Insurance for interior designers and decorators

Specialist cover for interior designers from £5 a month*

  • Fast, easy online quote in 90 seconds

  • Interest free direct debit

  • No hidden fees or cancellation charges

Insurance that is specifically tailored for interior designers and interior decorators is not easy to find. With over 25 years’ experience, we have unrivalled knowledge of the risks interior designer professionals face, which we have utilised to develop insurance policies that can be tailored to provide comprehensive cover for your interior design business.

What is interior designer insurance?

Interior designer and interior decorator insurance is a range of covers that protect you and your business from the unforeseen. Our professional indemnity insurance provides essential cover for your business, while protecting the best interests of your clients by providing reassurance that should something go wrong, you have appropriate cover in place.

Our public liability insurance offers protection to defend a claim against you for property damage or injury to a third party you are alleged to have caused.

*Price based on an interior designer requiring £1 million of public liability

Why do interior designers need insurance?

A mistake in specifying suitable materials, a visitor injuring themselves at your offices or the theft of a computer with expensive interior design software could cost your designer and interior decorator business thousands of pounds. Our business insurance for interior designers  can give you the peace of mind you are covered against these risks and more.

What insurance do interior designers need?

There are a number of insurance covers that interior decorators and designers should consider obtaining. These include professional indemnity insurance, employers’ liability insurance, and public liability insurance. Below are examples of how each type of cover could prove invaluable:

  • Professional indemnity insurance can protect you if a client takes legal action against you over the quality and/or delivery of your work.
  • Public liability insurance ensures you’re covered should a customer or member of the public claim that they were injured or had property damaged as a result of you carrying out your work.
  • Employers’ liability insurance only applies if you have employees working for you. If you do, this form of insurance is designed to help protect you should an employee claim against you for illness or injury caused in the line of work.

What insurance do I need as a designer?

Designers in various fields can also face potential claims, making insurance a worthwhile consideration. Therefore, we also offer other forms of designer insurance, such as graphic designer insurance and web designer insurance.

Public liability insurance for interior designers

As an interior decorator or interior designer, you’re constantly working with or around people while you complete your work. Despite your best intentions, should the unexpected happen, you could find yourself on the end of a claim from a client or member of the public. For example, should your ladder happen to fall, causing a tin of paint to spill all over your customer who was stood nearby, they could claim against you for the cost of a new outfit to replace the one that was damaged. Public liability insurance could help cover the associated costs.

Professional indemnity insurance for interior designers

Not all projects go to plan. After you’ve finished a project, a client may claim that the work was not carried out to a satisfactory level, and that, as a result, they have suffered a loss of trade. With professional indemnity insurance in place, you could be covered against any legal costs or settlement pay-outs.

How much does interior designer insurance cost?

At Markel Direct, we offer interior designer and decorator insurance from £5 a month for £1 million worth of public liability cover*. When it comes to insurance, the cost varies from business to business depending on:

  • The size of your business - your turnover and whether you have any employees
  • The level of cover you choose
  • The types of projects you work on and the equipment you use.

To get a clearer idea of how much you’ll pay, simply get a quote online.

*Price based on an interior designer requiring £1 million of public liability insurance

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Cover starting at £5 a month

Tailor your interior designers insurance online with these specialist covers

  • Professional indemnity insurance

    Professional indemnity insurance covers the cost of defending your business against allegations of professional negligence (such as giving your client incorrect or wrongful advice) and if unsuccessful, the cost of damages awarded against you. This is important insurance for interior designers and cover is available with limits ranging from £100,000 to £5m.

  • Public and product liability insurance

    Public and product liability insurance covers the cost of defending your business (including damages awarded against you if unsuccessful) if someone is injured, or their property damaged, which arises from you going about your business or supplying products. For example, if you were to accidentally damage a client's furnishings during a visit, you could be held liable. The legal fees alone could cost your business thousands of pounds. Limits range from £1m to £5m.

  • Employer’s liability insurance

    Employer’s liability insurance is a legal requirement if your business has employees. It covers your business against claims for injury or illness suffered by employees arising from their employment. Cover for £10m.

  • Legal expenses insurance

    Commercial legal expenses insurance covers the costs of defending you as a director or officer of your company against allegations of wrongful acts and any damages subsequently awarded against you. Cover is also provided for the legal costs and expenses of defending actions for disqualification as a director, investigations and extradition proceedings. Limits range from £100,000 to £5m.

  • Directors and officers insurance

    Directors and officers insurance covers the costs of defending you as a director or officer of your company against allegations of wrongful acts and any damages subsequently awarded against you. Cover is also provided in respect of the legal costs and expenses of defending actions for disqualification as a director, investigations and extradition proceedings. Limits range from £100,000 to £5m.

  • Office insurance

    Office insurance covers your office buildings, office contents and computer equipment against accidental damage (including theft) whilst on your business premises. You can also choose to cover your business equipment (such as laptops and mobile phones) on a worldwide basis, and insure your business against loss of income and/or additional trading expenses following events such as damage to your property.

  • Occupational personal accident insurance

    Occupational personal accident insurance provides a weekly payment if you are unable to work due to temporary total disablement (subject to a 14-day deferment period) due to an accident at work, or when travelling to and from work. In the event of loss of limbs, sight, speech, hearing, permanent total disablement or death, a lump sum would be paid out. You should consider this cover if you would struggle to maintain an income following an accident that left you unable to work. Limits from £100/week to £500/week for temporary total disablement (£25k lump sum to £100k lump sum for permanent total disablement).

