Professional Indemnity Insurance for Consultants & Other Professionals
Professional advice doesn’t always fit neatly into a standard insurance category. Whether you provide consultancy, specialist advice or a combination of professional services, PLB can help you approach insurers with a clear understanding of what your business does.
We consider enquiries from sole traders, partnerships and limited companies, including new businesses and established firms with more than one area of expertise.
Quotations are subject to underwriting and policy terms.
Typical activities
Who this page is for
The areas below are examples of the consultancy work we consider. They are a starting point for a conversation, not a list of activities insurers automatically accept.
Every enquiry is considered on its own facts, and cover is always subject to underwriting. If your work is not listed above, please contact us — we welcome enquiries from professional businesses whose services fall outside these examples.
Some consultancies carry out several activities rather than one. If yours does, please describe all the services you provide, including any that generate only a small part of your income, so we can seek terms that reflect your actual work rather than an incomplete description of it.
Scope of cover
The cover, explained in plain English
Professional indemnity insurance
Professional indemnity insurance can respond to claims alleging that the professional advice or services you provided were negligent, or that an error or omission caused a client financial loss, together with associated defence costs, subject to the policy terms.
A typical example is a client alleging that they followed your advice and suffered a commercial loss as a result. Whether a particular claim is covered depends on the circumstances and on the wording, exclusions and limits of the policy issued.
Public liability and other business covers
Public liability insurance can respond to claims for accidental injury to third parties, or damage to their property, arising from your business activities, subject to the policy terms. It can be relevant if you visit client sites, attend meetings or work from clients’ premises.
Covers such as employers’ liability, business interruption or contents insurance address different risks again. They are not automatically included with a professional indemnity policy, so we will confirm what a quotation does and does not include before you decide.
Overseas clients and work
If some of your clients are based outside the UK, or you travel to deliver work, we need to understand where clients are located, where the services are actually performed and which law and courts apply to your contracts.
Overseas work, including exposure to the USA or Canada, has to be considered when arranging appropriate territorial and jurisdictional cover. Tell us about it at the outset rather than after terms have been quoted.
Why a clear description of services matters
Two businesses with the same job title can carry out very different work. A consultant advising on internal processes carries a different exposure from one who signs off regulatory submissions, and a coach working with individuals carries a different exposure from one advising a board on strategy.
That is why we ask about your actual assignments, who relies on your advice and what you are responsible for, rather than relying on the label your business uses.
How we present your business to underwriters
Details of your experience, the services you provide, the sectors and size of your clients and the type of contracts you work under all help us present your business properly to underwriters.
A clear and accurate description gives underwriters what they need to assess the risk, and reduces the chance of a query, a condition or an exclusion aimed at an activity you do not actually carry out.
Cover is arranged by PLB on behalf of clients and is subject to underwriter acceptance and the terms, conditions, exclusions and limits of the policy issued.
How it works
Applying online
The online application collects your business details, the activities you carry out, your fee income, relevant contracts, your insurance history and any claims or circumstances. It then produces a professionally presented PDF application that PLB reviews and uses when approaching suitable insurers.
Step 1
Complete the application
Answer the questions about your business and the work you do, and submit the form when you are ready.
Step 2
PLB reviews the information
A broker checks what you have told us and may contact you to clarify an activity, a client or an aspect of a contract.
Step 3
We approach suitable insurers
We take your application to insurers whose appetite fits your work, and discuss the terms available with you.
Further information, or an insurer’s own proposal form, may sometimes be required before terms can be quoted. Submitting the application does not commit you to taking out a policy.
A note on terminology
Looking for miscellaneous professional indemnity insurance?
Insurers sometimes use the term miscellaneous professional indemnity for professional services that fall outside their standard categories. It is a label for a grouping of risks, not a description of what your business actually does.
Our approach is to understand the activities you carry out and seek terms that reflect them, rather than placing your business in a broad category and hoping the wording keeps up. Most clients simply ask us for professional indemnity insurance for consultants.
Frequently asked questions
Consultants & Other Professionals — common questions
Get started
Start your application
Tell us about your business, the services you provide, your clients and any overseas work. We will review the information and approach suitable insurers on your behalf.
Start your applicationSubmitting an application does not put cover in force. Quotations are subject to underwriting and policy terms. You can also call us on 0800 061 4262.