Director’s and Officer’s Insurance

Protect the directors and senior managers in your business in case a mistake is made

What Does D&O Insurance Cover?

Director’s and Officer’s Liability insurance protects your business’s directors and senior managers in the event that it is alleged they have made a mistake, taken a bad decision or committed a “wrongful act” in the course of carrying out their duties for the company. These allegations could be made by shareholders, investors, employees, regulators or other third parties.

Wrongful acts include:

  • breach of trust
  • breach of duty
  • neglect
  • error
  • misleading statements
  • wrongful trading
  • Health & Safety breaches

Allegations need to be investigated and can be costly. Even if a case never gets as far as the courts, investigation costs can quickly mount up. This can have a significant impact on the alleged wrongdoer’s personal finances, which is why D&O insurance is an important way of protecting key senior individuals in a business.

D&O insurance covers the legal defence costs as well as any compensation awarded to the claimant.

Who Needs D&O Insurance?

All directors and senior managers should be covered by a D&O insurance policy. This should include all board members as well as non-executive directors too. In short, all senior directors and managers who are responsible for taking key decisions should be protected with D&O insurance, paid for by the company.

How Much D&O Insurance Do I Need?

As with other types of liability insurance, the amount of D&O cover you need will depend on a variety of factors. These include:

  • the size of your business
  • the sector in which you operate
  • the value of projects that you work on or deals that you make
  • the levels of authorisation given to directors and senior managers
  • how risk averse your business is.

Our recommendation is always to have as much cover as you can afford to ensure the right amount of protection is in place should you need it.

What’s the Difference Between D&O Insurance and Professional Indemnity?

D&O insurance and Professional Indemnity insurance both provide protection against bad advice and accidental mistakes. However, there is a clear distinction between the two types of cover:

 

  • PI insurance protects the business in the event that a client alleges they’ve been given bad advice or made a mistake that has resulted in financial loss
  • D&O insurance protects the directors and senior managers in the event that one of them allegedly makes a mistake carrying out their duties as a director or officer of the business which causes harm, financial or otherwise, to others.

Need more
information?

Please call Tom Cowap or the team on 020 8290 9080 to talk through your D&O insurance needs. Alternatively, you can email us at business@anthonyjones.com

“Every business needs to have the correct insurance cover on all aspects of their business, this is time consuming and can soon become a headache.

Since working with Anthony Jones the headaches have gone and it’s the good honest support from them that has ensured they have kept our business for over 15 years now.”

James Dew
MD
Harwoods of London Ltd

FAQ’s

Some of our most asked questions, answered below:

I am a start-up business, what insurance do I need?

There is a balance between adequate and appropriate protection of the business whilst keeping initial costs to a minimum.  Evaluate your business risks and the need for insurance under these 4 headings:

  • Assets (both physical and intellectual);
  • Revenue streams;
  • Liabilities to Third Parties (including contractual obligations);
  • People (your staff including their importance to the business).

Usually, a package type policy covering your physical property, annual revenues, Employer’s liability and Public/Product’s liability is required.   The only insurances required by law are Employer’s Liability, Motor Liability (if you have cars/vans etc) and Engineering Inspection of lifting and pressure plant if you have them.

What is business insurance?

Business insurance is a type of insurance that provides cover for businesses against financial losses due to unexpected disruption to business such as property damage, liability claims, a cybercrime issue, an issue with a director's duties, a professional indemnity or a motor accident – amongst others!

Do I need business insurance?

If you own a business, it is highly recommended that you have business insurance to protect your assets. The only insurances required by law are Employer’s Liability, Motor Liability (if you have cars/vans etc) and Engineering Inspection of lifting and pressure plant if you have them. Increasingly, suppliers or customers will ask for evidence of insurance.

How much does business insurance cost?

The cost of business insurance varies depending on the type of cover you need, the size of your business, and the level of risk associated with your industry. Insurance brokers help with this presentation to insurers in seeking the most appropriate market and price.

How much Professional Indemnity insurance do I need?

If you work in one of the professions for whom Professional Indemnity insurance is a legal requirement, the amount of cover you need may be mandated by your regulatory body. You should check on their website to find out.

Your clients may also specify within their contract the amount of PI cover they require you to have in place to protect the work you do for them.

If the amount of cover you need is not pre-determined, you can work it out by thinking about the size of projects you work on and your potential exposure to risk. We can help you calculate what this might be. Our recommendation would be to buy as much cover as you can afford.

Do I need Professional Indemnity insurance?

If your business provides advice, professional services or creates designs, it makes sense to have Professional Indemnity insurance to protect you in case anything goes wrong.

For some professions it’s a legal requirement to have Professional Indemnity insurance in place. Professions for whom it is mandatory include:

  • Solicitors and barristers
  • Financial advisers
  • Architects
  • Accountants
  • Some healthcare professionals, such as doctors, vets, dentists and surgeons
  • Chartered surveyors
What is Professional Indemnity insurance?

PI insurance protects your business if a client claims the advice, service or designs you provided were faulty in some way. It will cover the cost of any claim for compensation.

What is Directors & Officers insurance?

Also called D&O insurance, this covers the cost of any compensation claims your business needs to pay if a director or key manager is alleged to have done something wrong during the course of their work. This might include negligence, breach of trust, making a mistake or failing to do a task.

Do the Government tax premiums?

Yes, they do. The current rate is 12% and is a charge collected by insurers on behalf of the Government. This tax has nothing to do with insurance brokers or insurers.

How do you earn your money?

