Painter and decorator insurance: key facts
- Public liability is not a legal requirement for a sole-trader decorator, but most homeowners, letting agents and contractors expect you to have it.
- Employers' liability is compulsory once you employ anyone, including apprentices, with at least £5 million of cover. Fines can reach £2,500 a day.
- Painter and decorator insurance for a sole trader costs roughly £70 to £380 a year, depending on cover (rough guide, including 12% IPT).
- Heat work (blowtorches and heat guns) is often excluded or allowed only with conditions such as a fire extinguisher on hand and a check after you finish.
- Faulty workmanship is not covered. Redoing a poor paint job is your cost, but damage it causes to other property may be.
- Main contractors commonly ask subcontract decorators for £5 million or £10 million of public liability.
- Paint applied before the 1960s and 1970s often contains lead, and textured coatings such as Artex applied before about 2000 may contain asbestos.
What does painter and decorator insurance cover?
Painter and decorator insurance is normally a package. Public liability covers damage to customers' property and injury to other people, tools cover protects your sprayers and access kit, and employers' liability covers anyone you employ. Larger jobs may need contract works cover too.
| Cover | What it protects | Who needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Public liability | Claims from customers or the public for injury or damage, such as paint spilled on a sofa, overspray on a car, or a visitor tripping over your dust sheets. | Every painter and decorator. It is the cover customers and contractors ask to see. |
| Employers' liability | Claims from staff or apprentices injured or made ill at work, such as a fall from a tower or a reaction to solvent fumes. | A legal requirement once you employ anyone, including apprentices and most labour-only helpers. |
| Tools and equipment | Airless sprayers, extraction units, steamers, sanders, ladders, towers and hand tools if stolen or damaged. | Anyone whose kit would be expensive or slow to replace, especially spray decorators. |
| Contract works | The job itself while it is in progress, for example freshly finished work damaged by fire, flood or vandalism before handover. | Decorators taking on larger refurbishments or commercial contracts. |
| Personal accident | A lump sum or weekly benefit if an injury stops you working, such as a broken wrist after a ladder slip. | Sole traders with no sick pay who rely on their own hands. |
| Business van insurance | Driving to jobs and carrying paint, ladders and kit. | Anyone driving for work. Arranged with your motor insurer, not the liability policy. |
Do painters and decorators need insurance by law?
A self-employed decorator working alone is not legally required to hold public liability insurance in the UK. Employers' liability insurance is compulsory as soon as you employ someone, including an apprentice, with a minimum of £5 million of cover.
In practice, painters and decorators find it hard to get steady work without public liability:
- Homeowners ask, because you're working next to their carpets and furniture for days at a time.
- Contractors, letting agents and landlords insist, and contractors often set a minimum of £5 million or £10 million.
The Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 means that an employer without cover can be fined up to £2,500 for each day they are uninsured. It applies to part-time, temporary and casual staff, and to apprentices. Northern Ireland has its own equivalent law with the same basic requirement.
How much does painter and decorator insurance cost?
As a rough guide, painter and decorator insurance for a sole trader costs roughly £70 to £380 a year: about £70 to £200 for public liability alone, rising when you add tools and personal accident. Businesses with staff typically pay more because of employers' liability. These figures include 12% Insurance Premium Tax.
| Typical set-up | Rough guide price per year |
|---|---|
| Sole trader, public liability only | £70 to £200 |
| Sole trader adding tools and personal accident | £150 to £380 |
| Decorating business with staff (adds employers' liability) | £450 to £1,100 |
What pushes the price of decorator insurance up or down:
- Your public liability limit. £1 million suits many domestic decorators. Contract work usually needs £5 million or £10 million, which costs more.
- Heat work. Burning off with a blowtorch or heat gun is a fire risk. Some insurers charge more, some add conditions, and some exclude it.
- Spraying and height. Exterior spraying and high work both raise the premium.
- Staff and wage roll. Employers' liability is priced on how many people you employ and what you pay them.
These are rough guide figures only; a broker can give you an actual price.
