Retirement and Insurance

[alan999]

Hi
I wondered if there are any retired plumbers out there as Im thinking of retiring in the next couple of years. Do you continue with any professional insurance once you retire?

I've never had to make a claim yet and it would seem daft to me to continue with public liability insurance when I wasnt actually working any more. Yet if some past job came back to haunt me 2 years down the road - and a house I worked on got flooded from an upstairs leak for example - would I just have to fight my own corner.

So is there some sort of policy out there that would cover ex self-employed professionals from such an eventuality or do they just rely on the quality of their past work and hope for the best.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[dilalio]

I would expect that a year's guarantee on workmanship is part of any formal contract for installation work and therefore, it would seem reasonable to continue covering yourself for 1 year, following your last job, before retirement.

 

[Mottie]

Im pretty sure any liabilities that arise in the future will be covered by the insurance policy in force at the time that work was carried out. This is why they say you should retain information for......40 years! Might be worth checking with your insurance provider.

https://www.insurance2day.co.uk/emp...nce-the-importance-of-retaining-certificates/

 

[muggles]

If you do oil you're expected to provide a 6 year workmanship warranty, so should keep your insurance up for 6 years

 

[Diver Fred]

My dad continued with his PIL for 10 years after he retired.

 

[alan999]

Thanks for these replies.

Some years back my insurance company said I was covered for a job into the future as long as I was insured by them at the time of completion. However when I inquired this weekend on the same point and spoke to 3 separate departments it was clear any claim would only be considered on the date received and no active insurance meant I was on my own.

Waiting 12 months after retirement is a valid point but if for example I was sued under the job-not-fit-for-purpose card in 3 years time it would be expensive to try to prove otherwise. Maybe the Dad who continued PLI for 10 years after retiring felt the same.

 

[Mottie]

I know for a fact a mate that that used a motor traders policy to allow him to buy, sell and repair cars without registering as a self employed person or as a company and never declared any of that for tax purposes. He did it for at least 20 years until he had a head on collision (not his fault) and was hospitalised with serious injuries. When he got out, he put in a claim for the car. To cut a long story short, he couldn’t produce any trading figures to back up his insurance application so his claim was rejected and his insurance was voided.

My question would be, what would the insurance company's position be for Joe Bloggs taking out an insurance policy to cover work done years previous by a now retired self employed individual or long defunct heating company?

I'd at least seek legal advice or get some kind of written confirmation from the insurance company (and not a broker if you went through one).