{"id":599,"date":"2023-08-17T08:58:49","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T08:58:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.simplybusiness.co.uk\/business-insurance\/faq\/what-is-product-liability-insurance\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T12:52:52","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T12:52:52","slug":"what-is-product-liability-insurance","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.simplybusiness.co.uk\/business-insurance\/faq\/what-is-product-liability-insurance\/","title":{"rendered":"What is product liability insurance?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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What is product liability insurance?<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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Start your quote<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Product liability insurance<\/a> is a type of business insurance<\/a> that can cover the cost of compensation claims if someone is injured or their property is damaged by a product that you\u2019ve sold. In certain situations you may be liable even if you haven\u2019t actually manufactured the product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does product liability insurance cover?<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Product liability insurance can pay the legal fees and compensation costs if someone sues you for injury or damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re likely to be liable to pay these compensation costs if you manufacture the products you sell, but you could also be liable if the products bear the name of your business or if you\u2019ve repaired or refurbished them. You may also be liable if the manufacturer can\u2019t be traced, has gone out of business, or is outside the EU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, you run an online cake business and someone blames you for food poisoning, or you run a toy shop and a faulty toy hurts a child. In each case, you may be asked to pay compensation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How much product liability insurance do I need?<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s up to you to decide how much product liability insurance you need. Simply Business offers product liability insurance as part of public liability cover<\/a> – which protects you from compensation claims for injury or damage caused by your business – and our insurers offer cover limits of up to \u00a35 million or \u00a310 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is product liability insurance required by law?<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Product liability insurance isn\u2019t a legal requirement, but you may find that manufacturers, suppliers, distributors or retailers you work with will require you to have it. On top of that, if you are found liable for injury, damage or death caused by one of your products, you can be sued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who is liable for damage caused by a defective product?<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Under the Consumer Protection Act, manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and retailers could be held responsible for damage, injury or death caused by their product or any of that product\u2019s component parts. However, the party held liable will depend on the specifics of each individual case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Popular trades we insure<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

At Simply Business we insure all kinds of trades like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n