Get exclusive small-business offers and guides
Straight to your inbox
By signing up, you agree to the Finder Privacy & Cookies Policy and Terms of Use, Disclaimer & Privacy Policy.
Public Liability Insurance in Australia
No matter what industry you work in, getting public liability insurance should be at the top of your checklist.
Types
Industries
Whether you're in the construction business or run a small motel, the risk of injuring someone or damaging their property shouldn't be ignored. In 2017-18 alone1, there were over 32,000 liability claims reported in Australia for accidents that occurred in 2017. This doesn't even include accidents that occurred in years prior.
Luckily, public liability insurance is designed specifically to cover the above. It provides necessary financial protection for costly lawsuits e.g the cost of compensation and any legal expenses if someone sues you for being injured on your worksite.
1General Insurance in Australia report, March 2019
What would you like to do next?
Compare quotes online Speak to a broker Learn more
If you are ready to speak with a consultant about different business insurance options available, simply enter your details in the form. Keep reading if you want to learn more about the different types of cover available.
What's in this guide?
On this page
Useful public liability guides
What is public liability insurance?
Public liability insurance is a type of cover that protects you if your business becomes legally liable if someone is injured or their property is damaged.
It refers to damages from the physical surroundings and physical property rather than damages from services you provide. For example, it will cover you if someone slips and falls on your property, but not if you splash bleach into their eye while dyeing their hair.
What costs are covered?
- If approved, your public liability claim will cover what you owe the person suing you, plus your legal fees.
What is and isn't covered
Public liability isn't a universal solution for anything that goes wrong. Here's an idea of what it does and doesn't cover:
| Covers | Doesn't cover |
|---|---|
|
|
Note: Professional indemnity insurance is offered by insurers in conjunction with public liability insurance.
Full guide: What is public liability insurance?
Do I even need public liability insurance?
After workers compensation, public liability insurance is one of the foundational forms of cover that very few occupations can afford to go without. It's not mandatory in most cases, but lawsuits of this sort can affect almost any type of business and leave you owing large sums of money.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Does your work impact the public?
- Are you willing to cover the costs of a claim against you out of your own pocket?
- How might your business suffer if you were forced to take time off to attend court hearings or hire alternate staff to cope?
- If your business had to close temporarily as a result, would you be able to handle losses from clients taking business elsewhere?
- Could you afford to lose staff if you can't pay wages after damages?
If any of these questions leave you unsure, public liability insurance is likely a good idea.
If a public liability claim were to arise then you'll need to cover both:
- Any compensation to the person who makes a claim against you
- The cost of your legals expenses e.g. hiring a defence lawyer, court fees. Public liability insurance is designed to help you cover these expenses e.g. if an accident happens at your restaurant.
Here are some situations where you could be at risk:
- You invite customers onto your property. Supermarkets, clothing shops, pizza parlours and beauty salons are just a few businesses that rely on public foot traffic to stay in business. With foot traffic comes the potential for injury.
- You invite anyone onto your property. Even if you're not a customer-facing business, a member of the public could still get injured on your property. For example, a courier visiting a corporate office could slip and fall on their way out of the building.
- You take your clients out into the public. Those providing mobile services can be held responsible if they injure someone or damage something while out and about, especially if they carry equipment. Window cleaners, painters, plumbers and mobile hairdressers all need public liability insurance if they want to be protected.
- You're in the trades. Businesses operating on temporary work sites will need public liability insurance even though they aren't inviting the public onto the site. Why? Because an innocent bystander could be injured by stray equipment. Independent contractors on site will need their own cover apart from the business that hired them.
What industries usually need public liability cover?
As mentioned previously, almost all businesses would benefit from this protection. Regardless of business size, public liability insurance is suitable if the business has a physical premise or operates in public (such as a mobile business). Here are some obvious examples:
- Retail. Grocery stores, book shops and department stores have physical locations with lots of foot traffic, increasing the chances of someone getting injured.
- Health and beauty. Gyms, physical therapy centres and hair salons also bring the public into their premises. Even solo professionals may need public liability if they carry equipment that could damage or injure a member of the public.
