Calculating the cost of a Public Liability insurance policy involves considering a range of factors such as the size of the business, the number of employees, location and industry.

Every retail business is different, with its own particular exposure to risks, making their insurance needs unique.

Let’s take a closer look at the different pricing factors and average premiums for retail businesses.

 

How much does Public Liability insurance cost as an average monthly premium?

The average amount a retail business can expect to pay for their Public Liability policy is around $71 per month*. An analysis of BizCover customer data shows that 20% of our retail customers pay less than $50 per month and 32% pay between $51-$60 per month for their Public Liability insurance.

* Pricing for individual risks may differ from the examples, based on underwriting criteria.

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How much cover do you need?

From traditional stores to online traders, there are many ways Aussie retailers are doing business. As retail businesses vary greatly, the type of cover needed will depend on a range of factors, including but not limited to contractual requirements.

For example, if you operate within a shopping centre or a rental space with a landlord, a minimum level of Public Liability cover may be part of your leasing agreement.

Many insurers offer a range of levels of cover including $5 million, $10 million and $20 million. Don’t forget the type of cover you need can be dependent on your industry and the likelihood of personal injury or property damage to a third party in your line of work.

 

What factors affect the pricing of Public Liability insurance?

Type of business

There’s no one size fits all when it comes to retail businesses and their insurance needs. Each bring their own level of risk, and as a rule, the higher the chance of your business causing personal injury or damage to a third party, the higher the premium, and vice versa.

Each insurance company will assess risks differently. While one insurer may consider a business high risk, another may not consider it as risky. This is usually largely determined by the number of claims each insurance company has received for that type of business.

Below is a breakdown of the average monthly premium different types of BizCover retail businesses are paying per month .

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Average cost by state/territory  

The location of your retail business can also impact your premium. Below is a breakdown of the average premium costs by state/ territory within Australia (ACT and Tasmania not included due to sample sizes).

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The number of employees

The number of employees your retail business has can also impact the cost of your policy. Typically, the more employees your business has, the higher the premium. This is due to the increased potential for an employee to accidentally cause injury or damage to a customer or member of the public’s property.

Below is a breakdown of the average cost of retail insurance by number of employees*:

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What is Public Liability insurance for retailers?

No matter what type of retail business you are, whether you’re big or small, your customers and suppliers are your lifeblood, meaning you have a duty of care to take reasonable steps to protect them from harm and damage while interacting with your business.

Common risks retail businesses are faced with include trip and falls resulting in injury and providing faulty product/s that cause injury or damage to property (product liability cover is usually included with public liability cover). As hard as you may try to prevent accidents from occurring, the reality is accidents do happen.

Public Liability insurance protects your retail business by typically covering*:

  • Compensation for personal injury suffered by a third party (eg a customer, supplier or member of the public)
  • Compensation for property damage sustained by a third party
  • Legal and defence costs associated with a covered claim

It will not typically cover*:

  • Injuries to your employees
  • Damage to your own property
  • Costs of rectifying fault workmanship
  • Professional negligence
  • Contractual liability
  • Events occurring before or after the policy period

 

Product Liability Insurance

Product Liability insurance usually forms part of a Public Liability insurance policy and can be vital to retail businessesProduct liability cover protects you and your business if your goods cause injury or damage to third parties. 

The term ‘product’ is typically defined in your insurance policy wording (however it is important to check the definition in each individual policy). 

Product generally means anything that has been manufactured, constructed, erected, assembled, installed, grown, extracted, produced or processed, treated, altered, modified, repaired, serviced, bottled, labelled, handled, sold, supplied, re-supplied or distributed, imported or exported by you, or on behalf of your business.  

If you were to negligently supply a product that caused a claim against your business for injury or property damage, Product Liability insurance will cover* the damages awarded to the third party and the costs of investigating and defending the claim made against you. 

 

Getting cover: Public Liability Quotes

Running a retail business involves focusing on many tasks all at once, from monitoring stock, marketing and ensuring sales are being made. We know you’ve got enough going on, so leave the shopping around for your Public Liability insurance with us. 

Our team is here to deliver competitive quotes from some of Australia’s top insurers, based on your business unique factors, providing accurate policy pricing.  

Start protecting your business today. 

 

* Subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions contained in the policy wording. 

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