Professional Indemnity Insurance
Redwood Insurance Brokers makes professional indemnity (PI) insurance clear, practical, and matched to the work you actually do. We’ll help protect you if a client alleges your advice, design, or professional services caused them financial loss, explain the trade-offs in plain English (claims-made wording, retroactive dates, and common exclusions), and make sure your cover aligns with your contracts and real risk profile. If something goes wrong, we’ll back you and help drive the claim through.
Why professional indemnity insurance matters
If you provide professional services (advice, design, specification, consulting, or expertise) you can be exposed to claims for financial loss, even if nobody is physically injured and no property is damaged.
Professional indemnity insurance is designed to help protect you against allegations of negligence, breach of professional duty, errors or omissions, and related defence costs, subject to policy wording.
Plain-English takeaway: it’s the cover that responds when your work is questioned, not just when something breaks.
What we help with
We can help you organise cover for:
Professional indemnity limits suitable for your contracts and risk
Defence costs (a major value driver of PI cover)
Contract requirements (client agreements, principal requirements, council work, tender docs)
Civil liability claims from clients and third parties (wording dependent)
Run-off cover (if you stop trading, sell the business, or retire)
Extensions where available (e.g., loss of documents, IP unintentional infringement, fidelity options, depending on profession/insurer)
We’ll talk through what you do, who you do it for, your contract obligations, and what a claim would realistically look like, then recommend cover that fits.
Claims-made cover (the part that matters most)
Most professional indemnity policies are written on a claims-made basis. That generally means the policy that responds is the one in place when the claim is made, not when the work was done — subject to policy wording and notification requirements.
Key related concepts we’ll make clear:
Retroactive date: how far back your cover applies for work performed
Continuity: keeping cover in place matters to avoid gaps
Notification: reporting circumstances early can be critical
Plain-English takeaway: PI is about continuity. We help you keep it clean and safe.
The “gotchas” we look for (so you don’t find them mid-claim)
This is where a broker earns their keep. We check for:
Scope mismatch (your actual services don’t match what’s described to the insurer)
Contractual liability traps (hold harmless clauses and warranty promises that go beyond normal duty)
Retroactive date issues (new policy doesn’t fully pick up prior work)
Late notification (waiting too long can cause claim problems)
Common exclusions (known circumstances, deliberate acts, trading debts, insolvency, bodily injury/property damage—often handled elsewhere)
Subcontractor responsibility (who is liable for what, and whether they need their own PI)
Cyber/data/privacy exposures (often not included unless arranged separately)
Limit selection problems (your contracts require more than you’ve purchased)
If there’s a risk gap, we’ll tell you straight and explain your options.
PI vs public liability (different jobs)
Professional indemnity: financial loss from advice/services.
Public liability: third-party injury or property damage from your operations.
Plain-English takeaway: many businesses need both. We’ll help you structure them correctly.
How Redwood does it differently
Independent
We compare options across insurers and specialist markets where needed.
Advice, not just a quote
We explain trade-offs in plain English so you can choose confidently.
A sharper risk lens
We review your service scope, contracts, and the exclusions that matter.
Claims advocacy
If you need to claim, we help notify early, present the claim clearly, and keep momentum.
Fast-moving
You deal with people who can make progress — not a maze of handoffs.
Our process (simple, on purpose)
Quick chat: what you do, your clients, your contracts, and risk points
Review: we check current cover (or start fresh)
Recommendations: clear options, clear trade-offs (limits, excess, retro date, key terms)
Placement: we arrange the policy and confirm key details
Ongoing support: changes, renewals, and claims help
If you need to claim
PI claims can be high-stakes and time-sensitive. We help you:
Understand what to do first (and what not to admit too early)
Notify the insurer correctly and promptly
Gather the right documents (contracts, emails, scope, deliverables)
Manage communications with insurers, lawyers, and clients
Push for a fair outcome
Want a free second opinion on your professional indemnity insurance?
Send your current policy and any contract requirements. We’ll review it, explain what matters, and show you options.
FAQ’s
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Anyone providing advice or professional services — consultants, designers, tradies doing design/spec work, IT providers, real estate/property services, accountants, marketing agencies, and many more.
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Usually yes, subject to wording. Defence costs are a major part of PI value.
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It’s the date from which your policy will respond to claims arising from work performed. We’ll make sure it’s set correctly.
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You may need run-off cover for past work, because PI is generally claims-made. We’ll guide you.
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It depends what’s being alleged. PI is about professional services and financial loss; the cost to re-do faulty work may not be covered unless it results from a covered claim scenario. We’ll explain what’s realistic for your industry.
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No. We support a wide range of personal and business risks — this page is focused on NZ PI advice.