Employer liability cover essential for SMEs
Published On 21 March 2008
Small and medium-sized businesses should definitely make sure that they have employer liability cover, an industry expert has said.According to the Institute of Risk Management (IRM), it can be very dangerous for firms if they are without this cover, which includes entrepreneurs who hire contractors, as they could be liable in the event of accidents without realising it.
The IRM made its comments in the wake of research from Hiscox which found that nearly two thirds of SME owners do not have this type of insurance.
Carolyn Williams, development manager at the Institute of Risk Management, noted that prevention is better than cure, and firms should put the correct practices in place to ensure that the threat of accidents happening is minimal.
She commented: "It is essential and I think it would be very dangerous for businesses to run without it. I think it needs to be looked at in the overall context of health and safety in the workplace. The liability aspect of it is more costly, but there is also the pain and suffering.
"The Health and Safety Executive have done some work that shows that even for the money that is paid out under liability policy, something like eight times as much is not covered, such as the extra time that people have to use to cover a worker who is sick, the administrative time of bringing in a replacement and that sort of thing."
Ms Williams went on to say that public liability insurance is very important too.
