Software developer insurance

Why do software developers need professional indemnity insurance?

Professional indemnity (PI) insurance is there for when fingers are pointed, solicitors get involved and clients demand payback.

You can’t simply ignore a claim, no matter if you’re a freelance software engineer or a larger business. And there are no shortcuts. You have to Do Something About It.

So, you need the legal expertise and financial cover PI provides because:

• you have a business to run (and claims eat up a lot of time)
• you have limited funds (and paying for solicitors and compensation is costly)
• you’re not legally trained (and solicitors are)
• your reputation matters.

What does professional indemnity insurance for software developers cover?

PI insurance takes care of claims and allegations made against you by clients and third parties because of mistakes you’ve made and things you’ve failed to do.

Specifically (but depending on the policy wording), it covers:

• Negligence
• Defamation
• Intellectual property infringement
• Loss of documents or data
• Negligent misrepresentation or misstatement
• Employee dishonesty
• Virus transmission
• Breach of confidentiality
• Failure of third-party equipment

Some professional indemnity policies can even pay to fix a mistake before your client notices, preventing a claim in the first place.

Clever stuff.

How much professional indemnity insurance do I need?

Professional indemnity insurance protects your business and no one else’s. So only you can decide what level of cover is enough.

Consider the exact nature of what you do, who you do it for and how much it’s worth. Think about worst-case scenarios and what could go wrong. What’s the most expensive mistake you could make (or be accused of making)?

Always bear in mind that you can’t have too much cover. Your legal defence can cost many £tens of thousands – and that’s before the bill for compensation arrives. Your level of cover has to be enough to cover it all.

It’s a tricky one to get right. Have a read of this guide or call us if you need more help.

Do I need public liability insurance?

Yes, probably.

Public liability is handy if you go out and about on business (eg, to meetings or to install equipment), or if visitors come to you.

It protects you if a third party claims it’s your fault they were injured or their property was damaged. Say they tripped and fell in your office, or you spilled coffee over their laptop.

It’s useful if you’re clumsy, of course. But it’s also useful in dealing with people from the ‘where there’s blame there’s a claim’ school of thought.

What else do I need?

Public liability insurance is for when you go out and about on business, or have visitors to your office. It’s for claims of physical damage to property and people. Useful if you’re clumsy.

Employers’ liability insurance covers your business if an employee sues it for damages. Claims are usually because they’ve suffered injuries and illnesses as a consequence of working for you. It’s a legal requirement for UK businesses with employees.

Office and property insurance covers the things in your office (furniture, plants, fixed IT equipment etc) and portable insurance covers gadgets and technical equipment away from the office (laptops, tablets, projectors etc). If you’re not sure it’s worth insuring, add it all up – it’s probably worth more than you think.

Business interruption insurance means you can still work when your office is out of action. Be it flood, fire or flea infestation, you’re covered for the costs of setting up elsewhere and for any lost revenue in that time.

Directors’ and officers’ insurance covers your company bosses. Anyone from regulators to shareholders to competitors can accuse you of not running a business with due care. Worse, directors are personally liable for their actions. The good thing is this insurance covers your defence costs and any compensation you have to pay. So you can put away your chequebook.

Why choose us?

Good question.

The answer is - we really know about small business insurance. It’s all we do.

We have ‘advised sales’ status from the FCA, which means they trust us to offer tailored advice to customers (just on insurance though, we’re not life coaches). So, we won’t just give you a sales pitch. We’ll work hard to make sure you come away with exactly what you need, and nothing you don’t.

For us, it’s all about making things simple, human, and hassle-free.

We have a real office, with real people in it, who are ready to take your call. Or you can get a quote online. It’ll only take a few minutes.

There are lots of other reasons to choose us, but we won’t waffle on. We’ll just ask you to take a look at our customer feedback instead. (That should do it).