Management consultants insurance – the realities
One of your responsibilities as a management consultant is to advise your clients on steps that may allow their business to survive and then, hopefully, to prosper. Yet have you applied your analytical skills to your own business and considered the risks of operating without adequate management consultants insurance?
Knowing the risks
You may be fairly confident that you understand the risks you face. Many business people are well aware of the dangers of being sued by a member of the public following an accident on their premises and as a result of this awareness, take out public liability insurance o protect themselves financially if similar happens again.
That’s fair enough but it may be only part of the story.
Did you know that you could also be sued for defamation of character or libel / slander? If you have the misfortune to accidentally lose a client’s document or data you could also face claims for damages – and that may also apply if an accidental breach of confidence arises as a result.
Sadly, that’s not the end of it.
You may also be exposed to claims coming from an accidental breach of confidentiality or your unintentional infringement of intellectual property risks.
The list could continue.
You may hope that your relationship with your clients would mean that no such thing could happen in a problem situation – but we live in a troublesome and litigious world and you may be wrong.
The cost of being wrong
If you do not have management consultants insurance to provide a degree of financial protection against such circumstances, you could be left facing all the consequential costs and awards yourself.
If you do not have help from insurance, the costs may be quite literally ruinous.
Management consultants insurance
This form of protection typically forms part of what is commonly called PII, PI insurance or professional indemnity insurance. It may help protect your financial interests if you are on the receiving end of such claims – and it also typically includes public liability cover as standard.
As with all insurance, the exact specifics of cover and individual terms and conditions will vary depending upon the provider and policy. It’s worth noting that this type of insurance typically excludes circumstances where you were intentionally culpable – such as your deliberate breaching of client confidentiality.
Winning isn’t everything
It may also be advisable to remember that even if you are sued and win, you can’t presume that costs will be awarded against the other party. You could still end up facing painful legal bills – unless you have PII to pick them up for you.
Management consultants insurance can’t stop these legal actions coming about but it may give you the reassurance of knowing that you have a safety net in place.