Every liability policy a business buys protects somebody else. Personal accident cover is the one that protects the person doing the work, and it exists because a self employed trade has no sick pay behind it: no Statutory Sick Pay, no occupational scheme, no colleague covering the round. For a trade whose income depends on two working hands, it fills the largest uninsured gap on the schedule.
What it pays, and when
The cover pays a lump sum for specified serious injuries such as loss of a limb or sight, and usually a weekly benefit while you are unable to work after an accident. The weekly benefit is the part that matters most day to day: it is capped as a proportion of earnings, it starts after a deferred period of one, two or four weeks, and it runs for a stated maximum, commonly one or two years.
The difference between accident cover and income protection
Personal accident answers for ACCIDENTS. Income protection answers for being unable to work through illness as well, which is statistically the more likely cause, and it is priced accordingly. A trade choosing between them on price alone is usually choosing the narrower cover, and the honest comparison is what each would pay for a back problem or a heart condition rather than for a fall.
Why the employed comparison does not help
An employee has Statutory Sick Pay and often an employer's scheme on top. A sole trader has neither, and a director of a small company is usually in the same position in practice even where the company could pay. That is the whole case for this cover, and it is why insurers sell it attached to trade policies rather than as a standalone consumer product.
Reading the exclusions before the price
Hazardous activities, pre existing conditions, and work at height or with certain machinery are the usual exclusions and some are precisely the work a trade does all day. Check that the policy covers you doing YOUR job rather than a generic office worker's, because an exclusion for working above a stated height would make the cover close to worthless for a roofer.
Questions people ask about personal accident cover
What does personal accident cover pay?
A lump sum for specified serious injuries and normally a weekly benefit while you cannot work after an accident, capped as a proportion of earnings, starting after a deferred period and running for a stated maximum.
Do the self employed get sick pay?
No. Statutory Sick Pay is for employees, and a sole trader has no occupational scheme behind them. That gap is what personal accident and income protection cover are sold against.
Is income protection better than personal accident cover?
It is broader, because it answers for illness as well as accident, and it costs more for that reason. Compare them on what each would pay for a long illness rather than only for an injury.
Is it included in a trade policy?
It is usually an option on a trade package rather than a standard section, and the benefit levels and deferred periods are chosen at quote. Check the exclusions against the work you actually do, particularly height and machinery.