- Hospitality. Restaurants, bars, clubs and cafes bring in lots of people while also creating a fast-paced environment where injuries are more likely.
- The trades. Any business or independent contractor operating on a work site would benefit from public liability insurance, and in some cases are required by law or by contract to have it.
- Entertainment. e.g. dancers, performers, event organisers, etc.
- Real estate e.g. Landlords, strata management etc.
It's important to remember that public liability will protect business in these industries if they cause injuries or damage that are not related to the professional service provided.
Look no further than the claims data
A snapshot of Australia. In 20171 there were over 30,000 claims reported for accidents that occurred in 2017 and 36,000 reported for accidents that occurred in 2016. If we go back four years to 2013, we can can get a snapshot of liability incidents by state and type.
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, 2014. Note: incidents takes into account claims reported and an estimate for claims unreported.
What's covered?
What is and isn't covered?
Public liability won't cover every type of liability. Policies will generally include cover for:
- Legal liability. Public liability insurance provides cover when a court finds that you are legally responsible to pay damages and additional costs for:
- Damage to someone else’s property
- Personal injury to someone else
- Advertising liability
- Legal costs. If a legal liability claim is made against you, your public liability policy will cover the costs incurred in your legal defence.
- Differing levels of cover. Many insurers will offer you a choice of the maximum level of cover, for example $5 million, $10 million or $20 million.
- Property in your care. You may be able to take out additional cover for damage to property in your care, custody or control. Covered items include personal belongings, temporarily occupied or leased premises and vehicles in a car park.
- Cover for other people. Public liability will not only include you but any director, business partner, executive officer, shareholder or employee.
- Cover for other activities. Many policies will allow you to extend cover beyond your normal business activities to include the provision of sports and child care facilities, first aid and ambulance services, and the provision of food and beverages to employees and visitors.
- Products liability. Some policies will also include products liability cover for injury or damage caused by your products.
- Loss of goods in possession or legal control: Provides cover for loss of, loss of use of goods that are not owned by the insured but are in their possession and legal control, as though it were Damage to the Property
- Damage to goods in possession or legal control: Provides cover for physical damage to goods that are not owned by the insured but are in their possession or legal control.
- First aid expenses: Provides cover for expenses incurred by the insured for first aid given to other parties at the time of an injury.
Although the list of general exclusions on a public liability insurance policy differs between insurers, your claim will typically not be paid if:
- It relates to asbestos
- It relates to your responsibility to injured workers (workers compensation)
- It relates to punitive damages
- It's caused by the operation, possession or use of an aircraft or watercraft
- It arises due to defective work done or undertaken by you
- It relates to products liability
- It's for damage to property you own or that is in your care, except for certain items such as vehicles and business premises
- It arises due to the use of a vehicle
- It relates to the cost of recalling, withdrawing, replacing or repairing products, or making a refund on the price paid for products
- It's for certain types of advertising liability, for example a mistake in the advertised price of a product or service
- It's for any liability or obligation that you assume under contract or agreement
- It's caused by a deliberate act or omission by you or any employee
- It's caused by electromagnetic fields or electromagnetic interference
- It results from your Internet operations
- It's for damage to computer data or programs caused by the use of any computer hardware of software
- It's caused by a claim of defamation brought against you
- It arises from the communication, display, distribution or publication of electronic data
- It arises from the total or partial destruction, erasure or corruption of electronic data
- It's caused by any breach of professional duty by you
- It results from an act of war or terrorism
Comparing and buying cover
How do I compare public liability insurance policies?
There's a lot more to business insurance than just public liability. You can speak to a broker or get quotes from different insurers to find what cover you need, at a price that makes sense for you.
Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you mull your options:
- Does the insurer offer other products you need for your business? There are dozens of cover types a business might need beyond just public liability, and those business are better off going with someone who offers the whole package. It's more efficient, you might receive a discount and you can be comfortable knowing you’re with an insurer who has a holistic view of your business risks.
- What will your out-of-pocket costs be? Whenever your claim is approved, you'll almost always have to pay a small portion of the payout yourself and the insurer will cover the rest up to the insured amount. This is your excess. All else being equal, the policy with the higher excess will be the worse deal.
