Q: What is professional indemnity?

Q: How will a Hiscox Professional indemnity policy protect my business?

Q: What level of professional indemnity cover should I buy?

Q: My business is a start-up – can I still get cover?

Q: Why is payment by direct debit?

Q: What must I do to comply with the terms of a Hiscox professional indemnity policy?

Q: Am I covered for work carried out abroad with a Hiscox PI policy?

Q: When should I let you know about a possible professional indemnity claim?

Q: Am I covered for work I carry out for a non-UK company with a Hiscox PI policy?

Q: Can I increase the level of indemnity on my PI policy mid-term?

Q: Am I still covered if the mistake is made by an employee working for me?

Q: How do I make a claim?

Q: Can I claim on the Hiscox PI policy even if my client hasn't made a claim against me?

Q: How do I cancel my professional indemnity policy?

Q: Am I covered for work carried out before the policy started?

Q: What is the retroactive date?

Q: Can I buy retroactive cover even if I am buying professional indemnity for the first time?

Q: What information do I need to get a professional indemnity quote from this website?

Q: I already have a PI policy?

Q: Do I have to renew the policy?

Q: What types of insurance are compulsory for self-employed consultants / small businesses?

Q: Can I take out PI just for the duration of a project?

Q: What is so extraordinary about Hiscox business insurance?

Q: What is Office insurance?

Q: What does all risks cover mean?

Q: If I work from home, do I need office insurance?

Q: Is my laptop and mobile phone covered with Hiscox Office?

Q: Do I need buildings cover if I am renting or leasing my office premises?

Q: What information do I need to get an office insurance quote from this website?

Q: What version browser do I need to view this website correctly?

Q: How do I find out what browser version I have?

Q: How do I upgrade my browser?

Q: How secure is this website?

Q: What is 128-bit encryption?

Q: I received the message ‘Security certificate signed by an unknown authority’. What does this mean?

Q: What do these common error messages mean?

Q: What does complete online purchase mean?

Q: What is professional indemnity?
A: It’s the kind of insurance that protects your business from financially crippling and often reputation-damaging claims by dissatisfied clients. Because in this everything-by-yesterday world, even the most respectable companies can find themselves in dispute with a client over a mistake. Below we list some of the danger areas your business could be exposed to:

• Negligence: or breach of duty of care
• Intellectual property: unintentionally infringing others’ copyrights, trademarks or broadcasting rights, or any act of passing off
• Loss of documents/data: damaged, lost or stolen data and documents belonging to your clients
• Dishonesty: liability arising from the theft of your clients’ money

Q: How will a Hiscox Professional indemnity policy protect my business?
A: Hiscox Professional Indemnity (PI) insurance is designed to protect UK professionals and their businesses against errors and eventualities that can’t be foreseen, however careful. The policy provides cover for liabilities that arise from negligent advice you give or services you provide in a professional capacity to your clients.

As a leading specialist insurer, we tailor our policies so your business is covered for risks we know it is most likely to face. The limit of indemnity (up to £1million):

• will protect your business from claims of negligence and breach of duty or care
• can be used either to cover legal defence costs or any subsequent damages awarded
• provides cover for the total of all claims made during the policy period

If you do hit any problems – and they do happen to even the best-run companies – we will work on your behalf, to minimise the cost of a covered liability and any potentially damaging consequences (e.g. damaged relationships and/or time consuming litigation) through our proactive rectification and mitigation measures.

Other benefits include:

• Direct access to specialist claims staff
• Access to highly specialised lawyers if we defend your claim
• Interest-free direct debit payments
• Continuous policies which minimises time consuming annual renewal

Q: What level of professional indemnity cover should I buy?
A: We provide five levels of cover, from £50,000 up to £1,000,000.

The level of cover you select is the maximum you would receive for the total of all claims and defence costs incurred during the policy period, irrespective of the number of claims made. Probably the best advice is to buy the highest level of cover you can reasonably afford. If we advised you to take out a low level of cover, and you were involved in a court case where the legal fees exceeded your level of cover, you wouldn't be very pleased with us. The level of cover you select covers two elements:

1. the legal costs of defending a claim and
2. the possible compensation award

You should therefore select a level of indemnity that would be enough to cover both the legal fees and the damages you might have to pay if a successful claim was made against you.

Other details you should also consider include (but are not limited to):

• the size of your contracts in including potential new business
• the size of your clients
• the overall value of the projects you are be involved in
• the size of claim that may be made against you
• contractual or professional requirements with regards to professional indemnity cover you need to have

For situations where higher limits of indemnity are required, we may still be able to help, so please do not hesitate to contact us.

Q: My business is a start-up – can I still get cover?
A: Turnover is usually the business’s annual gross income (or fee income for consultants).

