IT Liability Insurance
What is IT Liability?
IT Insurance protects you from claims if your client holds you responsible for errors, or the failure of your work to perform as promised in your contract.
There are two main sections of an IT policy which are:
- Professional Indemnity insurance provides essential financial protection for IT Professionals against potential losses arising out of their professional service or advice. This includes but is not limited to acts, errors or omissions made by the IT Professional.
- Public & Products Liability covers IT Professionals for their legal liability in the event of personal injury or damage to property to others during the course of normal business operations or as a result of a product defect. This includes where the public visit your home or business, or if you visit their premises.
The policy can also often be extended to include the following additional risks
- Breaches of the Trade Practices Act
- Defamation
- Dishonesty of Employees
- Loss of data and documents
- Accidental Breach of Copyright and Intellectual Property Rights
- Breach of Confidentiality
- Sub Contractors where you are responsible for them
- Loss Mitigation Expense
- Unintentional Breach of Contract
- Trade Practice Acts
- Product Re-call Expenses
Why is it useful?
Professional Indemnity protects the IT Professional against claims of negligence or other act, error or omission made against them by a client. We combine this usually with Public Liability insurance for your additional protection mainly to avoid any dispute over how damage was caused. Was it physical damage or caused by programming or software error?
Coverage includes legal defence costs - no matter how baseless the allegations. IT Insurance will pay for any resulting judgments against you, including court costs, up to the coverage limits on your policy.
Information Technology and Telecommunications (IT&T) companies are facing increasing liability challenges and threats. Even the best managed IT&T companies can find themselves embroiled in legal action from ever demanding customers as the reliance on the products and services provided by IT&T company’s increases. They can face financial loss threats from the following sources:
- Due to systems not being delivered within contractual timeframes
- Due to systems not performing as intended or they are incompatible, inappropriate or ineffective hardware or software
- Arising from software development risk even when the contract has not been completed
- Arising from a breach of a third parties Intellectual Property Rights such as copyright, trademark or register design
- Arising from loss of data, libel and slander and sub contractors acts
- Data migration difficulties
- Inadequate hardware or software support
- Injury caused by faulty hardware or software
- Physical loss of equipment
- The consequential loss of revenue to a client suffered as a result of any of the above
Who can help?
IT Liability is a complex and specialised area of insurance. If you want to know more about professional indemnity and public liability and other Business Insurances, contact a specialist insurance broker such as Cooper Professional Risks. An insurance broker's role is to act as your representative and work in your interests, seeking the best cover at the best price for you from market knowledge. Call a good one.
Call CPR – Experts who will save you. Call 07 31231137 or email enquiries@professionalrisk.com.au