- What will your payout be? If you need to make a claim, your insurer will have a limit on what they will pay out. The higher the benefit limit, the better for you. So make sure you take this into consideration when comparing policies
- What's included? Not every policy will cover every instance of liability. For example, one policy may only cover you if the damage occurred on your property. Others will extend this to include damage you cause elsewhere, such as on house calls. Don't buy a cheaper policy over a more expensive one until you are sure it includes the cover you need.
- Is anything excluded? Every policy has a list of reasons they won't pay your claim. For example, most won't pay for damage related to asbestos, and most won't pay your claim if you've done something illegal that caused the damage or injury. When comparing policies, make sure you can live with your chosen policy's exclusions.
How much does public liability insurance cost?
The cost of your policy is entirely dependent on your business' unique circumstances. The insurer will analyze your business to determine the likelihood that damage or injury could occur, and they'll use that to calculate your premiums.
Depending on the nature and size of your business, the cost could be anywhere from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars per year.
Here's what an insurer will generally take into consideration when coming up with your premium:
- What your business does: Some businesses simply attract more risk than others. For example, the risk of injury or damage on a construction site will be higher than that of a retail store. Insurers will analyse what you do, compare this to past claims in that industry and factor this into your premium.
- How big your business is: The larger the business, the higher the risk of injury or damage. Factors like annual turnover and employee count will affect your premium.
- Your business location: You can expect a higher premium if your business is in a high-risk location, such as an airport, construction site, railway station or mine site.
- The structure of your policy. You can affect the price of your policy by choosing a higher or lower excess or higher or lower benefit limits.
Is public liability insurance tax deductible?
Public liability insurance premiums are considered a business expense and are therefore tax deductible. Each year you'll get a tax invoice from either your insurer or your broker, depending on who sold you the policy.
Find out more in our guide on the cost of public liability insurance
How to get cheap cover
While you don't want to skimp on a product that could literally save you from millions of dollars in damages, there are still ways you can save some money. Here's what you can do:
- Increase your excess. Your excess is the amount you'll pay out-of-pocket when you claim. If you agree to pay a little more, you can get your premiums decreased. Just make sure it's an amount you could handle if you ever had to claim.
- Decrease your benefit limits. The benefit limit is the amount the insurer will pay you (or the one suing you) if you have to make a claim. The less they have to pay you, the cheaper your premiums will be. Remember that lawsuits can involve massive amounts of money, so consult with your insurer or broker before reducing the limits by too much. They can help you understand the potential risks you could face based on your circumstances and keep you from taking out too little cover.
- Get a package deal. Public liability is just one form of business insurance, and chances are you would need several more (building and contents, theft, product liability, etc). Business insurance is all about customisation, so it makes sense to go through one provider for everything, so that they can customise your policy for you. There's also a chance they'll apply some multi-product discounts.
Some final questions you might have
Receive quotes for public liability insurance from an adviser
*The products compared on this page are chosen from a range of offers available to us and are not representative of all the products available in the market. There is no perfect order or perfect ranking system for the products we list on our Site, so we provide you with the functionality to self-select, re-order and compare products. The initial display order is influenced by a range of factors including conversion rates, product costs and commercial arrangements, so please don't interpret the listing order as an endorsement or recommendation from us. We're happy to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions, but we'd like you to make your own decisions and compare and assess products based on your own preferences, circumstances and needs.
References:
https://www.apra.gov.au/sites/default/files/Table%25202%2520-%2520PPL.xlsx
Picture: GettyImages
Ask an Expert
I have a group meeting once a month in local church hall and are required to have public liability by the Diocese……can you help?
Hi Sandra,
Thank you for reaching out to us.
Public Liability Insurance will give assurance to the Church that the costs of any property damage if that has occurred through the negligence of the third party using the premises will be covered. To get a sample quotation for the Public Liability Insurance for Events, you may look at this page then fill-in the form at the beginning. You may also reach out directly to other insurance provider listed in the page for their fees and rates.
I hope this helps.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us again if you have additional questions.