For a professional indemnity or an office quote, please enter your estimated annual gross income or fee income.

Q: Why is payment by direct debit?
A: One of the reasons we are able to provide the very competitive premiums we offer on this site is because administration costs are kept to a minimum.

In addition, this method offers you the benefit of interest-free payments and the knowledge that cover will remain active for as long as the direct debit remains in place.

Q: What must I do to comply with the terms of a Hiscox professional indemnity policy?
A: If a claim is made against you, apart from making sure you notify the claim to us as soon as possible, it is very important that you:

• don't try to achieve a settlement with your client without obtaining the agreement of the claims underwriters first
• don't admit liability
• don't reveal to your client that you have professional indemnity insurance unless you already had to do so for the purpose of negotiating a contract with your client

There are certain things you must do in order to comply with the policy:

• Make sure when you enter into a contract that you have taken reasonable steps to ensure that you are able to comply with the contract for the price you have quoted
• Make sure that you don't agree in your contract to use more than reasonable care and skill or to have a greater financial responsibility than would otherwise be the case at law
• If something goes wrong, you must take reasonable steps to rectify the problem
• Ensure that, where possible, you keep relevant versions of any source code, or back-up copies of relevant documents (including electronic data or software)
• Take reasonable steps to make back-up copies of any document (including any data, file or computer program) at reasonably frequent intervals
• Limit, in your contracts, any liability for loss of sales, revenue, profits, software, data, or consequential loss on the part of your client

Q: Am I covered for work carried out abroad with a Hiscox PI policy?
A: The Hiscox PI policy only covers you for work carried out in the UK.

If you need cover for work abroad, please contact us for a bespoke quotation.

Q: When should I let you know about a possible professional indemnity claim?
A: Your primary obligation is to notify us as soon as you as you are aware that you might have a claim.

This obligation is a standard condition of professional indemnity policies, and you need to be aware that late notification could cause an insurer to invalidate a claim.

There are two reasons for this. First of all, if we are notified of the possibility of a claim in good time, we may well be able to help you take the necessary action to stop what might well be simply a minor dispute turning into a significant claim. Preventing disputes turning into claims, and avoiding litigation generally is obviously in the interests of all the parties involved. Secondly, as an insurer, we need to know where we stand in relation to claims, and therefore need to make a reserve of the amount of money that we estimate we might have to pay out.

You should also let us know if you receive a complaint from a client which you are unlikely to be able to resolve, or if you receive a series of escalating complaints on a project, or if a client withholds payment to you after a complaint.

Q: Am I covered for work I carry out for a non-UK company with a Hiscox PI policy?
A: You will be covered for work you do in the UK, even if it is for a non-UK company. However, if the company brought a claim against you in the country where it is based, then you would not be covered for that claim. If you need world wide cover, please contact us for a bespoke quotation.

Q: Can I increase the level of indemnity on my PI policy mid-term?
A: You can make changes to your policy at any time. We do not charge any administration fee this. Please contact us if you would like to increase or decrease your level of indemnity.

Q: Am I still covered if the mistake is made by an employee working for me?
A: Yes, the policy will cover mistakes made by employees working under the insured business.

If you sub-contract work to another company or freelancer / consultant outside your area of expertise it's sensible to make sure that they also have professional indemnity insurance - after all you might want to make a claim against them if they let you down.

Q: How do I make a claim?
A: Please visit making a claim.

Q: Can I claim on the Hiscox PI policy even if my client hasn't made a claim against me?
A: Yes. Our professional indemnity policy is unusual in that it recognises that it's far better for you to be able to rectify a problem before the client has made a claim against you - this avoids litigation and helps you maintain your reputation and your relationship with your client. It is therefore very important that you notify us as soon as you are aware that something has gone wrong. You may then be able to claim for the cost of putting it right.

For more information, go to making a claim.

Q: How do I cancel my professional indemnity policy?
A: In either case just let us know - there's no administration charge for altering your level of cover and no cancellation charge, although if you do cancel your cover at any stage during the policy period you will be required to pay the pro rated premium calculated as a daily rate. If you cancel your policy you need to remember that you will no longer be able to claim on the policy if someone makes a claim against you for work you did while the policy was in place.

Q: Am I covered for work carried out before the policy started?
A: If you don’t already have a professional indemnity policy in place, then the answer is no, unless, you select retroactive cover when getting your quote. You have the option to backdate your policy (for up to ten years prior to the present day). You can choose your retroactive date based on the date that your business started, or you may decide that claims are unlikely to arise from work you did that far back, in which case you can specify a date you choose and are comfortable with.

Q: What is the retroactive date?
A: In PI insurance there are two key dates: the inception date and the retroactive date.

The inception date of a policy is the date the policy starts.

The retroactive date of a policy is the date from which cover applies to your work.

