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Public liability exclusions
Public liability insurance usually does not cover injury to your own employees, your own property, professional advice, the cost of redoing faulty work, gradual pollution or vehicles on the road, and many policies limit or exclude more besides.
Part of: Public liability insurance explained
In short
Public liability covers claims from third parties for injury or property damage caused by your business. It usually leaves out your employees, your own tools and property, financial loss from advice, and the cost of fixing your own faulty work. Many policies also exclude gradual pollution, asbestos, road vehicles, work abroad and fines, and heat work is often subject to strict conditions. Exclusions vary by wording, so read your own policy and ask your broker about any gap that matters to your work.
These are the exclusions and limits we most often see in UK wordings. Policies differ, so use the table as a checklist for your own public liability policy.
| Not covered (usually) | Example | Where cover usually comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Injury to your own employees | An apprentice falls from a stepladder on site | Employers' liability |
| Your own property, and property in your care | Stolen tools; a boiler damaged while you service it | Tools cover; limited extensions |
| Professional advice and design errors | A specification you drew up turns out to be wrong | Professional indemnity |
| The cost of putting right your own faulty work | A patio you laid has to be relaid | Usually uninsured |
| Products you sell, supply or make (if not included) | A product you imported injures a buyer | Products liability section |
| Liability you accept only by contract | An indemnity clause in a main contractor's terms | Contract review; specific extensions |
| Gradual pollution | A slow leak from a stored container over months | Environmental impairment cover |
| Vehicles used on the road | A van reverses into a parked car | Motor or commercial vehicle insurance |
| Heat work done outside the policy conditions | A blowtorch fire where no fire watch was kept | Comply with the heat work condition |
| Work abroad, offshore or in the USA and Canada | A claim brought in a US court after a site visit | Territorial and jurisdiction extensions |
| Asbestos | Disturbing asbestos during a strip-out | Limited buy-backs, if available |
| Deliberate acts, fines and penalties | A fine after a prosecution | Usually not insured |
Public liability almost always excludes injury or illness to people you employ. That risk belongs to employers' liability insurance, which is a legal requirement for most employers. GOV.UK says you need it as soon as you become an employer, with cover of at least £5 million from an authorised insurer (GOV.UK: Employers' liability insurance).
Scenario: a plastering firm's apprentice falls from a stepladder in a client's hallway. The apprentice's claim goes to the employers' liability policy, not the public liability section. Many insurers also treat labour-only subcontractors as employees.
Public liability covers damage to other people's property, not your own. Your tools, equipment, van contents and premises need their own cover. Many policies also exclude, or tightly limit, damage to property you are working on or that has been left in your care, custody or control.
Scenario: a heating engineer damages the boiler they were hired to service, then has their tools stolen from the van overnight. The boiler damage may fall within a limited ‘working on’ extension or may not be covered at all. The stolen tools need tools or contractors' plant cover.
Public liability deals with physical injury and damage. A client's financial loss from wrong advice, design or specification usually falls outside it.
Scenario: a kitchen fitter draws up a layout that the client's appliances do not fit. Nothing was damaged and nobody was hurt, so the claim belongs to professional indemnity insurance.
Most policies will not pay to put right the defective work you did. They may still respond to damage that the faulty work causes to other property.
Scenario: a plumber's badly made joint leaks and brings down a kitchen ceiling. The ceiling and the damaged contents may be covered; the cost of remaking the joint usually is not. Our defective workmanship scenario walks through this split in more detail.
Injury or damage caused by goods after they leave your control is products liability. Some policies bundle it with public liability; others do not.
Scenario: a small online retailer imports a heater that overheats in a buyer's home. If the policy has no products section, the claim may not be covered. See how products liability differs from other covers.
Policies cover legal liability. Where you agree in a contract to accept more responsibility than the law would place on you, for example an indemnity for losses that are not your fault, many policies exclude the extra.
Scenario: a subcontractor signs terms promising to indemnify a main contractor for any loss on site, however caused. Losses beyond the subcontractor's legal liability may not be covered. Send unusual clauses to your broker before you sign.
Many UK public liability policies cover only pollution caused by a sudden, identifiable, unintended incident. Pollution that builds up over time is usually excluded.
Scenario: a vehicle workshop's waste oil tank seeps into the ground for months before anyone notices. A sudden spill might be covered; this slow leak usually is not. Businesses with this exposure often look at gradual pollution or environmental cover.
Using a vehicle on a road or other public place needs motor insurance under section 143 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. Public liability policies therefore usually exclude liability arising from vehicles where that compulsory motor cover applies.
Scenario: a gardener reverses their van into a neighbour's car. That is a motor claim. Many policies keep cover for things like loading and unloading or plant used as a tool, but road risks sit with commercial vehicle insurance.
Work with blowtorches, welding, grinding or hot bitumen is often covered only if you follow a heat work condition, such as clearing combustibles, keeping extinguishers to hand and a fire watch after finishing.
Scenario: a roofer leaves site straight after torching on felt and a smouldering fire takes hold. Without the required fire watch, the claim may be at risk. See our page on hot works for roofers.
Most UK policies have territorial and jurisdiction limits. Work abroad or offshore, and claims in US or Canadian courts, are commonly excluded or need an extension.
Scenario: an exhibition contractor sends a team to a trade show in the United States and a visitor trips over a cable. Without a worldwide extension that includes the USA, the policy may not respond.
Many policies exclude asbestos completely; others give limited cover for accidental disturbance, often with a lower limit. Duty holders for many non-domestic buildings and the common parts of blocks also have a legal duty to manage asbestos (HSE: duty to manage asbestos).
Scenario: a shopfitter cuts into old ceiling boards that turn out to contain asbestos, and the unit has to be closed and decontaminated. Read our note on the asbestos exclusion.
Policies insure accidents. Injury or damage you intended is usually excluded, as are fines, penalties and punitive damages.
Scenario: after a member of the public is hurt, a local authority prosecutes the business under health and safety law. Some policies include cover for legal defence costs in such proceedings, but the fine itself is not paid.
If a gap matters to your work, the usual fix is an extension, a separate policy such as contractors' all risks for the works themselves, or a change to how you contract.
See also: Property damage liability explained
Usually not. Injury or illness to your employees is normally excluded from public liability and covered by employers' liability insurance, which most UK employers must hold by law.
Often only in part. Many policies limit damage to the property you are working on and exclude the cost of redoing faulty work, though resulting damage to other property is often covered.
Usually not. A claim that your advice, design or specification caused a financial loss is normally a professional indemnity matter, not public liability.
Many policies cover pollution from a sudden, unintended incident but exclude gradual pollution that builds up over time. Ask about environmental cover if you handle fuel, chemicals or waste.
Often not as standard. Most UK policies have territorial limits and many exclude claims brought in the USA or Canada. Extensions may be available if arranged in advance.
Usually not. Fines and penalties are normally excluded. Some policies help with defence costs.
Send us your schedule and wording and a broker will tell you where the gaps are, with no obligation. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Ask a broker Start a commercial enquiryApex 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 common policy exclusions, not advice on your individual circumstances. Wordings differ, so always check your own policy. It does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
