Architects have a dynamic and creative profession, having to work with clients to achieve their vision while also ensuring the final design will work. No matter how busy you are, it’s important not to forget to cover your areas of risk through insurance. Let’s take a closer look at the insurances which may apply to you.
Make sure you’re covered
Public liability insurance – Public liability insurance means you’re covered financially if you cause damage to property or injury to a person while you’re at work. If you work from an office as an architect or have clients visiting your home, you must have liability insurance in place in case a client injures themselves or a third party has any property damaged.
Personal accident and illness cover – If you’re suddenly unable to work due to injury or sickness, personal accident insurance will continue to provide you with a portion of your income until you can return to work or your policy expires. This allows you to keep up with expenses while you recover.
General property cover – General property insurance covers the items you carry with you if they’re lost, damaged or stolen. For architects, this covers items such as your phone, laptop and tablet which you may carry with you.
Tax audit insurance – As an architect, you’re liable to become subject to a tax audit at any time. This can be an expensive process if you hire a professional to complete the audit. With tax audit cover, the cost of hiring a professional accountant or lawyer to complete the audit on your behalf is covered.
Life insurance – Life insurance will provide your family with a lump sum payment upon your death. This lessens any financial hardship and your family can spend this money as they wish. Life insurance often goes towards expenses such as paying off the mortgage and credit card debt, general living expenses, rent and utilities, and education costs.
Professional indemnity insurance – Professional indemnity insurance is designed to protect professionals who provide advice or services to customers. It protects you financially from claims by a third party that you have breached your professional duties. For architects, this could include inadequate design, negligent advice and planning deficiencies.
Speak to your broker
Organising insurance can be a time consuming process – you need to consider all of your areas of risk and make sure you have the right level of cover. You also need to be familiar with the details of your insurances so there are no surprises come claim time. Of course, you can always take the hard word out by speaking with an insurance broker.
An insurance broker has the expertise and specialised knowledge to make sure you get the best policy at the best price. Also, when it comes to claim time, your broker will deal directly with the insurer on your behalf.
At Contractor Cover, we understand the specific needs of contractors and have conveniently provided all the most common insurances into one package for you.
To discuss architect insurance or for any other questions, contact Contractor Cover today on 1300 438 268 and we’d be happy to help.
