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Security and cleaning contractors
The SIA licenses individual security operatives rather than companies, but a firm that deploys unlicensed staff can commit an offence and weaken its insurance position. Insurers ask about licensing because it shows how well a contractor controls its workforce.
Part of: Security company insurance
In short
Under the Private Security Industry Act 2001, anyone carrying out licensable security work under a contract for services needs an SIA licence, and managers, supervisors, directors and employers of those staff need one too. Licences last three years. Businesses are not licensed, but they can join the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme, under which the SIA considers whether a firm holds public and employers’ liability of at least £5 million and requires vetting to BS 7858 or a sector equivalent. Insurers ask the same questions, and an unlicensed deployment can complicate a claim.
Section 3 of the Act makes it an offence to engage in licensable conduct except under and in accordance with a licence. On summary conviction the penalty is up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine up to level 5 on the standard scale, or both.
Licensable conduct is wider than doing the job yourself. It includes managing or supervising licensable staff, being a director or partner of a business whose people carry out licensable work, and employing people to do it. The explanatory notes also describe a separate offence of using an unlicensed security operative, with defences where the employer did not know and had no reasonable grounds to suspect, or took all reasonable steps to prevent it.
The SIA confirms that there is no requirement for security companies to register with it: it licenses individuals, not businesses. Firms must still comply with its rules for the people they deploy.
The SIA’s guide to whether you need a licence lists the licensable activities. A licence is generally needed where the work is part of a contract for services.
| Activity | Typical work | In-house staff |
|---|---|---|
| Security guarding | Guarding premises or property against damage, theft or unauthorised access | Usually no licence needed |
| Door supervision | Guarding licensed premises when open to the public | Licence needed in-house too |
| Public space surveillance (CCTV) | Monitoring public areas under contract | Usually no licence needed |
| Close protection | Protecting individuals | Usually no licence needed |
| Cash and valuables in transit | Moving cash and valuables securely | Usually no licence needed |
| Key holding | Keeping or controlling access to keys or devices for operating locks | Usually no licence needed |
| Vehicle immobilisation | Clamping or removing vehicles | Northern Ireland, in-house too |
Front line licences, usually photocards, are for people who carry out the activity. Non-front line licences, issued as letters, are for managers, supervisors, employers and directors whose staff do licensable work. Volunteers, people checking tickets who do not refuse entry, and stewards are generally outside the regime.
According to the SIA’s application guidance, all licences last three years, except vehicle immobiliser licences, which last one year. Applicants must be 18 or over, pass identity and criminal record checks and, in most cases, have the right to work in the UK.
Front line licences other than key holding need a licence-linked qualification. For door supervisors and security officers that means the relevant Level 2 award. The SIA’s training guidance says renewing operatives need a refresher qualification, top-up qualifications are no longer accepted, and a first aid qualification is required before the training, valid for at least another 12 months.
Build licence expiry dates into your rostering system. An officer whose licence lapsed last week is unlicensed today, whatever their experience.
The Approved Contractor Scheme is voluntary. Approval is granted per activity on a pass or fail basis. The SIA’s Get Approved guidance (July 2026) adds that:
The SIA also states that ACS members are required to work to BS 7858, or an appropriate sector equivalent, when screening staff. Many public sector and corporate tenders ask for ACS status, so these requirements often become contract terms.
Proposal forms for security company insurance commonly ask whether every operative holds the correct SIA licence, how you check it, and how you vet staff. Some policies make licensing a condition. If an incident involves an unlicensed officer, the insurer may question the claim; how far it can rely on the breach depends on the wording and the facts, including whether the term was relevant to the loss. See our note on terms not relevant to the actual loss.
Prosecution is a separate problem. Liability policies do not usually pay fines, and defence costs for a regulatory prosecution depend on whether you have legal expenses cover and what it says.
Illustrative: a door supervisor whose licence expired a month earlier injures a customer during an ejection. The customer sues the contractor and the venue. Even if the insurer pays, the venue may end the contract and the SIA may look at both the individual and the managers who deployed him.
Subcontracting does not move the licensing duty away from you. If you supply officers from another firm, check their licences yourself, keep the evidence, and make sure the subcontractor carries its own employers’ liability and public liability cover. Insurers will want to know how much work you subcontract, to whom, and whether you take indemnities back.
Door and event work brings extra rules under the Licensing Act 2003; see door supervisor and event security insurance. Contract key holding often sits alongside cleaning and facilities contracts, so firms working across both should read facilities management insurance and cleaning company insurance.
Apex arranges insurance for security contractors, subject to the insurer’s acceptance and the policy terms. A broker reads each enquiry and comes back with options, and there is no fee for a quote. We need your business activities, turnover, location and claims history, plus the licensable activities you supply, ACS status, how you check and record licences, vetting standard, and how many officers are employed, self-employed or subcontracted.
No. The SIA licenses individuals, not businesses, and there is no requirement for security companies to register with it. Directors, partners, managers and supervisors of licensable staff may need non-front line licences themselves, and firms can choose to join the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme, which many clients ask for in tenders.
SIA licences last three years, except vehicle immobiliser licences, which last one year. Door supervisors and security officers renewing their licence need a refresher qualification as well as a current first aid qualification. Keep a record of every expiry date, because an officer with a lapsed licence is working unlicensed.
The SIA’s Get Approved guidance says it will consider whether the business holds public liability and employers’ liability insurance of at least £5 million, and asks for both certificates. Clients may want higher limits. Professional indemnity is not mentioned in that guidance but is often needed for advisory work.
Engaging in licensable conduct without a licence is an offence under section 3 of the Private Security Industry Act 2001, punishable by up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine, or both. There is a separate offence of using unlicensed operatives. An unlicensed deployment can also complicate an insurance claim, depending on the policy wording.
Usually not, because the licensing regime mainly applies to work under a contract for services. The exceptions are door supervision at licensed premises, which needs a licence in-house too, and vehicle immobilisation in Northern Ireland. In-house staff at a certified sports ground in England or Wales are exempt.
Tell us what your business does, your turnover and any claims. A broker reads every enquiry and comes back with options. No fee for a quote. Or call 0117 325 0027.
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