What Insurance Does a Tradie Actually Need in Australia?

Insurance is the purchase you resent right up until it saves your house. Here’s the plain-English map of what exists, what it’s for, and the gaps that catch tradies out. One important note first: this is general information, not advice. Policies differ, states differ, trades differ. Use this to walk into a broker conversation informed, not to skip it.

The core cover most trade businesses carry

• Public liability. The big one. Covers injury to other people and damage to their property arising from your work. Many builders, real estate agents and commercial clients won’t let you on site without a current certificate.
• Tool and equipment cover. Your tools are your income. Stolen ute contents on a Monday morning can stop a business dead. Check whether tools in vehicles overnight are actually covered, that exclusion surprises a lot of people.
• Commercial vehicle insurance. A private car policy can refuse a claim on a work ute. If the vehicle earns money, insure it as a work vehicle.
• Personal accident and income protection. The one tradies skip and regret most. Your biggest asset isn’t the ute, it’s your ability to swing the tools. A busted shoulder without income cover is a mortgage problem, fast.

Cover that depends on your situation

• Workers compensation is generally compulsory once you employ people, run by each state. Rules for subbies vary by state and catch people out, so check yours.
• Contract works / construction cover for builders and anyone doing sizeable projects, covering the works themselves while under construction.
• Professional indemnity if you design, certify or give advice as part of the work.
• Home warranty / domestic building insurance for residential builders over certain job values, state-based and often mandatory. Builders: know your state’s threshold.

The traps we see repeatedly

• Letting cover lapse in a tight month, which is precisely when Murphy’s Law does its best work.
• Being underinsured on tools because the sum was set years and many purchases ago.
• Assuming your structure protects you instead of insurance. A company doesn’t stop you being sued for negligence.
• Not reading exclusions: hot works, heights, asbestos. The work you actually do has to match the policy.

Get it sorted once, review it yearly

The fix isn’t complicated: one honest session with a good broker who knows the trades, cover matched to the work you really do, certificates filed where you can find them, and a yearly review when premiums renew. As part of our compliance and legal setup work, we make sure the whole picture, structure, licences and insurance, actually hangs together, and connect you with the right professionals to lock it in.