What to check before you buy painting and decorating insurance
Before you buy painting and decorating insurance, check four things: whether heat work is covered and on what conditions, the height limit, whether spraying is included, and whether the public liability limit meets what your contractors ask for.
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Heat work clause | Many policies exclude blowtorches and heat guns, or only cover them if you keep an extinguisher nearby and check the area after you finish. Breaking the condition can void a fire claim. |
| Spray application | Some policies exclude spraying or overspray damage unless declared. Check exterior spraying in particular. |
| Height limit | Policies may cap the height you can work at from ladders or towers. Exterior work on three-storey houses can fall outside it. |
| Public liability limit | Match it to your highest contract requirement, commonly £5 million or £10 million for site work. |
| Tools in the van overnight | Check the locked-vehicle condition, overnight theft rules and the single-item limit for an expensive sprayer. |
Heat stripping, lead paint and Artex: hazards decorators face
The three hazards most specific to painters and decorators are fire from heat stripping, lead dust and fume from old paint, and asbestos in old textured coatings. Insurers ask about all three, and two are covered by specific health and safety regulations.
Heat stripping. Burning off old gloss is a well-known cause of fires, often starting behind a fascia board or in debris under the eaves and smouldering after you've left. Where a policy allows heat work, typical conditions are a fire extinguisher within reach, no naked flame near roof spaces or combustible materials, and a check for smouldering for a set period after you finish (often 30 to 60 minutes).
Lead paint. Paint in UK homes from before the 1960s and 1970s frequently contains lead, often under modern coats on skirting boards, doors and windows. Dry sanding or burning it off creates lead dust and fume. The Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002 require you to assess and control exposure. Dust left behind is a real risk to customers' children. Use wet abrasion or chemical strippers, clean up thoroughly, and never use a blowtorch on lead paint.
Artex and textured coatings. Textured ceiling and wall coatings applied before about 2000 may contain asbestos. Under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, you should not sand, scrape or drill them without knowing what they contain. Get the coating tested, or paint over it without disturbing it. Removal is a job for someone trained in asbestos work.
Rules and regulations painters and decorators should know
The key UK rules for painters and decorators are the Work at Height Regulations 2005, COSHH for paints and solvents, the lead and asbestos regulations, and, for site work, the Construction Industry Scheme. Employers also need employers' liability insurance.
- Work at Height Regulations 2005. These cover employers and the self-employed. Avoid height where you reasonably can (extension poles for ceilings), use the right equipment, such as a tower rather than a stepladder for long jobs, and plan the work. Northern Ireland has equivalent regulations.
- COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002). Solvent-based paints, strippers and some two-pack coatings are hazardous substances. Read the safety data sheets, ventilate, and use the right respiratory protection. Coatings containing isocyanates, found in some two-pack spray finishes, are a recognised cause of occupational asthma. Spraying them needs proper controls, usually air-fed breathing equipment.
- CSCS cards. Most main contractors require a Construction Skills Certification Scheme card on their sites. Which card you get depends on your qualifications.
- Construction Industry Scheme (CIS). Contractors deduct tax from your payments under CIS: 20% if you're registered with HMRC, 30% if you're not.
- Risk assessments. Contractors often ask for risk assessments and method statements (RAMS). With five or more employees, your risk assessment must be written down.
Common painters and decorators insurance claims
Typical claims against painters and decorators are paint spills on carpets and furniture, overspray on cars and neighbouring property, fires started by heat stripping, ladders damaging windows, and stolen sprayers and tools.
- A tin of satinwood tips over on a landing and soaks into a new wool carpet that has to be replaced.
- A dust sheet slips on a polished floor, a customer falls on the stairs and is injured.
- Wind carries masonry paint overspray onto parked cars across the road.
- Your extension ladder swings round and goes through a neighbour's window.
- Steam from a wallpaper stripper loosens a ceiling or damages a plaster cornice beyond the area you were stripping.
- A heat gun ignites debris behind a fascia board, and the fire spreads into the roof space after you leave.
- Your airless sprayer and tools are taken from your van overnight.
Heat work and spraying are where conditions and exclusions most often apply.
