There is a lot of misconception about public liability insurance in Australia. This is not entirely surprising because this form of insurance is sometimes called general liability insurance. If you visit Public Liability Insurance Australia experts, you will get plenty of information on this and other forms of insurance.
Understanding Public Liability Insurance
This form of insurance covers you in cases where the public makes claims against you for mishaps that happen in your business premises or misfortunes that happen in connection with the business you are running.
What Does This Form of Insurance Cover?
Public liability insurance covers claims from the general public arising from injuries, damage to property and even death involving your business. The general public in this context means your customers, delivery personnel and visitors to your company. To make things clearer, we can compare public liability insurance to the popular third-party automobile insurance policy. If you have a valid third-party insurance policy and an accident happens, this policy will cover the other driver, passengers or even the pedestrian involved but does not cover you (the owner of the vehicle). That same way, public liability insurance covers third-party accidents on your business premises. If you or your employees get injured in the course of business, public liability insurance does not apply here because neither you nor your employees are considered part of the “public”. However, your clients, visitors and the general public are covered by this policy.
Examples to Make It simple
In case things are not crystal clear, it would be perfectly in order to clarify matters by looking at the examples below.
The Michael Smith Example
An Australian male named Michael Smith (not his real name) was walking down the escalators at a downtown shopping center. He slipped and fell and suffered cuts, bruises and fractures. It had been raining that morning and the non-slip mats at the shopping center were wet. Michael Smith sued the management of the shopping center and court ordered the shopping center to pay Michael Smith compensation for his injuries. According to the court judgment, the shopping center was legally liable for the injuries suffered by Michael Smith. Since the shopping center had public liability insurance, the insurance company covered the cost of legal representation for Michael Smith as well as the compensation ordered by the court. This is a clear example of how public liability insurance works.
The Debbie Payne Example
Debbie Payne (not her real name) was an elderly woman who loved travelling. On one of her trips to Melbourne, she stayed at a small holiday home run by a certain James Griffith. Everything was going well until Debbie Payne sat on a plastic chair in the garden. The chair collapsed under her weight, and she suffered a number of injuries as a result of the fall. She sued James Griffith in his personal capacity as the owner of the property. The court ruled that Griffith was culpable because his establishment was negligent in the sense that they had a defective chair in the garden. James Griffith had a valid public liability insurance policy, so his insurers paid compensation to Debbie Payne. His insurer also covered the costs Michael Griffith incurred in defending himself.
Public Liability for Electricians
If you are an electrician or electrical contractor, you definitely need public liability insurance. This is because incidents like shock and fire can happen without warning. Public liability insurance covers you in case any unfortunate incident happens in the course of duty. Again, it makes sense to take out this policy because some people won’t even hire you if you are not covered by a public liability insurance policy.
Cost of Public Liability Insurance
In Australia, the cost of public liability insurance depends on many factors. These factors include the size of your business and its location as well as the amount of coverage you buy. Other factors include your claims history and the business you do as well as the risks you run in the course of doing your business. As a rule, you are likely to pay a higher premium of you run a photography studio, a laundry, a fitness center or a cleaning business. On the other hand, if your business is website design from home or freelance writing, you are likely to pay a much lower premium. Your premium would also be quite low if you run an IT Consulting business or an online graphic design business.
When Public Liability Insurance Makes Sense
The concept of insurance makes plenty of sense and this applies to public liability insurance as well. This is because one never knows when the unexpected will happen, and this is why it pays to be prepared all the time. If you run a bar, a restaurant or a supermarket, you definitely need public liability insurance. The same thing applies if you run a private school, a lesson center for external candidates and a delivery business. Entertainers and musicians who perform in front of an audience also need public liability insurance. Even if you run an online business, you still need this form of insurance because you interact with people when you deliver or pick up deliveries.
Why the Public Liability Insurance Makes Sense
Public liability insurance makes sense because it protects your financial assets. In cases where you are liable to pay compensation, this policy ensures that you don’t pay from your pocket as the insurer will pick up the tab on your behalf.