Employers liability insurance

So you think you don’t need employers liability insurance? Imagine that an employee that you hired is injured while working for you or operating on your premises. What happens next? You will likely face a lawsuit and a personal injury claim against your business which could cost you a fortune. You might think this is only going to be an issue for businesses where employees are put in dangerous or risky situations. It’s one thing to have employees working on a construction site and another to have employees operating at office desks right? Wrong, employees in an office are just as vulnerable, and accidents do happen.

They could slip on the floor, breaking their leg or even hit their head off the desk. Long-term injuries that have lasting effects can also come into to play such as RSI. This is the most common injury in offices across the UK today. So, regardless of the type of business, you are running this issue will impact you.

The solution is employers liability insurance. It could save you from heavy financial costs, legal damages and even the chance of jail time. Let’s look at why employers liability insurance is crucial and how it could stop your business going bust.

You Are Legally Required To Provide This Protection

You may not realise that you are legally obligated to have employers liability insurance if you are running a business. In the UK, you need coverage of at least five million and potentially more depending on the size of your enterprise. This will depend on how many employees you have on the payroll.

How Much Will It Cost You If You Don’t Have It?

A lot, without employers liability insurance, you could face fines of up to twenty-five thousand pounds. That might not be enough to scare you, but what about jail time. This is a possibility, particularly if working for your business left a number of employees with serious injuries that will impact their quality of life. As well as risking your company, it could damage your business reputation and make it difficult to hire anyone else in your company in the future.

What Happens Now

If you don’t have insurance, an employee will take you to tribunal. Since you have not met a legal requirement, the chances of them winning are alarmingly high. Immediately, you will need to pay for your legal defence, but the situation could get worse from there.

The amount that you will need to pay in compensation will likely be a lot higher compared to what you would have had to pay out if you had insurance in place. It could easily be enough to bankrupt your business and put you back to square one with a serious black mark on your record. Damages could be hundreds of thousands or even millions depending on the extent of the injury or illness caused by your company.

We hope this shows you why employers liability is a necessity for business owners in the UK. It is not just a key form of protection, it’s a legal requirement that you cannot neglect.

 

If you need help and support in getting your insurance please contact us at info@tapoly.com