Tradies Insurance

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What is tradies insurance?

Why would tradies need business insurance?

What types of insurance should tradies consider?

Is business insurance compulsory for tradies in Australia?

How much does tradies insurance typically cost?

What should tradies consider when choosing business insurance?

Where can I find and compare business insurance?

Long story short

‘Tradies insurance’ isn’t a specific type of business insurance

It refers to several types of business insurance policies that might suit a tradesperson or business.

Public liability, portable equipment, and professional indemnity insurance are some relevant cover types for tradies

They could help safeguard your business if someone’s hurt, something gets damaged, or if you fail to carry out your professional duties.

Premiums vary, but tradies can expect to pay around $98 a month* on average

Your trade, equipment, location, and other factors like business size all shape your premium.

Business insurance cover may be mandatory depending on your trade and state

For instance, plumbers in Victoria need a minimum $5 million in public liability cover.

What is tradies insurance?

First things first – tradies insurance is not a specific type of business insurance policy. Rather, it’s a selection of business insurance policies that could help financially protect a tradie and their business from events such as property damage, onsite injuries, product liability, or income protection during business interruptions.

Here are some types of trades that could find business insurance useful.

And just like there are heaps of different trades, there’s a bunch of types of business insurance that could cover you depending on what aspects of your trade business you want to insure.

To put it simply, ‘tradies insurance’ could be many different types of insurance in one package that’s built to financially protect a tradie and their business if something unexpected were to happen.

Why would tradies need business insurance?

As if operating a trade business isn’t hard yakka enough, there’s so much potential for things to go pear-shaped when you’re bouncing between job sites, hauling a load of tools on your ute, or interacting with clients – your equipment could damage a client’s property, then there’s the unfortunate worksite injury or an unscrupulous so-and-so might nick your tools.

Without business insurance, you could face unexpected and hefty losses paying for property repairs, to replace stolen tools, or medical bills – all of which can put major financial strain on your business. And if you’re a sole trader, you may not have anyone else to pick up the slack while you’re off work.

What types of insurance should tradies consider?

There are a few different cover options for tradies that could offer a financial cushion for different situations. Here are some business insurance products that might help a tradesperson and their business.

Public liability insurance

Public liability insurance helps cover compensation costs and legal fees if you negligently cause injury to a member of the public or damage to property, say, accidental damage to your client’s property.

For example, if you’re working on a residential reno and your client gets injured on a misplaced tool, they might file a public liability suit which could potentially result in a substantial payout from your wallet. Public liability insurance could help cover that unexpected cash outflow.

Professional indemnity insurance

Professional indemnity insurance can help cover settlement costs and legal or court costs if a third party makes a claim against your business for negligence (alleged or actual) in your professional services or advice.

For example, if your wiring at a property resulted in an electrical fault, this could potentially lead to a legal liability claim against your business.

Portable equipment insurance

Depending on your trade, your toolkit can be your bread and butter, or even your pride and joy. Without it, you can’t really do the job you were hired for.

That’s why portable equipment insurance (or ‘tool insurance’ as some might call it) can be incredibly valuable for tradies. It’s intended to cover costs if your tools get lost, damaged, or stolen from a locked premises or place of storage – perhaps from your truck or a job site.

Personal accident and illness insurance

If you’re a sole trader, personal accident and illness insurance helps protect you if you’re injured in or outside the job, or get sick and are unable to work. It can provide financial support in the form of income protection until you can get back on the tools.

Tax audit insurance

The Australian Tax Office (ATO) can sometimes pick out your business for an audit. Typically, audits take up a lot of time and can be super complicated and costly to boot!

Tax audit insurance could help you unload some of this financial stress by covering some of the costs related to an ATO audit including accountant fees, tax agent fees, or some other professional fees that might fall under auditing expenses.

As with any insurance product, there will be events that can’t be covered (in insurance terms, these are called exclusions). To help prevent any surprises down the track, take a good look at the product disclosure statement to understand what’s in and what’s out. It might save you the time and effort of having a claim knocked back.

Helpful tip

When thinking about the level of cover your business needs, it helps also to consider the not-so-obvious options – cyber liability or employee dishonesty insurance, for example. If you’re comparing online quotes with BizCover, you’ll also see a list of other cover types that fellow tradies or other small businesses have considered. After all, ‘measure twice, cut once’ shouldn’t just apply to the work you do, but also how you protect it.

Adrian Bennett

General Manager for General Insurance

Is business insurance compulsory for tradies in Australia?

If you operate a trades business in Australia, there are a couple of must-haves when it comes to insurance.

• Workers’ compensation is a necessity if your business hires anyone, including apprentices and subcontractors.
• Compulsory third-party (CTP) insurance is mandatory if you have a ute, truck, van or another vehicle as it helps cover injuries you cause to other people in a motor accident.

While BizCover doesn’t offer workers compensation nor CTP insurance, it may be able to help you with other types of tradie-related business insurance – and this can depend on your industry and where you live.

In Victoria, Queensland, and Tassie, for example, sparkies must have a minimum $5 million limit in public liability insurance cover – the same goes for plumbers in Victoria.

How much does tradies insurance typically cost?

According to BizCover customer data from July 2024 to June 2025, business insurance for tradies costs $98 per month on average. That said, the cost can vary widely because a few key factors can influence how much you pay for business insurance as a tradie.

Here are some of the factors that can affect how much your business insurance costs.

• Your business size: Bigger businesses with more employees typically pay more, simply because there’s a higher chance of an accident happening. In some cases, premiums are also affected by business turnover and how long you’ve been operating.
• Your equipment: It probably goes without saying that if you own pricey equipment and machinery, like cranes or power tools, you’re probably going to have to pay more to cover them.
• Your location: If you work in an area with a history of regular or big claims, or if your location is high-risk for some other reason (like more frequent natural disasters or thefts), it can affect your insurance costs.
• The risks of your trade: Different trades have their own levels of risk, which also impacts premiums – like roofers working at heights are at increased risk of being injured in a fall
• The policy you choose: There are different coverage limits, excess amounts, add-ons, and exclusions that can vary between policies and insurance providers

What should tradies consider when choosing business insurance?

Ask yourself these questions to get an idea of how much coverage you might need:

Where can I find and compare business insurance?

Sometimes finding great cover can feel like searching for that 10mm socket that’s never around when you need it! Don’t give up though. Through our partnership with BizCover, iSelect can help you compare business insurance policies offered by a range of insurance brands before you find one for the job.

* BizCover Customer Average Monthly Payment Report is based on 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 and presented as a guide only. It may not reflect pricing for your particular business, as individual criteria will apply.

This information is general only and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. It should not be relied upon as advice. As with any insurance, cover will be subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions contained in the policy wording.

The provision of the claims examples is 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 is determined by the insurer, and not BizCover.

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