Cheers,
Ash
Hi Sandra,
Thank you for reaching out to us.
Public Liability Insurance will give assurance to the Church that the costs of any property damage that has occurred through the negligence of the third party using the premises will be covered. To get a sample quotation for the Public Liability Insurance for Events, you may look at this page then fill-in the form at the beginning. You may also reach out directly to other insurance provider listed in the page for their fees and rates.
I hope this helps.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us again if you have additional questions.
Cheers,
Ash
Hi, I have a dilemma and cannot find a satisfying solution to. I work as an Educator in my own home.
I am registered with the gov’t and come under the Family day care Scheme. This is my 9th year and my only working hours are from 7am -9am ( 2 HOURS ONLY ) ( Mon – Fri ) aka known as before school care. No one is interested in pro -rata. They insist I pay the same as other educators who do 10 hours a day. I make a measly $15.000 per year ( Hardly rolling in it ) Is there another option for me. Can you help please?
Thank you & kind regards
Molly
Hello Molly,
Thank you for the comment. :)
We understand that paying the same premiums with full-time counterparts can be challenging. :(
We suggest that you consult your concern with your local insurance commission to determine if it’s required to have cover in your employment conditions and what options you have under your present circumstances.
In case you’ll be allowed to take your own cover, you may send your details to a broker on this page so that they can give you personalized services on getting the right quote.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Jonathan
hi, my name is Tracy and I am after public liability insurance for my wedding styling, hiring service company.
Could you please provide me with some quotes??
Thanks
Hi Tracy,
Thank you for your inquiry.
You have contacted finder.com.au, a comparison and information service and not actually an insurer.
You can receive a quote for public liability insurance by entering your details into the enquiry form on the top of this page. Once you have done so an adviser will be in touch to discuss your policy options. This service is provided free of charge and there is absolutely no obligation to sign up for a policy.
Cheers,
Zubair
I’m looking public liability insurance for my taxi
Hi Harjeet,
Thank you for your question.
finder.com.au is a comparison and information service and not actually an insurer. To get a quote for public liability insurance for your taxi, you would be best to reach out to an advisor through the enquiry form who will take all your circumstances into account and offer you a range of insurance options through insurers in our panel.
Cheers,
Zubair
How much would it cost for Public Liability cover for the amount of 5 million
Hi Bill,
Thanks for your question. finder.com.au is comparison service and not an insurer. To speak with an advisor about getting a quote, please complete the quote form above and a broker will be in touch with your personalised quote.
All the best,
Richard
Need quote on 10 million public liability insurance.
Hi Rick,
Thanks for your question. finder.com.au is a comparison service. To speak with an advisor about getting a quote, please complete the contact form above.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard
My band of 5 members are willing to play for no cost at a yearly street parade as a once off event but require 10k of public liability insurance. How much is it for a once off event
Hi Nick,
Thanks for your question. finder.com.au is a comparison service and not an insurer. However, if you would like to get a quote from the providers in our panel, please enter you details into the contact form at the top.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard
I am a part time mobile disco DJ that provides Lights and sounds to events. Yearly income would only be around $1500-$2000. I can’t seem to find a insurance for DJ’s so I am not sure what the cost is. Some venues requires public liability insurance and most don’t.
Since DJ work is mostly on and off, can I get insurance per event ie if venue requires it. like when you getting a travel insurance when you are only insured for a limited period of time. Also, do you need to have an ABN number to get insured??
Thanks
Hi Arnold,
Thanks for your question. Unfortunately, finder.com.au is a comparison service and not an insurer. However, if you would like to speak with one of our brokers about the options available to you, please enter your details into the contact form above.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard
please could you advise how to go about having a public liability and also covering product worth about $ 7000
will be stored in a locked at a farming expo for 3 x days (nights)
And costs if you could
Hi Govind,
Thank you for your enquiry regarding public and product liability cover. If you would like to receive a quote for cover and begin your application, you can enter your details on the form on the finder.com.au business insurance page. An insurance consultant will be in touch to discuss different options and provide you with a quote.
https://www.finder.com.au/business-insurance