Simply Business Insurance Review

Simply Business insurance: at a glance

Simply Business provides insurance to almost a million small businesses, sole traders and landlords in the UK. It’s a broker, so it compares quotes from a number of insurers, many of which are established names. Businesses can also manage their policies through Simply Business.

Its emphasis on speed, with the promise of same-day cover and documents, and online quotes in minutes, is likely to appeal to busy business owners.

Simply Business business insurance pros and cons

Pros

Claim online or over the phone.
UK-based customer support.
Online policy management for some changes and to view policy documents.
Annual or monthly premiums.
Shop by specific industry or trade.

Cons

No customer service phone support after 5.30pm on weekdays.
Interest is charged on monthly premiums.

Simply Business insurance key features

Online policy management and claims
24/7 claims line
Extensive cover options for over 1,000 trades and professions

Simply Business insurance full review

Simply Business is a business insurance broker that offers cover from a range of insurers to businesses, the self-employed and landlords. It started out in 2005 and is one of the largest providers of business cover in the UK.

Public liability insurance tends to form the basis for most policies, but you can build a policy that suits your business risks. So you might begin with core cover – including public liability and employers’ liability, for example – and then add more specialist cover.

As Simply Business is a broker, the policy you may decide to take out via them will be provided by another firm. Simply Business will look to place your business with the most appropriate provider for your needs.

This review is based on Simply Business and not the firms they broker to. The types of products, benefits & features referred to in this review cover the range of firms Simply Business conducts business with. Specific details such as the pro’s and con’s refer to Simply Business’ services.

What types of insurance does Simply Business offer?

Simply Business offers an extensive range of business protection, which you can buy separately or as a package. The level of cover offered varies as Simply Business is a broker rather than an insurance provider.

Some of the main types of business insurance available include:

Public liability insurance: This covers compensation costs if a member of the public is harmed because of your business, or the cost of replacing or repairing their property if it’s damaged due to your business activities.
Product liability insurance: If you design or supply a faulty product, this can cover compensation and legal costs if a client claims against you. This is bundled with its public liability insurance, rather than being standalone cover.
Employers’ liability insurance: This pays compensation if permanent or temporary employees become ill, are injured or die due to their work and make a successful claim. It also covers associated legal fees.
Professional indemnity insurance: This covers the cost if you’ve provided negligent advice or services and a client makes a successful claim against you.
Stock insurance: This covers the cost of replacing stock that’s damaged or stolen due to an unexpected event, such as a fire or a burglary.
Business equipment cover: This covers the cost of replacing essential portable items, such as a laptop or a camera, if they are stolen, lost or damaged.
Tool insurance: This covers the cost of replacing your tools of the trade if they’re stolen, lost or are damaged in an unexpected event, such as a fire or flood.
Personal accident insurance: A sum is paid out if an individual in your business who is covered by the policy is seriously injured, disabled or dies because of an accident.
Contract works insurance: This pays out to repair or redo work on -site if it’s damaged by fire, flood, vandalism or theft.
Buildings and contents insurance: Commercial property insurance can help repair or rebuild a property your business owns, which can be combined with contents insurance for your business’s belongings.
Business interruption insurance: This covers lost income if your business can’t operate after an unexpected event, such as a fire or flood or equipment breakdown.

You can also find the following cover options:

Business health insurance: To provide you and your employees with access to health and wellbeing support.
Landlord insurance: Covers fixtures and fittings, and your contents, as well as options for landlord home emergency cover, loss of rent and unoccupied insurance.

Simply Business insurance features

Professions and trades covered

Simply Business offers cover to over a thousand different trades and professions. There are too many to mention here, but specific trades it caters for include:

arts and entertainment
engineering
architecture
beauty
cleaning
finance and legal
media, marketing and design
tradesperson and construction

As well as individual trades, you can buy packages for:

self-employed insurance
contractor insurance
limited company insurance
online retailer insurance
consultant insurance
freelancer insurance
sole trader insurance

Searching for insurance by industry might be convenient, but be mindful that not all businesses in the same sector will need the same cover.

Payment options

You can pay premiums annually or in monthly instalments, though interest is charged on monthly payments.

Online policy management

Sign in to your Simply Business customer account and you can access your policy documents, see renewal offers, change personal information, update payment details and more. A digital assistant is available 24/7 to make the company aware if your personal or business circumstances have changed.

Phone support

You can call Simply Business’s UK-based customer services between 9am and 5.30pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and from 9.30am to 5.30pm on Thursdays. Lines are open between 9am and 2pm on Saturdays, but closed on Sundays.

Making a claim

You can make a claim on your policy online or over the phone. Lines are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can track claims and upload documents through an online portal. Note that health insurance and van insurance claims can only be made over the phone.

Customer reviews

Simply Business has a Trustpilot rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, based on over 6,600 reviews, as at 23 December 2025.

Bear in mind that this rating is based on the entire Simply Business brand, rather than being based on any specific product or offering.

Can you shop by profession with Simply Business?

Some packages are grouped by profession, which can be a useful way to see the usual types of insurance applicable to your business. Always focus on your own business risks, though, as these won’t be the same for everyone. Pages also include example quotes for a particular type of cover.

How to choose the right business insurance

The cover you put in place should address the specific risks of your business. There is a wide choice of policy options available, and tailoring those to your business can help keep costs in check. That said, there are some types of business insurance that certain businesses must have in order to operate. For example:

You are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance if you employ anyone in the UK who isn’t a member of your family. It is also needed if someone from your family works for you and your business is incorporated as a limited company.
The regulators or governing bodies of some professions might require that you have professional indemnity insurance in place. This is the case for solicitors and accountants.
Some lines of work may require you to have a certain level of public liability insurance, for example, public sector contracts.
Motor insurance will be needed if your business involves use of vehicles.

How to get Simply Business insurance

You can get a quote by phone or online. You choose the cover you need and answer questions about your business, which will include:

name and address
contact information
business structure
number of employees
policy start date
the industry you are in

You can then review the quotes you receive and apply for the one that suits you best, if you want to, or compare the quotes with other providers. Quotes are valid for 30 days, or until the insurance starts.

How to save money on Simply Business insurance

As Simply Business is a broker, it can offer quotes from a number of insurers. So once you receive your quotes, you can compare prices and potentially pay less for the cover you need. Though bear in mind that it might still be possible to get your cover for less elsewhere.

Paying annually rather than monthly can save you money, if this is an option. That’s because you will be charged interest if you pay in monthly instalments.

Simply Business also offers a referral scheme for existing customers, where if you recommend Simply Business to someone else and they buy cover, you both receive a gift card. These are just an added bonus rather than a reason to buy cover, though.

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