Software developer insurance
You ship the code and your clients build on it. Professional Indemnity covers claims about your work, Public Liability covers injury or damage you cause.
• Public Liability from €7.55 per month
• Professional Indemnity from €10.80 per month
Business insurance, done differently.
Fully online business insurance in Ireland.
A few questions and you're covered.
No lock-in, no long contracts.
Excess from €0, up to €6.5 million of cover.
Why take out business insurance as a software developer?
Writing software puts your liability on the line on two fronts at once. Here is why dedicated software developer insurance matters:
Your clients build on your work: A defect, a missed requirement or advice that turns out to be wrong can cost a client real money. Professional Indemnity takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due.
You work in other people's spaces: Client offices in Dublin or Cork, co-working desks, conference stands. If someone is injured or their property is damaged while you are there, Public Liability responds.
A clear framework as you grow: Your cover matches the services you declare when you get your quote, and you can add Employers' Liability, with €13 million of cover per claim, once you take on staff.
What is Public Liability insurance?
If a third party, such as a client's employee or a member of the public, holds you responsible for an injury or for damage to their property, public liability insurance takes care of your defence costs and any compensation due.
What does it cover?
Injury or property damage caused to others in the course of your development work, on your client's premises or at an event. You choose a cover limit of €1.25 million, €2.5 million or €6.5 million per claim, and up to twice that per insurance year. Employers' Liability can be added if you have staff, with €13 million of cover per claim.
Cover that fits your profession
You describe your services fully at sign-up, and your cover matches what you actually do: custom development, standard software and apps, integrations, testing and support.
Is it mandatory?
Public liability is not required by law in Ireland. In practice, many clients, agencies and public sector buyers require proof of cover before they will contract with you, and public tenders commonly specify €6.5 million. Cover starts from €7.55 per month.
Who needs it?
Any software developer who visits client sites, attends events, or works anywhere other than alone at home.
What is Professional Indemnity insurance?
Professional Indemnity covers the purely financial loss a client suffers because of a professional mistake: a defect in what you delivered, a missed requirement, a miscalculation, or advice that turns out to be wrong. It does not cover injury or damage to property, which is Public Liability; it is specifically about the financial damage your client suffers because of your work.
What counts as a professional mistake?
A defect in software you built, an error in an integration or migration a client relied on, or a specification you advised on that costs your client money.
Who is it for?
People whose work is advice, expertise or deliverables rather than physical work. As a software developer, that is the code, the systems and the technical advice your clients pay for.
How does the cover respond?
It is written on a claims-made basis: the claim must be made and reported to us while your policy runs.
Switching to us from another insurer?
Work from up to 5 years back can be covered, provided your previous policy would have covered the claim.
Leaving?
Claims about work done while you were insured must be reported before your policy ends, unless run-off cover is arranged.
Cover that fits your profession
You select your services when you apply, so the policy and its exclusions match what you actually build and advise on. You choose a cover limit from €125,000 up to €1.25 million per claim, and up to twice that per insurance year. Cover starts at €10.80 per month.
What does our insurance cover for software developers?
Our cover for software developers pairs public liability with professional indemnity, because the two answer different claims. You can take either, or combine them in one Insify policy.
Public Liability: Protects you if a client's staff or another third party suffers an injury, or their property is damaged, in the course of your work. It takes care of your defence costs and any compensation due. You choose a cover limit of €1.25 million, €2.5 million or €6.5 million per claim.
Professional Indemnity: Covers financial loss a client suffers because of a defect in your work or the technical advice you gave. Cover limits from €125,000 to €1.25 million per claim.
Employers' Liability (optional): If you employ staff, this covers your liability as an employer, with a limit of €13 million per claim.
Your excess: The part of a claim you pay yourself. Options run from €0 to €2,500 depending on your annual revenue, and a higher excess lowers your premium.
Which cover do you need?
Most software developers are exposed to both. One covers injury and damage, the other financial loss from your work. You can combine them in one Insify policy.
Public Liability insurance
Covers claims when your work injures someone or damages something that belongs to them. For example, someone trips over your equipment, or you damage a floor while working at a client's premises.
