If you’ve ever tried to figure out what tradie insurance should actually cost, you’ll know the frustration. Google gives you ads. Brokers give you quotes that feel made up. And nobody gives you a straight answer about what a sparky, chippy, or plumber pays in the real world.
This guide fixes that. Every premium range below is based on 2025-2026 market quotes for sole traders and small trade businesses in Australia. No hypotheticals, no “from $29 a week” marketing numbers — just what insurers are actually charging right now for different trades, cover levels, and business sizes.
What you’ll actually pay by trade
The biggest single factor in your premium is what you do for a living. Insurers rate every trade based on claim frequency and severity, and the gaps between trades are substantial.
Based on 2025-2026 market quotes for sole traders with $0-$250K turnover, clean claims history, $5M public liability:
Electrician: $800-$2,200/yr. Sparkies sit near the top of the premium scale. Fire risk, electrocution exposure, and the cost of damage to expensive electrical systems and appliances drive premiums. Industrial and commercial electricians pay more than domestic.
Plumber: $700-$1,900/yr. Water damage claims are the big driver — a burst pipe or failed connection can flood a client’s house in hours. Gas fitters pay a loading of $150-$300 on top. Plumbers doing roof and gutter work also see higher premiums than those sticking to ground-level drainage.
Builder (registered, small residential): $1,500-$4,000/yr for $10M cover. Builders almost always carry higher limits, which pushes the base premium up. Structural work, subcontractor management, and the long tail of building defect claims keep builder premiums at the top of the tradie market.
Carpenter / joiner: $650-$1,500/yr. Chippies working on site — framing, roofing, structural — pay more than shop-based joiners. The distinction matters: insurers ask whether you’re cutting timber in a factory or installing it three storeys up.
Painter: $550-$1,100/yr. Among the cheapest trade premiums, but accidental damage claims from spilled paint, ladder damage, and overspray still happen and still cost thousands.
Landscaper: $600-$1,300/yr. Premiums jump if you do excavation, retaining walls, or operate machinery. Plant and tree damage claims — roots cracking pipes, falling limbs — produce more claims than you’d expect.
Tiler: $600-$1,200/yr. Waterproofing failures and tile delamination claims keep premiums in the mid-range. Tilings doing commercial work — shopping centres, pools, high-rises — pay more.
Plasterer: $550-$1,000/yr. Relatively low risk, but working at height and dust damage to client property still generate claims.
Concreter: $700-$1,600/yr. Premiums reflect the permanent nature of the work — if a slab is wrong, fixing it means demolition. Decorative concrete work that’s highly visible to the client carries extra risk.
Cleaner: $500-$900/yr. Lowest premiums in the tradie space, but chemical damage to floors, benchtops, and fixtures still produces claims.
Roofer: $900-$2,200/yr. Working at height is the big risk factor. Metal roofing, tile roofing, and solar panel installation all carry different premium loadings. Fall-from-height claims are expensive and insurers price for them.
Handyman / general maintenance: $500-$1,000/yr. Premiums depend heavily on what “handyman” means to your business. Changing tap washers and patching plaster is cheap to insure. Building decks and installing hot water systems is not.
These are PL-only premiums. Adding tools cover, personal accident, or income protection adds cost — we’ll get to that.
The 7 factors that drive your premium
Beyond your trade, these seven factors move your premium up or down. Understanding them helps you shop smarter.
1. Turnover
Insurers band turnover into brackets: $0-$50K, $50K-$100K, $100K-$250K, $250K-$500K, $500K-$1M, and so on. More turnover means more hours on site, more projects, more chance of a claim. A painter doing $300K in turnover might pay $1,200 while the same painter doing $80K pays $650. The relationship isn’t linear — premiums don’t double when turnover doubles — but it’s real.
2. Claims history
A clean five-year record gets you the standard rate. One claim in the past three years and you’ll see a 15-30% loading. Two claims and some insurers won’t quote at all. The severity of the claim matters too — a $2,000 property damage settlement hurts less than a $150,000 injury claim.
3. Subcontractor usage
If you use subbies, your insurer wants to know how many, what trades, and whether they carry their own PL. Subcontractors without their own insurance are a red flag — your PL might have to respond to their mistakes, and the insurer knows it. Expect a premium loading if you rely heavily on uninsured subcontractors.
4. Location
Postcode matters. Working in cyclone-prone North Queensland, bushfire-risk zones in Victoria, or areas with high crime rates pushes premiums up. Some insurers charge a metro loading for Sydney and Melbourne CBD work — more people around means more potential third-party claimants. Remote area work can also attract a loading because response times and repair costs are higher.
5. Contract values
The bigger your individual projects, the bigger the potential loss. A painter doing $3,000 residential repaints has a different risk profile to one doing $150,000 commercial fit-outs. Insurers ask about your largest contract value in the past 12 months and use it to size their exposure.
6. Risk management
Formal safety systems, written contracts, pre-work site photos, and documented SWMS (Safe Work Method Statements) can earn premium discounts with some insurers. In the tradie market this discount is usually modest — 5-10% — but it’s worth asking about.
