This post has been written in collaboration with Firths The Compensation Lawyers
If you engage people to work at your home, have you ever thought about who is liable if that person is hurt on your property?
It’s a question I thought about last year when I first hired my babysitter and when I considered hiring a cleaner this year. If you ask someone to work at your property, who is liable if a worker hurts themselves on your property?
And when I mean work – I don’t mean an employee working in a home based business. I mean services like gardeners, lawn mowers, cleaners, babysitters, etc.
The question concerned me enough to ask my current insurer, and I was told most house insurance policies include liability for third party injuries or loss up to $20,000,000. Of course, while it’s a standard part of house and building insurance polices, it’s important to check that it’s definitely included in your policy.
So the next question that should be asked is who is liable if a tradie injures themself at your property?
You only engage their services once to do a maintenance job, and you don’t have them come regularly like a cleaner or gardener.
Generally, all tradespeople should have their own insurance and if they are hurt on the job, they will make a claim through worker’s compensation. Where the waters go a little grey is who was at fault for the injury and if it’s found that you didn’t provide a safe work environment for the tradie to work in, their insurer may sue you for the claim – which is where your $20,000,000 cover as part of your house policy comes into pay.
Of course, you can’t worry about what could go wrong when someone comes to work at your home, but as a property owner, it’s important to ensure you have the right insurance policy so you are covered should the inevitable happen.
Unfortunately, if someone is hurt or inconvenienced, there will be a claim.
If you are the one that is hurt and you end up getting nowhere with your claim, you will need to engage a lawyer like Firths the Compensation Lawyers who are experienced in workplace rights and as their name suggests, compensation.
In the end, no one wants to get hurt when at work, but accidents happen and the inconvenience is unavoidable.
I’m just thankful we have insurance to compensate if needed.
Have you ever had a service person hurt themselves at your property? Have you ever thought about this type of scenario?
Disclaimer: This post has been written in accordance with my disclosure policy. I am also not an insurance expert, but I’m simply sharing what I have been told. Please check with your current insurer for advice and policy requirements.