Q: Can I buy retroactive cover even if I am buying professional indemnity for the first time?
A: If you're talking out PI insurance for the first time, unless you specifically request otherwise, the retroactive date will default to the inception date, which means you will only be covered for work carried out from the inception date of the policy.

You have the option to backdate your policy (for up to ten years prior to the present day). You can choose your retroactive date based on the date that your business started, or you may decide that claims are unlikely to arise from work you did that far back, in which case you can specify a date you choose and are comfortable with.

You can also read our Beginners guide to buying PI, developed specifically for clients buying this type of cover for the first time.

Q: What information do I need to get a professional indemnity quote from this website?
A: To make the process as easy as possible we will need to know the following, so have the information to hand before applying:

• Your profession or industry sector – so we can offer you a tailored policy
• The level of cover you would like from the five options we offer starting at £50,000 up to £1million
• Your annual turnover, annual gross income, annual fee income or your estimated first year’s revenue if the business is just starting up
• Your business name, a contact name and a valid email address to send your policy to
• Your business trading address
• Your answers to questions about your business activities and previous claims history
• The date you want cover to begin (the inception date)
• Your bank details for payment

Q: I already have a PI policy?
A: If you do already have an existing policy with another insurer, the retroactive date will be specified in that policy. You will be covered for your work from the retroactive date, and you should let us know the retroactive date of your old policy so that we can transfer it to your new policy, and ensure that you remain covered for work carried out in the past.

Q: Do I have to renew the policy?
A: Hiscox PI is a continuous policy which means that cover remains in place for as long as you maintain the payments by direct debit. This means that you don't have to worry about renewing the policy each year, and that you avoid the risk of being without cover because you forgot to renew.

At the anniversary of the start of your policy, Hiscox Insurance Company will write to you directly with a document called Duty of Disclosure Reminder which contains the information that you provided when you took out the policy.

Unless there are any significant changes to your circumstances, you don't have to do anything and cover will remain in place. If there are any changes, just let us know, and we'll make the necessary changes to your policy.

Q: What types of insurance are compulsory for self-employed consultants / small businesses?
A: If your business employs any staff, employers’ liability insurance is mandatory. Hiscox provide £10 million (standard for UK businesses) cover as an important option under our Office and professional indemnity policies.

Please note that this cover can only be purchased with Hiscox Public liability insurance.

Public Liability Insurance is not a legal requirement but it is usually sensible that you have this cover. It will protect you if someone makes a claim against you because you, or an employee, are held responsible for causing them an injury, or damage to their property, in the course of your business activities.

If you visit clients' premises, or clients visit you or you deal with the public, it's a sensible precaution to take out this cover.

Q: Can I take out PI just for the duration of a project?
A: You can, but PI insurance only applies while you have a policy in place; cover ceases the moment you cancel the policy.

A PI policy is what's known as a 'claims made policy' which means that, like car insurance for instance, you can only make a claim while you have a policy in place.

For this reason, you should keep your PI policy in place continuously, so that if a claim arises from work you did in the past you will be covered.

Q: What is so extraordinary about Hiscox business insurance?
A: Hiscox is a leading specialist insurer of UK professionals, offering cover that is unusually generous and tailored to your particular business needs. Most importantly, this means you only pay for the cover you need.

We are the only insurer to offer professional indemnity online which can be included with Hiscox Office as one all inclusive policy.

We offer immediate online cover, and, if you choose to pay online you can download your tailored policy documents directly from this website.

Q: What is Office insurance?
A: It is a package of important business (or commercial) insurances, which has been designed to protect your office against a variety of risks it faces as a small to medium sized business.

The core element of Hiscox Office Insurance is our ‘all risks’ cover for up to £200,000 of office contents. This protects your furniture, fixtures, glass for windows, computers and ancillary equipment. In addition, Hiscox give a broader definition of office contents and include items such as artwork, wine for entertainment and visitors’ personal belongings as standard.

You can include the following important covers with your office policy including portable equipment, business interruption, buildings, legal expenses, public liability and employers’ liability. Simply select the covers required for your office when you get a quote from this website.

For more information visit our Office insurance product information page on this website.

Q: What does all risks cover mean?
A: This means that your office contents are covered in the office, up to £25,000 for in the home of a partner or employee, or temporarily elsewhere (within the geographical limits of the policy). This also includes cover for computer breakdown, provided the computer is covered by a maintenance contract or guarantee.

Q: If I work from home, do I need office insurance?
A: Firstly, you should check your home insurance policy. Most home insurance policies offer home office cover either as standard or as an extension of their home insurance cover (where additional premium is charged). This cover may not be as comprehensive as a business insurance policy so it’s important you are aware of any limitations on the cover and sums insured provided.

