Why do tilers need insurance?
An employee injury
Tiling is a manual job that can demand a lot from employees. Carrying tools and materials through homes can come with a risk of injury. While carrying tiles to an upstairs bathroom, your labourer trips on the top step and sprains their wrist. Your employee is left unable to work and claims for compensation.
Employers’ liability insurance can help to protect your business from the cost of the claim.
Your work damages a client’s bathroom
When tiling a bathroom, you use a new product to save the customer costs on materials. Unfortunately, the product isn’t as good as you’d expected. The day after you finish on the bathroom, the customer calls to say a tile has fallen from the wall and cracked the bathroom sink. You agree to fix the problem. But you could be liable if they make a claim.
Public liability insurance could help with legal fees or compensation.
Thieves steal your tools
Thieves often target tradespeople’s vans. While finishing a kitchen tiling job, you return to your van to find the back door prised open. An electric tile cutter and some diamond blades have been taken. You’ll have to buy replacement tools, but you lack the funds to do so immediately. With the right business insurance, there’s financial help for replacing your stolen equipment.
Property away and in transit cover is built to tackle the loss of tools as you move between sites. You may also hear it referred to as tool insurance.
What insurance is available for bathroom tilers?
Public liability insurance
Public liability insurance can help to cover the cost if members of the public claim you’ve caused them injury or caused damage to their property. Even the most skilled tilers can experience accidents or unexpected circumstances.
If a customer slips on unlaid tiles, cuts themselves on sharp tools, or faces property damage because of your activities, you could be held responsible. Public liability insurance can help.
Employers’ liability insurance
As their legal employer, you’re responsible for the health and safety of your staff. As such, employers’ liability insurance is a legal requisite (external link) for most UK businesses with employees. It can help to cover the cost of claims from employees who are injured or fall ill through work.
For example, if someone who works for you suffers an injury on a tiling job, you could be liable. Employers’ liability insurance can help to cover the cost of a legal defence and settlement if you’re told to pay compensation.
Tool insurance
For a tiler, tools are an essential part of your work. If something that’s crucial to a job is damaged by unforeseen circumstances or stolen, then the knock-on effects can be costly. Delays to work can also have long-term consequences for your reputation.
Fortunately, with tool insurance, technically known as property away and in transit insurance, in place for your tiler business, interruptions to your work can be minimised, and the costs of replacing lost or damaged equipment reduced. This tool insurance offers a safety net when you’re away from your business premises.
Some tilers, when tailoring their insurance, decide to include other covers, such as professional indemnity and personal accident insurance. Equipment breakdown insurance can help if your tools stop working due to a mechanical failure, while business contents insurance can insure items in a workshop or office against risks such as theft.
Contact us to talk through the options.
Tell us what you do, and we’ll ask you a few questions to help you find the right cover with our easy online service.
Build my coverInsurance for tilers: FAQs
What insurance do I need as a tiler?
As a tiler, the insurance you may need can vary depending on the specifics of your business. You might not require any cover, aside from employers’ liability insurance – which is required by law if you employ others. However, public liability insurance can help to cover the costs of claims made by members of the public. Some contracts require a certain level of PL cover, too.
Can I buy business insurance if I’ve had any CCJs or IVAs?
Each insurer has their own approach as to whether they accept policies from business owners who have a history of credit problems such as county court judgments (CCJs) or individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs). At Hiscox, we deal with each claim individually.
What licences does a tiling professional need?
You don’t need a specific licence to offer tiling services in the UK. However, you may require building waste licences if you intend to transport waste as part of your role. Other potential licences could include a skip permit, should you plan to use one on a public road.
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