Professional indemnity insurance protects individuals and organizations providing professional services against claims of negligence or poor work. It covers costs of defending against lawsuits and paying damages. Key benefits include protection from costly mistakes and ensuring one is not personally liable for claims. Risks can be minimized through thorough documentation and clear definition of responsibilities. Proper professional indemnity insurance is especially important for fields like engineering, law, and consulting that involve assessing risk.

1. Careers
your questions answered
❱❱ What are the potential benefits of professional
indemnity insurance?
Professional indemnity insurance ap- endeavour to ensure you are not in a people on
plies to individuals and organisations position to have a claim made against the move
involved in providing services based you. This can be keeping up to date
extensively on personal knowledge with current requirements, especially ❱❱ Seton
© RUi FRiAS
and skills. It protects your business legal ones, in the fields where you Bennett
against claims for loss by a client provide advice. Areas such as man- The UKAS
or a third party if you make agement systems are not particularly Policy Advi-
mistakes and are found to onerous, but those working in environ- sory Committee
have been negligent. mental or health and safety manage- has re-elected
Typically engi- ment have potentially higher liability. Seton Bennett
neers, solicitors, One way to minimise the risk of po- as its chair until
consultants and tential claims is to make sure projects mid–2010. Seton
accountants are well documented, particularly in was first elected to the position in
carry PII, but areas of highest risk and where it is 2006 and has had the normal three-
many self em- important your advice is followed in year term extended as it was felt his
ployed are also order to minimise the risk to the cli- continued chairmanship would help
now choosing ent. Also, in any communication you the committee through the introduc-
to have cover should ensure division of responsibili- tion of European Regulation (EC)
if they provide ties is clearly specified and that areas 765/2008.
advice, support or of potential debate are highlighted
contract auditing. and dealt with promptly. ❱❱ Sir AlAn SugAr
One of Britain’s most successful and
what does it cover? Points to consider notorious entrepreneurs has been
PII covers claims against an The insurer will only respond to appointed enterprise tsar by Gordon
individual for a breach of a profes- claims made while the policy is live. Brown in his cabinet reshuffle at the
sional duty but, depending on the This means you must be insured both beginning of June. Sir Alan will work
policy, cover can extend to: at the time the liability arose (when alongside lord Mandelson in an
• Misleading and deceptive conduct the advice was provided) and at the expanded business ministry.
• defamation time of the claim. This can be a sig-
• Breach of intellectual property rights nificant issue if problems arise a long ❱❱ Jerry roSe
• Damages arising from fraud time after the advice was given and Jerry Rose has been named as the
• Defence costs associated with means you have to consider insurance new chair of the Malcolm Baldrige
claims in your retirement as well as the need National Quality Award’s Board
Insured amounts can vary from to check when changing insurer that of Overseers which advises the
£300,000 to £60m depending on the they will accept historic liability. US commerce department on all
level of risk to which you are exposed. PII does not cover the full range aspects of the award’s programme.
If you think of some project disasters, of risks to which a business may be Jerry is the corporate vice-president
these sums are not unreasonable. exposed, so always seek advice from of Cargill, an international provider of
a suitably experienced insurance food, agricultural and risk manage-
what do i need to do? adviser to ensure you have the right ment products.
Prevention is better than correction, so level of cover.
❱❱ John McPherSon
John McPherson has been named as
software provider ConsentSolutions’
new director of quality programmes
please email your useful links and services. John has more than 30
career questions www.businesslink.gov.uk years of experience in quality and will
and job moves to www.investopedia.com be leading the development of quality
editorial@thecqi.org www.thecqi.org risk assessment programmes.
54 | JUly 2009 | qw www.thecqi.org
54 Careers July 2009.indd 56 18/6/09 10:24:26