Construction and trades insurance
Cover options for builders, contractors and trades, including public liability, contractors all risk, employers' liability and professional indemnity, arranged by an insurance broker.
Insurance for contractors, builders and trades
Construction insurance is the set of covers a building or trade business needs: liability for the people and property around your work, cover for your employees, the works and materials on site, your tools and plant, and your design responsibility. Many businesses combine public liability, employers' liability and contractors all risk, with professional indemnity if they design or specify.
PIB Insurance Brokers arranges cover for builders, contractors, specialist trades and construction professionals. A broker can be particularly helpful when your work is more complex, for example design responsibility, subcontractors, work at height or with heat, hired-in plant, or contracts that set out the insurance you must hold.
Choose your trade or type of cover below to see what's usually covered, what isn't and what affects the cost.
Find cover for your trade
Common covers for construction businesses
Which covers you need depends on your trade, the size of your projects and what your contracts ask for. Cover, limits and exclusions vary by policy, and each trade page above sets out what's usually covered and what isn't.
Public liability
Claims from members of the public, clients and visitors who are hurt, or whose property is damaged, because of your work.
Employers' liability
Claims from employees hurt or made ill at work. Usually required by law if you employ staff, and labour-only subcontractors may count as employees.
Contractors all risk
Damage to the works, materials and site equipment during the contract, from events such as fire, flood, storm and theft.
Professional indemnity
Claims that a mistake in your design, specification or advice caused a client a financial loss.
Tools and equipment
Your own tools and equipment against theft and damage, on site, in transit and in storage. Limits for tools left in vans overnight often apply.
Hired-in plant
Plant and machinery you hire in, which hire agreements usually make you responsible for, plus the hire charges you may keep paying while it's out of use.
Developers and projects: we also arrange cover for property developers, including insurance for single projects. Tell us about your project.
Why work with PIB Insurance Brokers
We check what your contracts ask for
Insurance clauses, limits and collateral warranties in your contracts, so the cover you buy matches what you've agreed to.
We describe your work accurately
Work at height, hot work, depth, demolition and design responsibility, so your activities are covered.
We look at the whole picture
Whether one combined policy or separate covers suits you better, and what your subcontractors should hold.
Here when things change
Our team is on hand throughout the policy year for advice, whether your circumstances change or you're not sure what to do next.
What our clients say
Reviews from PIB Insurance Brokers clients across the sectors we work with, collected by Reviews.io.
Not sure what cover your construction business needs?
Get a quoteFrequently asked questions
What does a construction insurance broker do?
A broker such as PIB Insurance Brokers acts for you rather than for an insurer. We ask about your trade, your projects and your contracts, approach insurers that cover construction work, and explain the differences in cover, exclusions and conditions before you buy. If you need to claim, we help you put the claim to the insurer and follow it through. Our Terms of Business explain how we're paid.
Is public liability insurance a legal requirement for contractors?
No, public liability insurance isn't required by law in the UK. But many clients, main contractors, councils and site owners won't let you start work without it, and often set a minimum limit, commonly £1m, £2m, £5m or £10m. Without it, you would have to pay compensation and legal costs yourself if someone is hurt or their property is damaged because of your work.
Do I need employers' liability insurance for subcontractors?
It depends on how you work with them. Labour-only subcontractors who work under your direction, use your tools and materials and don't run their own business may be treated as employees for employers' liability purposes. Subcontractors who run their own business, supply their own tools and materials and carry their own insurance usually aren't. Check your policy and ask subcontractors for evidence of their own cover.