7. Equipment and machinery
If you operate heavy machinery — excavators, scissor lifts, cranes — expect a loading. These are high-severity risks. A scissor lift tipping over doesn’t just damage the lift; it can injure multiple people and damage structures.
Sole trader vs employer: how premiums differ
If you employ staff, your PL premium goes up. The logic is simple: more people on site means more opportunity for something to go wrong. But the jump isn’t always as big as you’d expect.
A sole trader electrician might pay $1,200 for $5M PL. The same electrician employing two apprentices might pay $1,600-$1,800. The premium per additional worker is relatively small because the primary risk rating is still based on the trade and turnover, not headcount.
The bigger cost difference is in workers compensation. Sole traders don’t pay workers comp premiums (they’re not employees of themselves), but the moment you employ someone, workers comp becomes mandatory in every state. We cover the PL vs workers comp distinction in detail in our comparison guide.
BizPack vs buying policies separately
Most insurers now offer packaged policies for tradies — often called BizPack, Business Pack, or Tradie Pack — that bundle PL, tools cover, personal accident, and sometimes business interruption into one policy. Here’s how the numbers typically shake out.
Standalone approach:
- $5M PL: $900/yr
- Tools cover ($10K portable): $450/yr
- Personal accident & illness: $400/yr
- Total: $1,750/yr
BizPack approach:
- BizPack with same covers: $1,450-$1,600/yr
- Saving: $150-$300/yr
The upside of bundling is cost and convenience — one renewal date, one insurer to deal with. The downside is less flexibility. If you want to switch your tools cover to a specialist insurer but keep your PL where it is, you can’t if everything’s in a pack. Also, a claim on one component of the pack can affect the renewal premium for the whole pack.
Whether bundling makes sense depends on your situation. If you value simplicity and the bundled price is genuinely cheaper, BizPack is a solid option. If you want to shop each cover component separately for the best price and terms, standalone might be better.
You can compare both standalone and packaged policies through BizCover — compare quotes now and see what makes sense for your numbers.
For a deeper dive into specific trade costs, see our electrician insurance guide, plumber insurance guide, and sole trader insurance guide.
How to save on tradie insurance without cutting cover
Insurance premiums aren’t set in stone. Here are six ways to bring yours down without reducing your cover:
Increase your excess — moving from a $500 excess to $2,500 can cut your premium by 15-25%. The trade-off is you’re on the hook for more if a claim lands. Make sure you’ve got the cash buffer to cover the higher excess before you commit.
Pay annually, not monthly — most insurers charge a premium funding fee if you pay monthly — typically 5-8% of the annual premium. Paying annually avoids this entirely. On a $1,500 policy, that’s $75-$120 saved.
Bundle policies — as we covered above, BizPack-style bundling can save 10-20% versus buying each policy separately.
Shop around at renewal — loyalty doesn’t pay with insurance. Your existing insurer’s renewal premium might be 20% higher than what a new insurer would offer for the same cover. Compare at every renewal. Online comparison platforms make this a five-minute job.
Review your turnover band — if your turnover has dropped since last year, you might be in a lower rating band. Don’t auto-renew at the old turnover figure. Update your details and let insurers re-quote.
Demonstrate risk management — some insurers offer discounts if you can show formal safety documentation, written contracts, and a claims-free history. It’s not standard in the tradie market but it’s worth asking.
Frequently asked questions
Why did my premium go up this year even though I had no claims?
Insurance pricing reflects the insurer’s whole book, not just your individual claims history. If the insurer had a bad year across the tradie sector — more claims, bigger claims, higher legal costs — everyone’s premiums rise. Reinsurance costs also flow through to retail premiums. The good news is this is exactly why comparing quotes at renewal matters: different insurers have different claims experience, and the one that raised your premium 20% might be undercut by one that didn’t.
Can I pay tradie insurance monthly?
Yes, through premium funding — essentially a short-term loan to pay your annual premium in monthly instalments. Premium funding adds interest (typically 5-8% of the annual premium) and sometimes a setup fee. Annual payment is cheaper if you can manage the cash flow.
Does my PL cover me Australia-wide or just in my state?
Standard tradie PL policies are Australia-wide. If you’re a Sydney electrician picking up a job in Melbourne, you’re covered. Some policies also include limited international cover for short-term overseas work — check your PDS if this matters to you.
What’s the difference between claims-made and occurrence-based PL?
Most tradie PL policies in Australia are occurrence-based — they cover claims arising from incidents that happened during the policy period, regardless of when the claim is actually made. Claims-made policies only cover claims made during the policy period, which can leave you exposed if a claim surfaces after your policy expires. Read the policy wording carefully. The default in the Australian tradie market is occurrence, but never assume.
Do I need different insurance if I work across multiple trades?
If you’re a registered builder who also does your own carpentry and plastering, you generally don’t need separate policies. Your PL covers the activities you declare. But you must declare all activities accurately when you apply. If you say you’re a painter but you’re actually doing structural demolition, a resulting claim will likely be denied. Be specific — list every trade activity your business does.
The information in this guide is general in nature and does not take into account your individual circumstances. Premiums vary between insurers and depend on your specific trade, turnover, claims history, and location. You should read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) before purchasing any insurance product.