Employers' Liability Insurance from £5.40/month

Employers' liability insurance — a legal requirement in the UK

Under the Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969, almost every UK employer must hold at least £5m of employers' liability insurance from an authorised insurer. The standard market limit is £10m. EL covers claims by an employee for injury or illness arising out of and in the course of their employment — and the definition of "employee" extends to labour-only sub-contractors, casual staff, trial workers, apprentices and many "self-employed" workers under your direction.

Penalties for not holding EL

The HSE can fine employers up to £2,500 per day for trading without EL cover, plus £1,000 for failing to display the certificate. More importantly, an uninsured EL claim is paid out of the business's own assets — and personal director liability can follow under common-law negligence. A serious back injury or HAVS claim now routinely settles at £80k–£250k.

Common claim triggers

• Manual handling and back injuries (the single largest EL claim category)
• Slips, trips and falls (especially hospitality and retail)
• Falls from height (construction, scaffolding, window cleaning)
• Industrial deafness and HAVS (vibration) claims (often years later — disease "long-tail")
• Stress, psychological injury and discrimination claims
• Crush injuries and forklift / MEWP incidents

Typical EL pricing in 2026

• Office-based business (per employee): £35.00–£75.00/yr
• Retail / hospitality (per employee): £90.00–£185.00/yr
• Light trades (per employee): £180.00–£420.00/yr
• Higher-risk trades (roofing, scaffolding, welding): £450.00–£1,200/yr per employee

The "self-employed" trap

If you engage anyone — even on a CIS / self-employed / "labour-only" basis — and you direct what they do, when and how, the courts (and the HSE) will treat them as your employee for EL purposes. Roofers, painters, plumbers and trade contractors get caught by this constantly: they engage a "labour-only sub" without EL and an injury claim becomes a personal director liability. We make sure your EL wording explicitly extends to labour-only sub-contractors.

Premier Insurance arranges EL standalone or as part of a wider business combined policy. Call 020 8908 2426.