Why do I need Public Liability Insurance?

I had an email yesterday from someone who performs musical acts in schools and wanting to know if they needed public liability insurance as they assumed they would be covered by the schools own insurance policy.

My advice, of course, was most definitely. If you have any interaction with members of  the public or their property, either on their premises or at yours, regardless of the type of work you do, then you have to protect yourself.

Firstly, most organisations, these days, will require proof of appropriate and adeqaute insurance cover.

Have a think about the risks and potential for things to go wrong. In this case, a student could trip over an instrument?, the amp could short out or fall over and injure a child? so many events are (remotely) possible. The school may have insurance to cover such events but insurers these days are showing more and more propensity to recover their costs and you may become a target. Even if you are not ata fault and a claim arises, you are likley to be drawn into it and incur considerable legal costs in the process.

Public liability insurance (and peace of mind) is pretty cheap, particularly for relatively low risks. Speak to your broker for the best advice regarding your needs or check out some of the online quote services available.