  • Cyber and data risks insurance

    Cyber insurance pays the costs of restoring data and equipment, informing clients, meeting ransom demands and loss of your net profit following a cyber-attack. It also pays your legal defence costs and damages you are legally liable to pay to other parties. If you hold confidential information about your clients and their projects on computers and other internet connected devices, you should consider to this cover.

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Frequently asked questions

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Cover starting at £5 a month

Frequently asked questions

  • I supply furnishings as part of my service to clients - is this covered?

    Yes. If you supply furnishings (such as sofas, carpets and curtains), as part of your service, this is covered by our policy. Please note that we cannot offer cover if you manufacture these products yourself.

  • What's the difference between professional indemnity and public liability?

    Professional indemnity insurance covers against allegations of professional negligence - which means it would cover you if you were to make an error or mistake in a piece of work (such as a project or report) for a client.

    Public liability insurance covers against allegations of injury or illness caused to third parties by your negligence. This includes many of the slips, trips and falls that are associated with personal injury claims. In addition, public liability insurance covers against damage to third party property - for example, if you were to damage a client-owned laptop or smartphone.

    As they insure against different scenarios, it's important you consider arranging both types of cover to ensure you are properly protected.

  • Do interior designers need professional indemnity insurance?

    Ensuring you obtain the appropriate level of insurance is a worthwhile consideration. Despite your experience, skills and best intentions, there’s always a possibility that a client could decide to make a claim against you. Defending against such claims can be expensive – especially if the claim is successful and you are required to pay compensation. But if you have professional indemnity insurance in place, you’ll be covered against such costs.

  • I need to arrange insurance to start work - do you provide proof of cover?

    Yes. We provide a dedicated 'Confirmation of Liability Insurance' document (detailing the cover you have with us) as part of the documents that are emailed to you if you purchase your policy with us. You can present this document to agencies and clients as proof that you are insured.

  • What limit of cover should I choose?

    Many clients and industry bodies with regulatory requirements will require you to have a minimum level of cover for you to undertake a contract, so it's worth checking this before you arrange cover. If you're unsure, give some thought to a worst-case scenario and the likely costs involved in putting your mistake right. We offer a range of limits on insurance, so you're sure to find the right cover for your business.

  • Why should I choose Markel Direct's Insurance

    Markel Direct has over 25 years of experience insuring contractors, consultants and self-employed professionals. We insure over 200,000 micro businesses and are highly rated by our customers at Feefo.com.

    We are a division of Markel International, a Lloyd’s of London market insurer that wrote gross premium totals of £2.4bn in 2023

    To talk about your insurance requirements and better understand our cover, call us on 0330 822 3551 or get a quick quote online.

  • How are Markel Direct regulated?

    Markel Direct is a trading name of Markel International Insurance Company Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Find out more on the Financial Services Register.

    We are a division of Markel International, a Lloyd’s of London market insurer that wrote gross premium totals of £2.4bn in 2023

Access specialist services with your Markel Direct insurance policy

Our policyholders receive access to these unique services designed to make your life easier (included as standard with certain covers).

24 hour legal helpline 24 hour legal advice helpline

When you insure with Markel Direct, you'll benefit from 24/7 telephone access to a qualified solicitor at no additional cost. Expert legal advice can be costly when you're working for yourself and it's difficult to know who to turn to for a trustworthy answer. Whether it's a question on health and safety, employment law, legal structures for your business or how to handle a difficult client, an experienced team of solicitors are on hand day and night to help you with any business-related legal queries. Included as standard with all policies.

Legal hub access Markel Business Hub access

In addition to our 24 hour legal helpline, you'll have access to the Markel Business Hub - an award winning online resource of legal and business guides, templates and content written and created by our team of expert solicitors. Instantly download ready-made contracts, policies, procedures and guidance you can use for your business - without paying any expensive legal fees. Included as standard with all policies.

Fee dispute service

Customers don't always pay on time and chasing fees or invoices costs time and money. Mindful of the impact this has on your business, we offer our policyholders access to a unique fee dispute helpline operated by one of the UK's leading law firms, who will provide specialist legal guidance and support on fee dispute issues. Included as standard with professional indemnity insurance.

Discounted IR35 contract reviews

Falling within IR35 legislation - which determines that an individual is avoiding tax by using a limited company to disguise employment - is a huge concern for contractors and consultants, with the fees and penalties due to HMRC eye-wateringly high. Our policyholders receive an exclusive discount on IR35 contract reviews from Markel Tax (a Markel company), who have over 20 years experience advising individuals and businesses on their tax status. As part of the service, Markel Tax will review your contract, along with your working practices, to determine whether or not you are operating outside of IR35, and you'll receive a written report with suggested contract amendments where appropriate. Policyholders can access this service by calling 0345 223 2727 or emailing contractreviews@markel.com, quoting 'MKLD' and your policy number.

Public relations crisis management service

In today's 24 hour news culture, public relations disasters can occur at any time. Having to deal with the press whilst managing a difficult situation can be hugely stressful as well as being a potential minefield. When there is a risk to your business as a result of negative press attention, our specialist public relations crisis management firm, The Counsel House, will work with you to help manage allegations of fraud, injury caused to employees or the public, and official investigations into your company's affairs. Included as standard with professional indemnity insurance, directors and officers insurance, cyber and data risks insurance and legal representation and employment disputes insurance.

Cyber response helpline

If you're the victim of a targeted cyber attack, our cyber response helpline provides access to specialist solicitors and information security experts who will give expert legal and technical IT security guidance on the issues arising from cyber and data protection risks. Included as standard with cyber and data risks insurance.

Cover starting at £5 a month

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