Hiscox Business Insurance review / NerdWallet UK

Hiscox business insurance: at a glance

Hiscox is a long-established provider of business insurance, covering around 480,000 businesses in the UK.

Cover options including professional indemnity insurance, public liability insurance and property insurance are offered to various types of businesses, from start-ups and sole traders through to limited companies.

Hiscox offers online policy management and dedicated customer services phone lines for claims and queries.

Hiscox business insurance pros and cons

Pros

Annual or monthly premiums, with no interest charged on monthly payments.
Claim over the phone, by email or through the online portal.
Get online quotes in a matter of minutes.

Cons

No phone support after 5pm on weekdays or at weekends.

Hiscox business insurance key features

Easy to shop by industry
Claims online, by email or by phone, 24/7
Online portal for managing your policy

Hiscox business insurance full review

Hiscox offers a range of business insurance for different types of businesses, including sole traders, start-ups, freelancers, small businesses and limited companies. You can build your own policy and choose optional add-ons to build the package you need.

What types of business insurance does Hiscox offer?

You can buy the following types of cover from Hiscox:

Public liability insurance (up to £10 million): This covers legal fees and compensation costs if members of the public (including clients or visitors) are injured or their property is damaged and your business is at fault. It also usually includes product liability insurance, which offers protection if you supply or sell faulty goods.
Employers’ liability insurance (up to £10 million): This covers legal and compensation costs if a permanent or temporary employee becomes injured or ill, or dies, due to their work and a successful claim is made against your business.
Professional indemnity insurance (up to £10 million): This covers legal and compensation costs if a client makes a successful claim for poor advice or mistakes made by your business.
Personal accident insurance (£5,000 to £100,000): A fixed sum is paid out if you or an employee are seriously injured, become disabled or die because of an accident in or outside work.
Cyber insurance: Protection to help your business recover financially after a cyber event, such as a data breach, phishing or ransomware attack.
Directors’ and officers’ liability insurance: This is cover for directors and key managers if compensation claims are made against them for mistakes or wrongful acts.

It also offers commercial property insurance:

Buildings insurance: If you own your business premises (outright or with a mortgage), such as an office, showroom or warehouse, this covers the rebuild cost after damage by fire, flood or storm.
Contents insurance: This is cover for business belongings and stock at your premises if they are stolen or damaged. You can also include portable equipment insurance for when you take tools and equipment away from your premises, including loss, accidental damage and theft.

There are optional add-ons to this core cover, such as legal protection insurance, which can cover the cost of defending yourself if someone takes legal action against your business.

Hiscox business insurance features

Professions and trades covered

Hiscox covers a large number of professions, and has a range of add-ons to core policies to mitigate trade-specific risks. So it can offer industry-specific cover, as well as the flexibility to build the policy you want.

Payment options

Hiscox offers the choice of paying business insurance premiums annually or monthly. Interest isn’t payable if you choose to pay monthly.

Online policy management

Hiscox offers an online business insurance account to access your policies, or to save and retrieve quotes. You can email customer services to make changes to your policy or there is live chat for more generic questions and queries.

Phone support

You can call customer services about your cover or to get a quote. Lines are open Monday to Friday 9am-5pm, but are closed on weekends and public holidays.

Making a claim

Claims can be made with Hiscox 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can do this by phone, email or through its online portal. There are different numbers depending on the type of policy you have. Simple claims are often resolved the same day. If it’s more complicated, a claims handler should get back to you within 48 hours.

Customer reviews

Hiscox receives 4.6 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot, based on over 1,500 reviews, as at 23 December 2025.

This equates to an Excellent rating, though bear in mind the reviews relate to Hiscox as a whole, and not just business insurance.

Can you shop by profession with Hiscox?

Hiscox offers cover for some specific trades and professions. This considers the typical risks those businesses might face day to day and the cover needed to help protect them.

Some of the professions you can shop by include:

IT and technology, including developers and IT consultants
coaching and education, including private tutors and online coaches
retail and shops, including florists and jewellers
health and wellbeing, including dentists and therapists
advertising and creative, including graphic designers and photographers
hair and beauty, including hairdressers and nail technicians
food and drink, including caterers and cafes
design and construction, including architects and engineers
financial and legal, including accountants and brokers

How to choose the right business insurance

The type of cover you need depends on the particular risks associated with your business. There is a wide range of business insurance options to choose from. However, there are also some types of business insurance that certain businesses must have in order to be able to operate. For example:

Employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement, if you employ anyone in the UK who isn’t a close family member, or if you do employ family and your business is a limited company.
Professional indemnity insurance is required by governing bodies or regulators for some professions, such as chartered surveyors and financial advisers.
You may need to have a specific level of public liability insurance to carry out some work, including government contracts, or if you exhibit at events.
Motor insurance, perhaps in the form of business car insurance, if you use a vehicle for your work.

It’s best to talk to a business insurance broker if you’re not sure which types of cover you need. Membership and trade bodies specific to your business can also offer helpful guidance.

How to get Hiscox business insurance

Hiscox says you can get a quote for business insurance online in around five minutes. When applying, you will need to provide some details about you and your business, including:

your type of business activities
business name
business location
when you started trading
annual turnover
policy start date
number of employees

You may be asked to get a quote over the phone if you are in certain professions or depending on your annual turnover.

You can add or remove cover options as you go through the quote process. Once you have a quote, you can apply online or over the phone.

Dive even deeper

Hiscox Business Insurance Review