If you have a Hiscox Home Insurance policy, liability and property cover is included for any clerical home business. There are some risks which are not covered under the Home office cover (but are included with a Hiscox Office Insurance policy) including money, personal belongings of staff and visitors and loss of income. If you would like more information about the differences between Hiscox Home and Office policies, please contact us.

Q: Is my laptop and mobile phone covered with Hiscox Office?
A: Yes, we cover laptops, mobile phones and other portable equipment including BlackBerries and visual display equipment under our portable equipment cover. You can insure up to the value of £50,000 and choose either UK or world-wide cover.

For more information visit our Portable equipment information page on this website.

Q: Do I need buildings cover if I am renting or leasing my office premises?
A: No, this insurance is only relevant if you own the building where your office is based.

Q: What information do I need to get an office insurance quote from this website?
A: To make the process as easy as possible we will need to know the following, so have the information to hand before applying:

• Your annual turnover, annual gross income, annual fee income or your estimated first year’s revenue if the business is just starting up
• The date you want cover to begin (the inception date)
• The total value of your office contents (including furniture, stock, stationery and non-standard items such as works of art)
• The total value of your computer equipment (this includes ancillary equipment such as printers, visual display units, keyboards and software)
• The total value of any portable equipment you would like to insure such as laptops and mobile phones. You will also need to choose from UK or world-wide cover
• If you want buildings cover, you will need to provide us with the rebuild value (not the market value) of the property
• If you would like £100,000 of legal expenses cover
• If you would like public liability cover – we provide £1m, £2m and £5m options
• If you would like employers’ liability cover – we provide £10m, the standard requirement for UK businesses
• If you would like to include professional indemnity with your quote – we will need to know your profession and the level of cover you would like. We provide five options from £50,000 up to £1million
• Your business trading address and postcode

Q: What version browser do I need to view this website correctly?
A: You will need a minimum of Internet Explorer 4 or Netscape Navigator ver 4.0 to ver 4.76 to use the site. If you have recently purchased a new PC, it is likely that you will have one of these two compatible browsers or even more recent versions.

Q: How do I find out what browser version I have?
A: Click on Help on the toolbar at the top of your browser. Then choose ‘About’. You will then be able to see what browser version you have.

Q: How do I upgrade my browser?
A: If you have an earlier version of a browser, you can download an updated version in the following way for either Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator.

For Internet Explorer go to the Microsoft site at www.microsoft.com

For Netscape Navigator go to the Netscape site at www.netscape.com

Q: How secure is this website?
A: Our website incorporates the latest encryption technology, 128-bit encryption. This means that your data is protected and cannot be viewed by third parties.

Q: What is 128-bit encryption?
A: 128-bit encryption is a secure form of encryption. (Encryption is a way of making information secret.) Due to the nature of the information being passed between you and us, we use this to ensure that your details cannot be viewed by third parties.

Q: I received the message ‘Security certificate signed by an unknown authority’. What does this mean?
A: Every company that has a secure website has a certificate issued by a certificate authority to let the internet users know that the website is genuine. business.hiscox.co.uk’s certificate is issued by Verisign. If a customer’s browser is not set to recognise Verisign certificates it may prevent the customer from accessing the business.hiscox.co.uk website. To correct this, you need to enable the certificate authority - Verisign.

For Internet Explorer version 4:

1. At the toolbar (in the top right hand corner), select View
2. Select internet options
3. Select Content
4. Click on Authorities
5. Scroll across to and tick Verisign Class 3 Primary CA and Verisign Class 4 Primary CA
6. Finally, click on OK

For Netscape Navigator:

1. Select the Security menu
2. Select Signers (located in the certificates box)
3. Scroll down to Verisign class 3 primary CA, select Edit
4. Ensure that the top three boxes are enabled
5. Finally, click on OK

Q: What do these common error messages mean?
A: You may receive error messages that are specific to our website if your browser does not meet the requirements mentioned above or if you enter your security details incorrectly. If you get the following messages, it may mean you have a network problem and you should contact your network provider:

• Internet Explorer cannot open site
• Cannot connect to server
• The website is unavailable

Tip: always check that the URL (Universal Resource Locator - or simply, the address of a website) you have entered is correct. All of the information and advice set out above is intended to be general in nature and you should not rely on it in connection with any security decision.

If you need assistance with any aspect of this website please contact us.

Q: What does complete online purchase mean?
A: If you get a quote, and decide to buy and pay for your policy on this website (including completing our online Direct Debit mandate), you will be issued your tailored policy documents (downloadable PDFs) as the final step. We will also email these documents to the email address you provided us.

If you choose to pay over the telephone your documents are emailed to you as soon as we’ve confirmed your bank details (usually there and then).

We do not issue hard copies of policy documents unless specifically requested, so it is important that you save these documents and print out a hard copy as backup.