Insurance for painters working for contractors
Decorators who work for builders or main contractors usually need £5 million or £10 million of public liability, a CSCS card, and CIS registration. If you work on a labour-only basis, check whether the contractor's employers' liability covers you or whether you need your own.
- Higher limits. Check the contract's minimum before you buy; raising it mid-year can cost extra.
- Bona fide or labour-only. A bona fide subcontractor brings their own materials, tools and insurance and controls how the work is done. A labour-only subcontractor works under direction and is often treated as an employee for employers' liability.
- Your own subcontractors. If the decorators you bring in have no insurance of their own, your policy may have to cover them.
- Contract works. On bigger refurbishments you may be responsible for the work until handover, which contract works cover protects.
Starting a painting and decorating business: checklist
To start a painting and decorating business in the UK, register with HMRC (and for CIS if you'll do contract work), arrange public liability and tools cover, add business use to your van insurance, and get a CSCS card if you plan to work on sites.
- Register as self-employed with HMRC, or set up a limited company.
- Register for CIS as a subcontractor if you'll work for builders or contractors, so deductions are made at 20% rather than 30%.
- Arrange insurance: public liability at the level your clients need, tools and equipment, and personal accident if you'd struggle without income.
- Declare heat work and spraying to the broker if you do them, and learn the policy conditions.
- Add business use to your van insurance.
- Buy a lead test kit and know how to deal with Artex before you start on older properties.
- Add employers' liability before you take on an apprentice or any help.
Insurance for painters: broker or buy online?
Buying online works for many domestic decorators who don't use heat or spray equipment. A broker is useful when your work is less standard: heat stripping, spraying, high exterior work, contract work needing £5 million or £10 million, or staff and apprentices.
A broker who arranges cover for painters and decorators can compare insurers, explain heat work and height conditions, and help if you claim.
For a wider guide to every type of business cover, see our small business insurance guide.
Related guides
Painter and decorator insurance: frequently asked questions
Do painters and decorators need insurance by law?
A sole-trader painter and decorator doesn't legally need public liability insurance in the UK, but most customers and contractors expect it. Employers' liability insurance is compulsory once you employ anyone, including an apprentice, with at least £5 million of cover.
How much is painter and decorator insurance?
As a rough guide, a sole trader pays roughly £70 to £380 a year. Public liability alone is about £70 to £200, and adding tools and personal accident takes it to about £150 to £380. A decorating business with staff might pay roughly £450 to £1,100. These figures include 12% Insurance Premium Tax.
How much painter public liability insurance do I need?
£1 million or £2 million is common for domestic decorators. Main contractors and commercial clients often ask for £5 million or £10 million, so check what your contracts require before you buy.
Am I covered if I spill paint on a customer's carpet?
Usually yes, under public liability, if the damage is accidental. Check the excess, as small spills may cost less than it.
Does decorator insurance cover burning off paint with a blowtorch?
Not always. Many policies exclude heat work or only cover it if you meet conditions, such as having a fire extinguisher at hand and checking the area for a set time afterwards. Tell the broker if you use a blowtorch or heat gun.
Is overspray damage covered?
It can be, under public liability, if you've declared that you spray. Some policies exclude or limit spraying, especially outdoors.
Will insurance pay to redo a bad paint job?
No. Liability insurance doesn't cover the cost of putting right your own faulty workmanship. It may cover resulting damage to other property.
Do I need employers' liability for an apprentice?
Yes. Apprentices are employees, so employers' liability insurance is a legal requirement as soon as you take one on, with at least £5 million of cover. Fines for not having it can reach £2,500 a day.
Do I need my own insurance if I work labour-only for a builder?
Often you do need your own public liability, as many contractors insist on it. As a labour-only worker you may fall under the contractor's employers' liability, but check rather than assume.
Can I sand or scrape Artex?
Not without knowing what it contains. Textured coatings applied before about 2000 may contain asbestos, so get it tested or paint over it undisturbed.
Are my sprayer and tools covered if they're stolen from my van?
Only if you have tools and equipment cover, and most policies have conditions, such as the van being locked with kit out of sight. Check the single-item limit too, because a good airless sprayer can be worth more than the policy pays for any one item.