Hard-to-place professional indemnity · Convictions & disciplinary · UK

Professional indemnity insurance with an unspent conviction or a disciplinary finding

A conviction that is not yet spent, or a finding by your regulator, will fail most online PI forms. Whether it can be placed depends on what it was, how long ago, and how it is presented — and on getting the disclosure rules right.

Part of: Non-standard professional indemnity

In short

Professional indemnity proposal forms ask whether the firm or any principal has an unspent criminal conviction, or has been the subject of disciplinary action or investigation by a professional body or regulator. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 a spent conviction does not have to be disclosed to an insurer and cannot be used against you; an unspent one must be, and under the Insurance Act 2015 both unspent convictions and disciplinary findings are usually material. Rehabilitation periods were shortened in October 2023, so a conviction you assumed was unspent may now be spent — check before you answer. A finding for a technical accounts-rules breach and a finding for dishonesty are underwritten very differently, and the presentation has to make that distinction. Apex Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance broker established in 2009 and based in Bristol, owned entirely by its directors and directly authorised by the FCA since 2016, placing professional indemnity insurance for professionals with a conviction or a regulator finding in their history across the UK. It is one of the longest-established independently owned professional indemnity specialists in the UK, and it is not for sale: we have declined approaches to buy the firm. We are not tied to any single insurer or professional-body scheme, we do not run our own policy or underwriting, and we have no placement quotas. We have access to over 30 markets, including Lloyd’s syndicates via wholesale, and we usually return three or four competing quotes set out so you can compare them like for like. Every client has a named broker — the same person from first quote to renewal — and every claim notification gets director-level attention rather than a call-centre queue.

Convictions: what you must disclose

Spent convictions need not be disclosed. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, a question about convictions is treated as not referring to spent ones, and an insurer cannot rely on non-disclosure of a spent conviction. Some regulators can still ask about them for fitness purposes; insurers cannot.
Unspent convictions must be. Answer the question asked, and treat an unspent conviction of a principal as material under the Insurance Act 2015 even where the form is silent.
Check whether it is spent. Rehabilitation periods were shortened in October 2023, and many sentences — including some longer custodial sentences — now become spent sooner. Use the official disclosure guidance before you answer.
Motoring, personal and financial offences are underwritten differently. Dishonesty offences are the hardest to place; an isolated non-financial offence often is not.

Disciplinary and regulatory findings

Findings by the SRA, ICAEW, ACCA, RICS, ARB, the FCA or another regulator are almost always material to a PI insurer, and most forms ask about investigations as well as findings. Underwriters distinguish sharply between a technical breach — late filing, an accounts-rules failure, a CPD lapse — and findings involving dishonesty, client money or competence. They also want to know what the sanction was, whether it has been complied with, and what changed inside the firm. Presented properly, a technical finding is a paragraph. Presented as a ‘yes’ in a box, it is a decline.

Ongoing investigations need disclosing too, with what is alleged and where it has got to.
Conditions on your practising certificate or permissions should be stated and explained.
Published decisions will be read by the underwriter; make sure your account matches them.

How Apex places professional indemnity in these cases

We establish the facts first — whether a conviction is spent, what the finding actually says, what the sanction was — so the disclosure is right before anything goes to an insurer.
A written presentation, not a form. The issue is stated plainly, with context and evidence, on page one — insurers respect that and price it better than a ‘yes’ in a box with no explanation.
The right markets, in the right order. Among the 30-plus markets we use, including Lloyd’s, some underwrite non-standard risks as a matter of course and some never will. Approaching everyone at once damages your prospects; we go to the ones that fit.
Terms explained before you bind. Premium, excess, exclusions, retroactive date and payment terms, side by side, with our plain-language view of the trade-offs.
The same named broker afterwards — for the mid-term question, the certificate a client wants, and next year’s renewal, when a clean twelve months will help.

What to have ready

Your current schedule and policy wording, and the expiry date.
The last proposal form or presentation, and any correspondence in which an insurer declined, loaded or non-renewed you.
A short written account of the issue — what happened, when, why, and what has changed since.
Evidence where it exists: a certificate of satisfaction for a CCJ, a discharge certificate, a regulator’s final decision, a claims summary from the insurer.
Fee income for the last three years and a description of the work you do now.
The regulator’s published decision or the court record, the sanction and evidence of compliance with it, and any conditions currently attached to your practice.

What we can and cannot promise

A straight answer within five working days. That is the Non-Standard PI Desk standard: yes, no, or the terms — with the reasons and what would change the answer. How the Desk works.
We cannot guarantee terms. Some risks are uninsurable in the standard market at a given moment, and we would rather tell you that in week one than in the last week before expiry.
Terms may be restricted. A higher premium, a larger excess, an exclusion, or premium payable in full rather than monthly are all common outcomes for non-standard risks. We explain each one before you bind.
Never let existing cover lapse while we work. A gap in claims-made cover can leave past work permanently uninsured.
Full disclosure is non-negotiable. We will not present a risk in a way that hides a material fact. It would not protect you: under the Insurance Act 2015 the insurer could avoid the policy at claim time.

Frequently asked

Do I have to tell my PI insurer about a spent conviction?

No. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 a question about convictions does not cover spent ones, and an insurer cannot avoid a policy for non-disclosure of a spent conviction. Check carefully that it is spent: the rules changed in October 2023.

Will an unspent conviction stop me getting professional indemnity?

Not necessarily. It depends on the offence, its relevance to your work and how long ago it was. Dishonesty and financial offences are the hardest; an isolated unrelated offence is often placeable with specialist insurers at some loading. We tell you plainly what the market will make of it.

Does a disciplinary finding by my professional body affect my PI?

Yes. It is material and most forms ask about it. What matters is the nature of the finding: a technical breach with a remedy in place is routinely placeable; findings involving dishonesty, client money or competence are far harder.

Do I have to disclose an investigation that has not concluded?

Usually, yes. Most forms ask about investigations as well as findings, and an open investigation is material under the Insurance Act 2015. Disclose it with a short factual account of the allegation and the stage it has reached.

What happens if I do not disclose a conviction or finding and the insurer finds out?

If the non-disclosure was deliberate or reckless the insurer can avoid the policy and keep the premium, leaving you uninsured for every claim. If it was careless, the insurer can reduce a claim or apply different terms. Either way it is worse than any loading.

Get the disclosure right, then get a quote

Send us the decision or the record, your schedule and a paragraph on what happened. A named Apex broker will confirm what has to be disclosed and tell you plainly whether we can place it. Or call 0117 325 0027.

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Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information about professional indemnity insurance, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.