IT professionals & consultants indemnity and liability insurance
Your line of work is unique, so we’ve tailored an insurance policy that best suits the needs of your profession to better protect your reputation and livelihood.
Principal partner of
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If you're forced to defend your professional reputation, you'll want the best support behind you.
Our policies include three types of insurance in one designed specifically for IT professionals combining: professional indemnity insurance, public liability insurance, and product liability insurance.
Product liability
Insurance cover for liability for faulty or property damage caused by goods sold or supplied by you. This can include cover for clients experiencing system failures or data loss from products you provide, for example; computer hardware, software and other products.
Cover and benefits of this IT professional insurance policy
Nil basic excess on liability claims
Run-off cover which protects you when you’ve ceased practising permanently
Cover for legal costs and expenses associated with complaints to your registration body, disciplinary proceedings or a coronial inquiry
Provides a 21-day cooling-off period, allowing you to change your mind after purchasing coverage
Ongoing education through our RiskHQ, providing you with relevant and informative information on the risks that matter to you
Round-the-clock support with 24 / 7 claim support line availability
To find out more or to get your hands on our policy wording, simply call us on 1800 810 213.
Common IT consultant FAQs
The law governs that any professional exercise the required skill to an appropriate level expected by that profession. A professional may be liable for financial loss, injury or damage arising from an act, error or omission of fault if the professional has not acted to the required level of skill deemed in that profession. Failure through this may result in the claimant (person who suffered the loss) be awarded for that loss, damage or injury.
Many professions require you to hold a professional indemnity insurance policy by law, such as Ahpra registered professions, but can be for other industries such as financial institutions also. Please check with your registration body or associations of your profession to know if it is required by law to have professional indemnity insurance. It is often also required by companies who take on contract workers that are not governed under the companies own insurance policy. It is acceptable for a company to ask you as the professional contractor to provide evidence of cover for professional indemnity before starting the contract period.
As stated above professional indemnity insurance covers you for breaches in relation to your professional duty. Liability insurance covers you for activity that results in personal injury or property damage as a result of your business activities that do not relate to your specific profession. An example may be someone who trips and is injured from spilled water within your office may be covered under liability, because it is your duty of care as business person to provide a safe environment. Whereas a person who suffers a loss or injury because of your professional treatment in relation to your job has caused it would usually be consider as an indemnity breach.
Generally business insurance is to cover the physical assets of your business for material damage loss and options for theft cover. It can also include cover for financial loss due to business interruption. Usually basic insurance does not cover breach of duty or flood cover, but if you speak to an insurance specialist it can often be added to your policy for a nominal fee.
Depending on the policy you are taking out, covers will often vary. At Guild insurance we specialise in making a policy to suit your business so that you are not over paying for covers you wouldn't normally need. The best thing to do is call 1800 810 213 to speak to an insurance specialist, they can find out what activities and structure your business is in to then provide you with adequate cover for you.
A certificate of currency (or COC for short) is a written document that confirms that your insurance policy is current and valid at a specific date and time. At Guild we provide easy access to your COC at any time within a few clicks of our online portal PolicyHub. If you are a new customer we can provide you with one post purchase.
Our partnership with ITPA
Guild is the principal partner of ITPA and has been for over 13 years.
We work closely with your association to tailor an insurance policy suited to your unique needs.
ITPA is Australia’s peak body for IT professionals, dedicated to advancing the industry and supporting the development of technology and innovation across various sectors.
Not just an insurance policy
Risk articles with RiskHQ
You can visit RiskHQ at any time to read up about the unique risks you face as an IT professional. We cover a variety of risk management topics, from managing complaints, to social media risks, and much more.
Why the right insurance policy is important for IT consultants
We know, insurance can be tricky to understand. Unfortunately, it’s not as clear as 1s and 0s when working out what cover you need to ensure you’re meeting your professional and contractual requirements. That's why our partner Guild Insurance has provided some insight into the importance of having the right insurance policy by developing common scenarios based on claims trends for the IT consultant profession below:
Scenario one – Expectations can be hard to meet
Despite best efforts, sometimes things don’t end the way intended. Whether that’s due to expectation management, perceived skill or capability, or it's just a bad day, there's a range of reasons that an employer can feel they've been left exposed, feeling vulnerable or worse, have experienced a financial loss. In this case, they may seek retribution by way of seeking compensatory damages.
Scenario two – Differences in scope of work after commencement of contract
It is not uncommon for claims to arise due to cost variation involving a contract. The variation could occur for a range of reasons, including but not limited to the contract taking longer than initially planned, or the discovery that the project is far larger and more complicated than first anticipated. If this results in a dispute of work/cost, things can and often do get messy if not communicated well.
Scenario three – Mistakes in high risk industries
Developing software for aerospace applications can come with challenges. Even the smallest mistake in this sector could have enormous consequences. Like the aerospace industry, segments such as health, utilities, medical or defence, among others, can come with significant risk if an accident occurs, and can result in major claims.
Scenario four – Proof of insurance and maintaining cover
Employers may ask for evidence of professional indemnity and public liability insurance as a condition for working for them. However, it is imperative to maintain your professional indemnity insurance policy after the contract ends, as claims may arise days, weeks, months even years after the services were performed. If you don't have a current policy, then you may be left exposed for claims or allegations made against you.
The ITPA partners with Guild Insurance to ensure the unique needs of your profession are covered. And they do this by providing a policy that bundles professional indemnity, products and public liability all in one.
To learn more about the features and benefits of Guild Insurance’s IT consultant policy, visit guildinsurance.com.au or call 1800 810 213.
Disclaimer
Insurance issued by Guild Insurance Ltd, ABN 55 004 538 863, AFSL 233791 and subject to terms, conditions and exclusions. This information is of a general nature only. Please refer to the Product Disclosure Statement and policy wording for details. Guild insurance supports the ITPA through the payment of referral fees. For further information, contact us on 1800 810 2013.- IT
- Professional
*Coverage up to $20 million requires your selection of cover up to this limit during the quote and purchase process.
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