- Choose your cover: from €1.25 million up to €6.5 million per claim, and up to twice that per insurance year
- Excess from €0, depending on your turnover
- Staff? Add optional Employers' Liability with €13 million cover per claim
- Most relevant when your work brings you into contact with clients, the public, their premises or their belongings
Professional Indemnity insurance
Covers purely financial loss a client suffers through a professional mistake, oversight or wrong advice, with no injury or property damage involved. Think of work a client claims was unfit for purpose and cost them money.
- Choose your cover: from €125,000 up to €1.25 million per claim, and up to twice that per insurance year
- Excess from €0, depending on your turnover
- Most relevant when clients pay you for advice, programmes and plans
What's covered:
Building custom software and computer programs for clients
Developing, producing and publishing your own software and apps
Building websites
Customising, testing, supporting and managing software and systems
Running training courses, seminars and events
Working at client sites, and travelling for the job
The premises you work from
Optional: employers' liability once you have staff, with €13 million of cover per claim
Promising or guaranteeing a result, such as a yield or a profitability figure
A contract clause that increases your liability beyond what the law would impose, such as a penalty, a warranty or a performance commitment
Patent infringement
Running a social media platform or a streaming service
Software for machines that directly control a manufacturing process, such as programmable logic controllers, or for airport baggage handling systems
Software for medical or laboratory equipment, such as control software for X-ray machines
Errors that are entirely a third party's responsibility, or a third party's internet or telecoms failure, where you have given up your right to claim against them
Cover and exclusions shown are indicative and non-contractual. Only the terms of your policy apply.
Claim examples for software developers
A booking system you built miscalculates VAT for six months. Your client in Galway has to refund customers and reissue invoices, and claims the cost from you. Professional Indemnity takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due.
A data migration you delivered drops part of a customer database. The client's team spends three weeks rebuilding the records and claims the cost of that work from you. Professional Indemnity covers the claim.
While setting up hardware at a client's office in Cork, you leave a cable across a walkway. A member of staff trips and fractures a wrist. Public Liability takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due to them.
A booking system you built miscalculates VAT for six months. Your client in Galway has to refund customers and reissue invoices, and claims the cost from you. Professional Indemnity takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due.
A data migration you delivered drops part of a customer database. The client's team spends three weeks rebuilding the records and claims the cost of that work from you. Professional Indemnity covers the claim.
While setting up hardware at a client's office in Cork, you leave a cable across a walkway. A member of staff trips and fractures a wrist. Public Liability takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due to them.
Examples are for illustrative purposes only. Compensation depends on the exact circumstances of the claim. No rights can be derived from these examples.
Your business insurance with Insify SmartGuide
Taking out insurance can be quick. Making sure you have the right cover is another matter. With Insify SmartGuide, you don't sign a contract blindly. You ask all your questions, and get clear, immediate and personalised answers, before you take out a policy.
Are you covered if you accidentally damage a client's equipment while working?
What excess should you choose?
Are you protected in the event of a dispute with a client?
Insify SmartGuide guides you step by step to understand what's covered, what isn't, and why. In just a few clicks, you build insurance that's truly tailored to your business, with complete confidence. Try Insify SmartGuide. Understand your insurance before you need it.
How to choose the right insurance as a software developer?
Criteria to compare:
The cover offered: Check that the policy matches the real risks of your work: claims about software you delivered, technical advice a client relied on, and incidents while you are working on a client's premises. Make sure every service you offer is covered, from custom builds to support and testing.
The price: Compare premiums, but prioritise cover that fits software work. An attractive price can hide exclusions that matter for your activity.
The excess: Find out what stays at your own expense when a claim happens, whether it is a dispute over a delivery or an incident on a client site.
The exclusions: Watch out for exclusions specific to software: undeclared services, work on safety-critical or industrial control systems, contract clauses that widen your liability, and marketing that promises guaranteed results.
The service: A dispute can surface long after a project ships. Choose an insurer that is easy to reach and understands technology work. At Insify, our online support team knows the specifics of your work.
