Which types of insurance are best for freelancers?

One of the most common questions freelancers ask is: “Which types of insurance are really worth having?” It’s a fair question, because there’s a maze of products out there and not all of them will be relevant to your work. .

Main Types of Insurance for Freelancers

Here are the products you’ll most often come across, with a plain-English explanation of what they do and who tends to need them.

• Public liability insurance

  • Covers: Injury or property damage caused to someone else while you’re working.

  • Best for: Tradespeople, photographers, market stall sellers, dog walkers, or anyone meeting clients face-to-face.

• Professional indemnity insurance

  • Covers: Claims if your work, advice or design causes a client to lose money (like a coding error, design mistake, or copyright slip-up).

  • Best for: Designers, consultants, IT freelancers, marketers, and writers.

• Employers’ liability insurance

  • Covers: Injury or illness to employees.

  • Best for: Only relevant if you employ staff. It’s also the only type of insurance that’s legally required in the UK if you do have employees.

• Business equipment insurance

  • Covers: Loss, theft or damage to the tools you rely on — from laptops to cameras.

  • Best for: Photographers, videographers, designers, tradespeople.

• Cyber insurance

  • Covers: Costs from data breaches, cyber attacks or hacks.

  • Best for: Anyone handling client data, especially digital freelancers like developers or marketers.

• Income protection insurance

  • Covers: A payout if you can’t work because of illness or injury.

  • Best for: Sole traders who depend entirely on themselves to earn money.

But which insurance types do freelancers really need?

In our research, freelancers highlighted some clear problem areas:

• Late payments and unpaid work – Many said clients not paying on time is one of their biggest headaches [1]. Insurance can’t stop late payment, but professional indemnity insurance can protect you if a client refuses to pay because they claim your work caused them a loss.

• Expensive equipment – A large share of freelancers, especially in creative fields, rely on costly gear like cameras, laptops, and specialist tools [2]. Business equipment insurance is the one to look at here.

• Unpredictable income – Quite a few told us they struggle with gaps between jobs and worry about being unable to work if they fall ill [3]. Income protection insurance is designed for this exact problem. Personal accident is also worth considering - it's generally cheaper and covers you if you're physically unable to work due to an accident.

• Client disputes – Disagreements over quality of work or missed deadlines were a recurring theme [4]. This is where professional indemnity insurance really matters.

• Working face-to-face – Dog walkers, photographers, and crafters all mentioned the worry of accidents when meeting clients or the public [5]. Public liability insurance is the safeguard here.

The type of work you do is the main consideration

So, which types of insurance are best for freelancers? The answer depends on how you work. If you give advice or creative services, professional indemnity is key. If you work face-to-face, public liability matters. If your kit is valuable, think about equipment insurance. And if you’re worried about not being able to earn if you get sick, income protection is worth a look.

The important thing is to match the problems you actually face with the products designed to deal with them. That way you protect what you’re building, without paying for things you don’t need.

Research conducted by Delorean

Footnotes

[1]: Late payments highlighted as a top frustration in Delorean’s survey (Research conducted by Delorean) [2]: High equipment costs reported by freelancers, especially creatives (Research conducted by Delorean) [3]: Freelancers reporting unpredictable income and concern about sickness gaps (Research conducted by Delorean) [4]: Client disputes noted in survey responses (Research conducted by Delorean) [5]: Concerns about accidents in face-to-face work (Research conducted by Delorean)

Appendix

A.1 Freelancer Challenges (Survey Data)

Base N: 303 (Research conducted by Delorean)