Top Insurances Tradies Need to Stay Protected (and Employed)

Business insurance. It’s probably not top of mind for most busy tradies. You may be required to have certain policies to work, but beyond that, you might not think about it much.

But, business insurance can be a powerful tool for tradies. Depending on the cover options you choose, it can help protect your tools, body, professional reputation, and more. Here are some of the most popular types of cover taken by tradespeople and how they can help protect your business.

Public Liability

Picture this: You’re on a worksite and set up security fencing around your work area. But… you forget to properly secure it. High winds blow the fencing into a vehicle parked nearby. The vehicle owner is angry, and now you’re on the hook for repairing the damage.

That’s just one way that a public liability insurance policy can help tradies. It covers legal fees and compensation costs if a customer, member of the public, or a supplier claims against you for injury, personal injury, or damage to their property as a result of your alleged negligent business activity.

For some tradies, Public Liability is a must-have. Generally, it’s a requirement in most states and territories to receive an electrical license, and in some states for a plumbing license. A policy may also be mandatory to enter worksites or work as a subcontractor for another business.

If you lease commercial space for your business—think an office, workshop or warehouse—a Public Liability requirement may be written into the rental agreement.

Professional Indemnity

Some tradies provide professional advice or services to clients, like a plumbing technician identifying underground utilities before building work can proceed. If this service isn’t up to standard (say the technician fails to identify a sewer pipe, and it is later damaged as a result), the tradie may find themself in expensive legal trouble.

Professional Indemnity insurance covers you for losses claimed by a third party and defence costs due to alleged or actual negligence in your professional services or advice.

Like Public Liability, some tradies are required to have Professional Indemnity insurance. This currently applies to plumbers in Victoria, and different types of building practitioners in Northern Territory, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia. Starting July 2026, registered building practitioners in New South Wales will also need Professional Indemnity insurance.

Portable Equipment

Like most tradies, you probably take good care of your tools and equipment. But a freak worksite hazard could damage much-needed equipment in the middle of a job.

Portable equipment insurance (sometimes called tool and equipment cover) protects you against loss and damage to items of portable equipment associated with your business. These can include tools of trade and items of stock.

This cover (available through a Business Insurance Package) helps tradies protect their tools, equipment, materials, and stock that are transferred to and from job sites. This can also include the tools you use to run your business, like a laptop, smartphone, or payment reader.

Contents

Tradies often keep materials and other types of stock on hand. But if a fire in your workshop destroyed or left it unusable, it could cost a pretty penny for a replacement.

Contents insurance covers your business contents or stock if they are damaged in a fire, storm or due to malicious damage or some other defined event listed in the policy.

Another option in a Business Insurance Package, Contents cover helps tradies replace materials, stock, business equipment, records, and other items kept in their business premises. It can also cover stolen tools and equipment, provided they were securely attached to your vehicle.

Theft

Storing valuable business items in your workshop or garage, like machinery and equipment, materials, or computers? You might want to consider protecting these items from sticky fingers.

Theft insurance covers you against loss and damage as a result of theft or attempted theft from your business premises. Damage to the building, locks and safes as a result of a covered event will also be covered.

Theft insurance (another Business Insurance Package option) is a great companion to Contents insurance, helping you replace items that are stolen from your offices, workshop, or garage.

Personal Accident & Illness

Injuries can happen on or off the job—whether it’s spraining your ankle descending a ladder, breaking an arm during a friendly game of touch footy, or straining your back during a holiday surfing lesson—leaving tradies without an income while they recover.

That’s where you might be glad you’ve got a Personal Accident & Illness (a type of income protection insurance) policy. It provides a weekly income benefit (limits apply) following an accidental injury or illness once signed off from work by a medical practitioner for a set amount of time. These policies typically cover injuries suffered during and outside of work hours, as well as those that happen while you’re on holiday.

Income protection insurance can cover medical costs, lost income, wages and in some cases accidental death, helping to keep you and your family afloat if the unexpected happens.

Many tradies are not covered by workers’ compensation insurance. This may be because they are a sole trader (workers’ comp policies only cover a business’ employees), or they primarily work as a contractor or subcontractor for other businesses. Personal Accident & Illness insurance can help close this gap, so you’re not left without a paycheque after a serious injury or illness.

Protect the business you’re building

Business insurance may not be the most exciting purchase for tradies, but it could prove to be one of the most important. Understanding your cover options can help you choose policies that fit your business needs and protect what you’re building.

BizCover can help you find tradie insurance online in moments. Whether you’re a painter, carpenter, plumber, bricklayer or a jack of all trades, you can compare quotes from multiple insurers and get covered in minutes. It’s fast, simple and easy. And with instant cover, you can get back to doing what you do best.

The provision of the claims examples are for illustrative purposes only and should not be seen as an indication as to how any potential claim will be assessed or accepted. Coverage for claims on the policy will be determined by the insurer, not BizCover.

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