Insurance

Most professionals in other sectors are legally obliged to have Professional Indemnity Insurance. At present those engaged in the IT sector, surprisingly, are not. This in itself shows the lack of current regulation in the IT industry.

•	Members of the Association are automatically insured for £2m worth of Public Liability and £1m worth of Professional Indemnity.
•	The cost of insurance is included within the membership fee. Insurance is obligatory, since the Association believes an accredited professional in the IT sector must be insured to protect both their client and themselves.
•	These insurances are underwritten by Hiscox Insurance Company Limited, a specialist insurer in the field of Public Liability and Professional Indemnity.
•	Upon acceptance into the Association, the new Member will be given an Association Members’ Pack, within which is a Certificate of Insurance in the name of the Member and a copy of the Association’s insurance policy under which the Certificate is issued.
•	These Insurances give added security to Members’ clients as well as to Members, since the consequences of trading uninsured can be disastrous.

The Association, along with the Department of Trade and Industry, believes that those operating in the IT sector should at least have Public Liability Insurance, to insure against claims arising whilst attending a third party’s premises, when using and/or repairing a third party’s computer and/or software and/or system.

In simple terms if an engineer attends a client’s home or office and accidentally causes damage, who is liable for that damage?

Do you believe your client base would prefer you to have Public Liability Insurance, with the security and protection it provides?

With regard to Professional Indemnity Insurance, most government departments now require IT consultants to carry this insurance, as do many professional clients in areas such as Accountancy, Law, Finance and Medicine. Awareness of loss through negligence also extends to general business and trading. With the gaining importance of home data storage, such awareness will soon extend into the home.

Do you believe your client base would prefer you to have Professional Indemnity Insurance, with the security and protection it provides?

Aside from the security these insurances provide, they also show your clients that you are a serious professional.