Mistakes to avoid: Do not settle for a generic policy that ignores how software projects actually go wrong. Make sure your liability is properly covered, whatever you build and wherever you work. To secure your business today, discover our Public Liability and Professional Indemnity insurances.
More than 40,000 entrepreneurs trust us
When I had to make a claim, I was amazed how quickly and efficiently it was handled. Within a few days I had a resolution.
Very friendly, quick and thorough. It gives me real confidence in taking out the cover. The company feels genuinely transparent, exactly what I look for. You don't find that often.
Very friendly, quick and thorough. It gives me real confidence in taking out the cover. The company feels genuinely transparent, exactly what I look for. You don't find that often.
When I had to make a claim, I was amazed how quickly and efficiently it was handled. Within a few days I had a resolution.
The cover itself was sorted quickly, and when I later needed support I got that fast too.
Very friendly, quick and thorough. It gives me real confidence in taking out the cover. The company feels genuinely transparent, exactly what I look for. You don't find that often.
When I had to make a claim, I was amazed how quickly and efficiently it was handled. Within a few days I had a resolution.
The cover itself was sorted quickly, and when I later needed support I got that fast too.
Answers to your questions about our insurance for software developers
Professional indemnity is the core cover for a software developer: it responds when a client suffers purely financial loss because of a defect in what you delivered or the technical advice you gave. Public liability sits alongside it and covers injury or property damage you cause to others, which matters as soon as you set foot on a client site or attend an event. Which combination is right for you depends on how you work, and you can get a quote for both online in minutes. Terms, conditions and underwriting criteria may apply.
Insurance is not required by law for a self-employed software developer in Ireland. In practice, most agencies, enterprise clients and public sector buyers will ask for proof of cover before they contract with you, and public tenders commonly specify €6.5 million of public liability and €1 million or more of professional indemnity. Having cover in place also means you are not personally exposed if a client claims against you after a project goes wrong.
Public liability covers injury or property damage you cause to others in the course of your work, for example a visitor to a client's office who trips over your equipment. Professional indemnity covers purely financial loss caused by your professional work, for example a defect in software you delivered that costs your client money to put right. The two answer different claims, which is why most developers hold both. Note that promising or guaranteeing results is excluded, so keep your proposals and marketing realistic.
The price depends on your annual revenue, the services you declare, your headcount and the cover limit and excess you choose. At Insify, public liability for a software developer starts from €7.55 per month and professional indemnity from €10.80 per month. A personalised quote takes a few minutes online, and you can adjust the cover limit and excess to see how they affect your premium.
That is what professional indemnity is for. If a client suffers purely financial loss because of a defect in software you built, an error in an integration or a specification you advised on, professional indemnity takes care of your defence costs and the compensation due. It is written on a claims-made basis, so the claim must be made and reported to us while your policy runs. Cover limits run from €125,000 up to €1.25 million per claim.
If you are switching to us from another insurer, work from up to 5 years back can be covered, provided your previous policy would have covered the claim. This matters in software, where a defect can surface long after a project ships. If you leave, claims about work done while you were insured must be reported before your policy ends, unless run-off cover is arranged.
No. Public liability covers damage you cause to other people and their property, not damage to your own kit, and professional indemnity covers a client's financial loss rather than your own. Cover for your own equipment is not part of our offering in Ireland, so a separate policy is needed for that.
Yes. Use of land, buildings or premises for the insured activity is included, so working at a client's office, from a co-working desk or from home is covered, based on the services you declare when you get your quote. Just describe all the ways you work at sign-up, so your cover matches your real situation. Note that this is liability cover for claims made against you, not cover for the premises themselves or for your own equipment.
The excess is the part of a claim you pay yourself. If a claim settles at €4,000 and your excess is €500, you pay €500 and Insify pays €3,500. The options are €0, €250, €500, €1,000 and €2,500, with €0 and €250 available up to €500,000 of annual revenue; above that the minimum is €500. A higher excess usually lowers your premium but means more out of pocket when a claim happens.