What is professional indemnity insurance?

Professional indemnity insurance (PII or PI insurance) protects you if a client claims you've made a mistake, given bad advice, or been negligent in your professional work. It covers legal defence costs and any compensation or damages you're ordered to pay. It's essential if you provide professional advice or services — one claim for negligence could cost tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds. Many professions require it by law or by their regulatory body.

Who needs professional indemnity insurance?

Anyone who provides professional advice, services, or designs to clients. This includes: accountants, architects, consultants, engineers, financial advisers, IT professionals, solicitors, surveyors, freelancers, contractors, and many other professionals. Some regulatory bodies make it mandatory (e.g. the FCA for financial advisers, the SRA for solicitors, RICS for surveyors). Even if it's not mandatory, it's strongly recommended — and many clients and contracts require it before they'll work with you.

How much does professional indemnity insurance cost?

Costs vary hugely depending on your profession, turnover, claims history, and cover level. Typical annual premiums: freelance consultants £150–£500, IT contractors £200–£600, accountants £300–£1,500, architects £500–£3,000+, financial advisers £1,000–£10,000+, solicitors £2,000–£20,000+. Higher-risk professions and larger firms pay more. You can reduce premiums by choosing a higher excess, maintaining a clean claims history, and comparing quotes.

What's the difference between professional indemnity and public liability insurance?

Professional indemnity covers claims arising from your PROFESSIONAL WORK — mistakes, bad advice, negligence, breaches of duty, loss of documents. Public liability covers claims for physical injury or property damage caused by your business activities (e.g. a visitor trips in your office, you damage a client's property while visiting). They protect against different risks. Many professionals need both. Some policies combine them.

Professional Indemnity Insurance Guide — Who Needs It & What It Covers | PocketWise

Professional indemnity insurance protects you if a client says your work or advice caused them a loss. Here’s who needs it and what to look for.

What It Covers

Covered	Example
Professional negligence	An accountant makes a tax calculation error, costing the client money
Mistakes and errors	An architect’s design has a flaw that requires costly rectification
Bad advice	A consultant gives advice that leads to a financial loss
Breach of professional duty	Failing to meet the standard of care expected in your profession
Loss of documents or data	Client documents lost, corrupted, or destroyed
Defamation (in some policies)	Accidental libel or slander in professional communications
Intellectual property infringement (in some policies)	Unintentional copyright or IP breach
Legal defence costs	Solicitor fees, court costs, expert witnesses — even if the claim is unfounded
Compensation/damages	The amount you’re ordered to pay the claimant

What It Doesn’t Cover

Not covered	Detail
Deliberate wrongdoing or fraud	Intentional illegal acts
Bodily injury or property damage	That’s public liability insurance
Employer liability	That’s employer’s liability insurance
Product defects	That’s product liability insurance
Contractual penalties (unless negligence)	Late delivery penalties, for example
Claims from before the policy started (usually)	Unless retroactive cover is included

Who Needs It

Mandatory (Required by Regulator)

Profession	Regulator	Minimum cover level
Solicitors	SRA	£2–£3 million (depending on firm type)
Financial advisers	FCA	Varies by activity
Accountants (some bodies)	ICAEW, ACCA, CIMA	Varies
Architects	ARB	£500,000+
Surveyors	RICS	Based on turnover
Mortgage brokers	FCA	Required
Insurance brokers	FCA	Required

Strongly Recommended

Profession	Why
IT consultants / developers	Software bugs or system failures can cause major losses
Management consultants	Strategic advice that goes wrong
Marketing / PR agencies	Campaign errors, IP infringement
Recruitment consultants	Claims of negligent vetting
Engineers	Design errors, structural issues
Freelance writers / designers	IP claims, factual errors
Training providers	Claims teaching was inadequate
Estate agents	Mis-description, valuation errors

How Much Cover Do You Need?

Factor	Consideration
Regulatory requirement	Meet the minimum your regulator requires
Client contract requirements	Many clients specify a minimum (often £1m–£5m)
Size of projects	Larger projects = higher potential claims
Your turnover	Insurers typically recommend cover of at least 2–3× annual turnover
Worst-case scenario	What’s the maximum a client could claim for?

Typical Cover Levels

Profession/size	Recommended minimum
Freelancer / sole trader	£100,000–£500,000
Small consultancy (under £500k turnover)	£500,000–£1 million
Medium firm	£1–£5 million
Large firm / high-risk profession	£5–£10 million+

Typical Costs

Profession	Annual premium (indicative)
Freelance consultant (non-regulated)	£150–£500
IT contractor / developer	£200–£600
Freelance designer / copywriter	£100–£300
Bookkeeper	£150–£400
Accountant (small practice)	£300–£1,500
Architect (small practice)	£500–£3,000
Surveyor	£500–£2,500
Financial adviser	£1,000–£10,000+
Solicitor (small firm)	£2,000–£20,000+

Key Policy Features

Feature	What to look for
Cover level (limit of indemnity)	The maximum the insurer will pay per claim or per year
Excess	What you pay before the insurer pays — typically £250–£2,500
Claims-made basis	Most PII policies are “claims-made” — they cover claims made DURING the policy period, regardless of when the error occurred
Retroactive date	Cover for work done before the policy started (check this carefully if switching insurer)
Run-off cover	Cover for claims made AFTER you stop trading — essential if retiring or closing the business
Defence costs	Check if defence costs are within or in addition to the limit of indemnity
Territorial limits	UK only, EU, or worldwide — match to where your clients are
Exclusions	Read carefully — what’s NOT covered

How to Choose a Policy

Step	Action
1	Check if your regulator requires PII and what the minimum standards are
2	Review client contracts for required cover levels
3	Get at least 3 quotes from specialist brokers
4	Compare: cover level, excess, exclusions, and defence costs
5	Check the insurer is FCA-registered
6	Read the policy wording (not just the summary)
7	Ask about run-off cover if you ever plan to stop practising

Where to Get Quotes

Source	Detail
Specialist brokers	Hiscox, Simply Business, PolicyBee, Kingsbridge
Professional body schemes	Many regulators offer group schemes at discounted rates
Comparison sites	Limited for PII — specialist brokers are usually better