, and maybe our wealth.
If we have a business with particular employees or of course ourselves as owners, we can insure against loss of their services in what is known as key-person insurance. It is intended to compensate for business losses in case the important person dies or is unable to work again due to illness.
I insure against loss of business income if I were to be ill and unable to run my practice. Shouldn’t everyone?
You and I may never have a loss of someone’s services or be sued, but you never know. Most of us keep an umbrella handy, don’t we? Why should we leave our businesses and our income open to the elements?
Businesses need liability insurance in case something happens on their property. People in the USA tend to sue, so it’s important to be well-prepared. The cost will be worth it if something like that ever happens.