If your core business provides advice to clients, offers professional services, or designs in any industry or sector, you must learn to protect yourself from client claims or allegations. Not everyone will be happy with your service, and they may seek legal intervention to recover losses or damages they’ve incurred.
Whether you’re a business owner or a freelancer, you need to manage your clients’ expectations by helping them understand the possibility of undesired results. It can save you from paying huge compensation claims and legal fees associated with unsatisfied client lawsuits.
Mistakes or errors and omissions can happen in any undertaking in your profession. The impact of such blunders can cause financial damage or ruin the reputation of your clients. Consequently, the client can decide to sue you for negligence and demand full compensation.
Enlisting for professional indemnity insurance can come to your rescue and handle the liability costs of the lawsuit raised against you. It covers the legal proceedings and possible payment attached to the case.
Here are five reasons you need to buy this specific commercial policy and safeguard your profession.
1. No One Is Perfect
As a professional service provider, you can plan everything in preparation for a big presentation for a project. Still, a simple mistake like missing a figure in the budget make can turn things around. Your projected budget might fall short by a few dollars, forcing you to ask the client to add more.
The client can quickly read mischief and question your competence on the services you’re providing. You might have a tough time trying to explain the circumstances leading to additional funds.
People make mistakes either knowingly or unknowingly, and that can affect the expected outcome of a project. The client can express dissatisfaction with you by throwing litigation to recover the resources they provided for the project.
2. Compensation Cost
Other than dealing with liabilities like administration overheads, you could be facing compensation costs attached to incomplete work. Also, clients can decide to abandon a project halfway and demand full reimbursement of their funds, leaving you with huge losses.
Before commencing a project or starting your consultation services, you need to know the cost implications. Look at how much investment you and your client are going to put in to complete the job.
Your underwriter can assess the damages and settle the difference on your behalf. Professional indemnity insurance can protect you and your business from such financial expenses.
3. Data Security
Perhaps you handle confidential information in your line of work, and your data security system was compromised. Your client’s intellectual property falls into the wrong hands, and they want compensation for the loss.
Such security breaches or damages to your database can disrupt your operations and attract claims from unhappy clients. Recovering from such setbacks comes with financial responsibilities that can empty your pocket.
Your backup plan can include enlisting an insurance company and taking up an indemnity policy to cover the costs implications of restoring your data.
4. Staff Negligence
You can work hard to win a contract, but you need to have everyone on board reading from the same page before starting the job. That way, you can avoid having to redo tasks and deliver the job as per the agreement.
However, there are circumstances such as staff negligence that can lead to claims from unsatisfied clients. Some might decide to sabotage your business for no reason and leave you hanging.
These are side effects of delegating tasks to your staff who don’t care about your career. It may taint your image and ruin your reputation in whatever profession you’re practicing.
5. Your Business Lifeline
It takes time to build your profession and establish yourself as a top contender in the market. You pour the resources necessary to run and maintain your office. But a single claim by a client can wipe you out of business, forcing you to close your operations.
For instance, your client declares that your advice on investing in forex markets caused them to lose a million dollars, yet their capital was less than one hundred thousand. They are asking for compensation for their investment and damages for the loss, and they want to drag you into a court battle.
If you lose the case, you’ll be forced to pay plus the lawsuit administration costs to the courts.
Conclusion
The background of an insurance policy is to protect you from various risks involved in your business. It provides a cushion to give you a safe landing when things don’t go according to plan.
Issues like staff negligence or simple mistakes when executing your trade can lead to court battles and compensation claims from your clients. The potential settlement of the matter can attract a huge financial burden on you and your career. Getting professional indemnity insurance can protect you from unwarranted lawsuits and unnecessary payments to clients.
