Tradesman insurance

Compare insurance quotes for tradesmen and tradeswomen and get the right cover for your business

What's tradesman insurance?

If you're a self-employed tradesperson or you run a small business with employees, you'll need business insurance

But even if an insurance policy is marketed as ‘tradesman’ insurance, it’s certainly not just for men – it’s for any self-employed person working in trades like builders, tilers, electricians or plumbers.

A specialist business insurance policy for tradespeople can include a range of cover types, depending on your needs and those of your business.

Who needs it?

Anyone who’s self-employed with a skilled, manual job including:

  • Bricklayers
  • Builders
  • Plumbers
  • Electricians
  • Dog groomers
  • Mechanics
  • Decorators

You can add different elements of cover, to tailor a policy to your business's specific risks. You can get policies for just you working alone, or to cover you for employing other people. 

tradesman insurance

What’s builder’s insurance?

Builder’s insurance is a specialist type of business insurance. It’s there to help you in case something goes wrong on a job site or back at the office. 

While business insurance may seem like it covers everything you need, there may be gaps in it for a building company – tool insurance, protection if a project is late, and professional indemnity cover can be useful parts of insurance for builders.

Full liability insurance for builders 

Full liability insurance is public liability insurance and employers’ liability insurance – it could be cheaper compared to buying them separately.

For example, say a tool fell off some scaffolding and it caused an injury. Or if some brickwork fell and damaged a nearby car. Then you might be liable, but public liability insurance can help cover the legal and compensation costs.

Other types of cover that can be part of builder’s insurance  

Aside from liability insurance you might want to check the following is in your policy: 

  • Professional indemnity
  • Tool insurance 
  • Hired-in plant insurance (similar to tool insurance, but for tools and equipment you hire)
  • Insuring your stock 
  • Business interruption insurance 
  • Engineering insurance (for if your business uses large pieces of machinery)
  • Buildings insurance (this covers your office or company’s base site) 

What should I look out for with my trades insurance? 

Check that the levels of cover offered by the policy are sufficient for your needs, especially when it comes to cover for goods, equipment, accidental damage or theft.

When you’re comparing tradesman or woman insurance, the cheapest isn't necessarily the right product for your needs – cheap cover may mean important elements like flooding cover are excluded.

Think about exactly what you need from your tradesman insurance and check that your chosen policy covers everything you need it to.

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