Professional Indemnity

Circumstances which give rise to professional negligence are seldom clear cut – they often give rise to disputes as to the nature and extent of the responsibility. In cases where the professional is blameless, you may nevertheless be drawn into lengthy disputes which can be both financially and emotionally draining. PI insurance provides you, the professional and the client with peace of mind and financial protection.

Professional indemnity insurance (PII) but more commonly known as errors & omissions (E&O), is a form of liability insurance that helps protect professional advice- and service-providing individuals and companies from bearing the full cost of defending against a negligence claim made by a client, and damages awarded in such a civil lawsuit. The coverage focuses on alleged failure to perform on the part of, financial loss caused by, and error or omission in the service or product sold by the policyholder. These are potential causes for legal action that would not be covered by a more general liability insurance policy which addresses more direct forms of harm.

Professional Indemnity coverage also provides for the defense costs, including when legal action turns out to be groundless. Coverage does not include criminal prosecution, nor a wide range of potential liabilities under civil law that are not enumerated in the policy, but which may be subject to other forms of insurance. Professional Indemnity insurance is required by law in some areas for certain kinds of professional practice, such as Insurance broking, medical and legal, etc.

Professional Indemnity insurance may take on different forms and names depending on the profession. For example, in reference to medical professions it is called malpractice insurance, while errors and omissions (E&O) insurance is used by insurance agents, consultants, brokers and lawyers. Other professions that commonly purchase professional Indemnity insurance include accounting, engineering and financial services.