Insurance for technology and IT companies

Expect more from your insurer. Industry-specific cover and services designed for IT, technology and communications businesses.

  • Fast, easy online quote in 90 seconds

  • 24hr legal advice helpline and legal hub

  • Services to support growth and innovation

Our specialist insurance for IT and technology companies combines industry-specific cover with professional and business support services to help your business with legal matters, growth and innovation.

Having insured IT and technology companies for over 25 years, we have in-depth knowledge of the sector. We understand that our policyholders operate in a highly competitive environment which is constantly evolving and supporting them is at the heart of what we do.

Our team of experts are on hand to assist and have worked extensively with all sizes of IT company, from self-employed IT contractors to large technology and communications organisations, offering services from application development, website design and project management through to hardware supply, system and network hosting and managed services.

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Expect more from your IT insurer.

Insurance cover for your IT business

  • Professional indemnity insurance

    Professional indemnity insurance covers the cost of defending your IT business against allegations of professional negligence (such as giving your client incorrect or wrongful advice, or providing sub-standard services) and if unsuccessful, the cost of damages awarded against you.

    Examples of claims include:

    • Breach of contract: a client engages you as a project manager responsible for delivering a system to a specific deadline. The project overruns and you are held responsible for the additional costs the company incurs due to the delay.

    • Negligence: a system you were contracted to design is deemed not fit for purpose after the project finishes. The client takes legal action against you to recover the costs of putting it right

    • Intellectual property: one of your competitors alleges that you have copied content from their website and used it on your client's website. They take legal action against you seeking damages.

    In addition, our policy provides mitigation of loss cover, which pays the costs incurred to avoid a claim being made against you.

    This is essential insurance for IT consultants, contractors and businesses with limits ranging from £50,000 to £5m.

  • Public 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.

    Examples of claims include:

    • You damage a client’s projector using the wrong adapter to plug in your laptop. They send you a bill for a new projector as the original is irreparable.
    • A client trips over a cable and injures themselves while visiting your workplace. They make a personal injury claim against you seeking compensation.

    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.

    An example of a claim would be:

    • An employee alleges they are suffering from a chronic bad back as a result of sitting in an unsupportive chair for too long. They make a personal injury claim against you seeking compensation.

    If your business employs other IT consultants, you need this cover. Cover for £10m.

  • Directors and officers insurance

    Directors and officers insurance can cover you, as a director or an officer of your company, against claims of negligence or wrongful working practices – and any damages awarded against you as a consequence.

    Legal cost cover extends to additional claims such as disqualification as a director or extradition proceedings, as well as general investigations.

    Limits range from £100,000 to £5 million.

  • Office insurance

    Protect your business against theft or accidental damage with Office insurance. Cover secures yo against damage of:

    - Office contets

    - Office buildings

    - IT equipment and computer hardware

    If you travel frequently for client work, this insurance also offers optional worldwide cover for business equipment, such as mobile phones and laptops.

    Our cover also give you the option to insure against any resulting loss of income or addtional trading expnses that aris as a result of damage or theft.

  • 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). And in the event of loss of limbs, sight, speech, hearing, permanent total disablement, or death, it will pay out a lump sum to ease the financial burden.

    If you would struggle to maintain an income if you were unable to work following the accident, you should consider having occupational personal accident insurance to help ease the financial burden. Limits from £100/week to £500/week for temporary total disablement (£25k lump sum to £100k lump sum for permanent total disablement).

     

     

     

  • Legal expenses insurance

    Legal expenses insurance pays your legal costs and expenses for contract disputes, tax enquiries (including IR35), attending jury service, debt recovery, personal injury, as well as any award you are required to pay following an employment dispute with an employee. There is a limit of £100,000.

    If a client takes legal action against you because of an error you have made, this cover can prevent you from needing to use your own finances to cover legal expenses.

  • Cyber and data risks insurance

    Cyber and data risks 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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Expect more from your IT insurer.

Frequently asked questions

  • I need professional indemnity insurance to secure a contract - do you provide proof of cover?

    Yes. If you purchase your policy with us, your documents are emailed to you instantly and include a dedicated 'Confirmation of Liability Insurance' document (detailing the cover you have with us) which you can present to agencies and clients as proof of cover.

  • Is my past work covered?

    We cover past work if you have held professional indemnity insurance uninterrupted prior to arranging your policy with us.

    If there was a period of time where you did not have professional indemnity insurance in force (for example, you have never arranged professional indemnity insurance before, you chose not to renew a previous policy or you cancelled a previous policy at the end of a contract) we are unable to cover past work.

    If you require further clarification, don't hesitate to call us on 0800 640 6600.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • Why should I choose Markel’s insurance?

    Markel 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 and London market insurer that wrote gross premium totals of £13.2bn in 2022

    To talk about your insurance requirements and better understand our cover, call us on 0800 640 6600 or get a quick quote online.

Expect more from your IT insurer.

As a specialist insurer of IT and technology businesses, we've developed a range of unique services designed to support your business with legal matters, growth and innovation (services are included as standard with the relevant section of cover).

24 hour legal helpline 24 hour legal advice helpline

When you insure with Markel, 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.

 Cyber response helpline

If your business is 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.

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.

Tax services  Tax and funding consultancy services

We have a dedicated in-house team of chartered tax advisers, PHD qualified, and engineers all available to ensure you maximise both tax opportunities and source appropriate funding. 

For example, our in-house team of R&D tax experts can work with you to ensure you maximise all tax opportunities available to you under the generous UK R&D tax regime 

We can look at past, present and future development activity to maximise your R&D tax relief opportunities.  Some of our recent success stories include:

  • Mobile Payment Technology Developers, Mobile Payment and Reward Platform, R&D Claim of £182,972.71
  • Online Gaming Specialist, Games Engine, R&D Claim of £15,506.00
  • Business Software Development, Modular Water Purifying System, R&D claim of £19,871
  • Games Software, Games Engine, R&D claim of £27,814
  • Security and Electrical, Access Management Systems, R&D claim of £11,663
  • Vehicle Tracking Software Developers, Commercial Vehicle Solution, R&D Claim of £22,240.66

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.

Expect more from your IT insurer.

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