Insurance brokers earn money in the form of commissions when business is placed with insurers. You have every right to ask a broker what commission they are earning from insurers. An alternative to commission is to quote premiums “net” and brokers agree a fee with customers for services.

Reviews

 

Angus Storrier
Angus Storrier
15:34 08 Mar 24
Vanessa Mead
Vanessa Mead
10:00 17 Jan 24
Ed Tatham
Ed Tatham
15:09 11 Jan 24
wendy plant
wendy plant
10:10 01 Dec 23
I have been a client of Anthony Jones for 20+years. All the Advisors are experts in all areas of Insurance. The Advisors are very professional, helpful, cheerful, and caring. They make life easy when it comes to dealing with Insurance.
Leo G.
Leo G.
20:30 31 Oct 23
Best brokers !
Gail Proud
Gail Proud
21:39 10 Oct 23
Thank you for making insurance both Motor and Household stress free.
michael bentley
michael bentley
08:19 25 Sep 23
Very happy for many years, formerly dealing with Bob Chapman, Rose and Claire. Very friendly, very competitive quotes.
Colin Lee
Colin Lee
09:20 12 Sep 23
Joe and Mark are a credit to their profession. Thank you very much for your professionalism and the honest way that you conduct business.
Jed Lowe
Jed Lowe
16:06 07 Jul 23
…. Walked the extra mile including taking call on day off to sort out a mess caused by previous broker … can’t thank Bo and Tom enough ….
William Tracy
William Tracy
08:10 02 Jul 23
I have my Public Liability insurance with Anthony Jones. Tom Cowap normally deals with all my queries and renewal. I have found this company to be very helpful and polite and have dealt with my inquiries and renewal's quickly. Tom has always been really helpful.
Vapourlites Ltd
Vapourlites Ltd
13:43 11 May 23
Professional and efficient, first class service provided
Louise Burton
Louise Burton
13:46 21 Apr 23
I have worked with this company and Joe Penny for many years now and wouldn’t go anywhere else. Would Highly recommend Joe to anyone
lucy barham
lucy barham
09:09 21 Apr 23
Anthony Jones have have taken care of our commercial and fleet insurance needs for years. I have recently renewed our commercial & Liability insurance and trust that Joe Penny (account handler) understands our business and always strives to get the best rates and policy for us. I would highly recommend to anyone.
Ben Doughty
Ben Doughty
19:08 23 Oct 22
Steve @ Anthony Jones has been servicing our business for years and has always provided the best service I could ask for from a broker. Very responsive, great communication and a great company and individual to do business with. Does what is expected and more. Thanks
Louise Evans
Louise Evans
22:44 09 Aug 22
I use Anthony Jones Insurance Brokers annually for my home and contents policy. Sharon is always great to deal with, responsive, professional and found me a great deal. Really happy with my policy and will continue to use Anthony Jones in the future.
Amy LH
Amy LH
19:19 19 Jul 22
I have been a client of Anthony Jones for over 10 years as the broker for the buildings & associated insurances for our freehold property of 3 flats. For the last 6 years I have dealt with Tom Cowap who is always highly efficient, professional and easy to deal with. He really went above and beyond this year when he found the existing policy had stopped covering flood risk and that the alternatives offered a significant increase in premium on the previous year. He didn't involve me until he'd found policies which offered the right cover, but with a reasonable premium and it was genuinely surprising that he didn't try to sell me the more expensive option. I can't imagine wanting to move to a different broker in future because of this great service. Thanks Tom!
Stu Matson
Stu Matson
15:06 01 Jul 22
We have dealt with Tony and Steve for a few years now and are always so pleased with their service, patience and support in helping us get the insurance plans required for our outdoor events. I really couldn't recommend highly enough.
Arif Ali
Arif Ali
11:47 19 May 22
Bo has helped with the review and renewal of our Property Owners insurance for the last few years. I have found Bo very helpful and professional and would certainly recommend her to others. Kind regards.
Olga Bradley
Olga Bradley
16:28 11 Apr 22
Tom was very helpful, and very patient during the whole process of finding me a qoute for public Liability insurance. He helped make the whole process much easier for me. I would use his service again in the future.
Keith Rossiter
Keith Rossiter
18:42 28 Mar 22
Very efficient and friendly service. Competitive prices.
MODUS (MATL)
MODUS (MATL)
12:09 14 Mar 22
We have used Anthony Jones in excess of twenty five years. Always find them helpful and efficient, and they are able to get us the best costs for our insurance policies.
Brian Sealey
Brian Sealey
15:39 14 Feb 22
I dealt with a bloke called Joe Penny. From the minute we starting speaking he explained everything to me, explained all the ins and outs of the insurance. He made me feel at ease straight away. I would definitely recommend him if your looking for vape shop insurance. Cheers Joe will be back in touch when it’s time for renewal 👍
Paul Jackson
Paul Jackson
12:36 16 Nov 20
I wrote the following two years ago. Since then, I have continued to receive great service from the team at Anthony Jones - they are courteous & very effective, a pretty good combination for an insurance broker!"I chair a campaign to save our local pub. We launched a share sale and succeeded in buying the Crown a few days ago, so we needed help in selecting the right insurance for the site whilst renovations were under way, including unoccupied property cover. Tony Ellis of Anthony Jones Insurance was really helpful in guiding us through this process, and we now have the correct cover in place. Fast, easy to deal with & knowledgeable - just what you need from your insurance broker! Well done Tony and all at A Jones."
Irene Sauer
Irene Sauer
12:04 31 Aug 20
Excellent service.
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