Pipe Fitters Insurance - What Do You Need?
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Pipe Fitters Insurance UK
With the sharp tools and welding equipment you use regularly during your work, it’s important to make sure you’ve got appropriate insurance so you’re covered if anything does go wrong. This guide to Pipe Fitters insurance will give you everything you need to know about the types of cover available to you, and breakdown how much these are likely to cost.
If you’d like any additional information, fill out a quote form and receive quotes from some of the UK’s top pipe fitting insurers.
Popular Types of Insurance for a Pipe Fitter
| Common Types of Pipe Fitters Insurance & What They Cover | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Public Liability | Covers if you a member of the general public suffers damages or is injured due to your work |
| 2. | Product Liability | Often coupled with Public Liability, protects you if somebody incurs damages or injury from a product you sold or used |
| 3. | Employers' Liability | Insures against claims by employees that their work caused them injury or illness |
| 4. | Personal Accident | Financial security if you are unable to work due to injury or illness |
| 5. | Business Use Vehicle | Vehicle protection for the increased risk of driving for business use (such as extra mileage) |
| 6. | Tools | Replaces your equipment if it’s stolen or accidentally damaged/lost |
Pipe Fitters Insurance Examples
- Public Liability: While installing a set of pipes you drop your tools and damage your customer’s floor. They sue you for the cost of the repair.
- Product Liability: You’ve sold somebody a cutting tool, which fails almost immediately and causes damages to the pipes they were working on. They sue you for the repair cost.
- Employers’ Liability: One of your employees trips and falls on site, and blames your business for not taking appropriate precaution. They can’t work for 3 weeks, and sue you for their lost salary.
- Personal Accident: After an unfortunate biking accident on the way to a work site, doctors recommend you take 6 weeks away from work. Your earnings are covered by your Personal Accident coverage.
- Business Use Vehicle: While driving down an unfamiliar road, you damage your vehicle. Your Comprehensive Business Use coverage pays for the repair.
- Tools and Equipment: Your tools are stolen from your van overnight. You have coverage for storing them in your van at night, sor Tools cover pays for an equal or equivalent replacement set.
Absolutely. Pipe fitting is a dangerous business, and the cutting/welding torches, pipe threaders and saws you use can cause expensive damages if an accident does happen. Most good pipe fitters wouldn’t risk working without a Public Liability policy, and many clients won’t consider you for projects if you don’t have a policy ahead of time.
If you’ve got any expensive tools, while not mandatory, you should also look into Tools coverage. It’ll pay for a replacement if your tools go missing or are stolen.
Finally, if you hire anybody, the law requires you to hold Employers’ Liability. Similarly, if you use your vehicle to support your business, your insurer will need you to hold a valid Business Use policy. Driving without one risks voiding your coverage all together.
Traditional ways to save money on other insurances are still applicable to your business insurances. Some include:
- More years in industry
- Not working in big cities or near high-risk sites (airports, seaports, power stations)
- No prior claims or criminal convictions
- Comparing quotes from different providers
No, you shouldn’t do. Make sure to inform your insurer of the work you undertake accurately when you first sign up and they should be able to create a policy that protects you for all the work you do.
What insurances do you need to be a Pipe Fitter?
Pipe fitting is a risky business—Public Liability is generally considered a must-have within the industry, and many clients will insist you have a policy before engaging you. The average claim against Public Liability was £13,500 in 2019, so the cost of not being sufficiently protected can be enormous.
You’re legally required to have Employers’ Liability if you hire any staff, even if only for a single day. And if you use your vehicle for business purposes, such as driving to and from client sites, you’ll need a Business Use policy to make sure you’re covered at all times.
Pipe fitters often have expensive equipment, such as torches and welding guns. If replacing these if they’re accidentally damaged or stolen could be a costly exercise for you, then look into getting a Tools policy to cover you if something does go wrong.
And finally, Personal Accident insurances can help protect you if something does go wrong and you’re unable to work as a result, securing your income while you take time away to rest and recover.
How much does Pipe Fitters insurance cost?
A standard £2M Public Liability policy will cost you around £475 per year. It’s quite a lot more than the average cost of Public Liability insurance in the UK., but this isn’t surprising given the risks pipe fitters are exposed to on a daily basis.
| Average Cost of Pipe Fitters Insurance for a sole trader | |
|---|---|
| £2M Public Liability (PL) | £476 |
| £5M PL | £773 |
| £2M PL, £2,000 Tools (not left in van overnight) | £689 |
| £2M PL, £2,000 Tools (left in van overnight) | £749 |
| £2M PL, £5,000 Tools (left in van overnight) | £783 |
| £2M PL, Personal Accident | £557 |
| £2M PL, Personal Accident, £2,000 Tools (left in van overnight) | £831 |
| £2M PL, 1 Employee, £2,000 Tools, Personal Accident | £1,561 |
Where Can I Get Quotes?
Compare pipe fitter insurance quotes here by filling out a short form. You’ll receive quotes from some of the UK’s best pipe fitting insurers, and can choose the policy that best suits your needs at a price that works for you.
More Information on Types of Pipefitters Insurance
Public Liability Insurance
Sometimes referred to as General Liability or Tradesman Liability, Public Liability Insurance protects you if a third party (general public, customer, other business on site) believes you’re at fault for an injury or damages. It’ll pay any legal costs you incur during your defense and any compensation the court awards.
While not a legal requirement, it’s generally considered a must-have as a tradesman, and many businesses will require you to have one before allowing you to bid for larger pieces of work.
Employers Liability Insurance
Employers' Liability Insurance will cover any legal costs and compensation if one of your employees believes you’re at fault for an injury or illness they got while working for you.
It’s a legal requirement if you hire any staff, and the fines for not having an appropriate policy are severe—up to £2,500 per day for every day someone works for you uninsured.
Tools Insurance
Tools and Equipment insurance protects the tools of your trade if they’re stolen or damaged/lost accidentally. While not a legal requirement, many tradesmen like the security a policy offers them, making sure the impact of anything going wrong on their end client is minimised.
Quotes were gathered for a sample pipe fitter in North West London with no prior experience. The three cheapest quotes were used to generate our results, and you may find costs higher or lower dependent on the variables insurers measure risk by.