Commercial landlord legal protection Commercial landlord legal protection

Add commercial landlord legal protection to your landlord insurance policy and get cover for a range of legal expenses, including certain disputes and tax enquiries. Plus access to legal and tax advice when you need it.

Be quote confident. We'll beat the price of any like-for-like quote. T&Cs apply.

What is legal protection insurance for commercial landlords?

Commercial landlord legal protection is an add-on cover. This means it cannot be bought unless you have a commercial landlord insurance policy in place.

It’s designed to help cover legal expenses linked to disputes, employment issues and tax enquiries connected to your commercial rental properties.

Commercial landlord legal protection insurance can help cover professional fees and legal costs up to £100,000 for things like:

  • Criminal defense
  • Property protection
  • Employee disputes
  • Breaches of tenancy agreements
  • Property licence suspension appeals

You’ll also get cover for:

  • Up to £1 million in compensation cover for certain employment disputes
  • Accountancy or tax consultancy fees
  • Employee salaries during jury service or court attendance

Note that this is not a standalone cover. If you want to buy commercial landlord legal protection, you need to buy it alongside another cover, like commercial property landlord insurance.

Why choose commercial landlord legal protection cover through Superscript?

  • Up to £100,000 for legal expenses
  • Up to £1 million compensation cover for certain employment disputes
  • Cover for tenancy disputes and repossession proceedings
  • Support with HMRC tax and VAT enquiries
  • Legal and tax advice helplines included
  • Add cover to multiple commercial properties under one policy
  • Instant access to policy documents online

Be quote confident

We're big on fairness. So if you find a lower price for a comparable quote, we won't just match it — we'll beat it.

So even better than apples to apples, apples to better apples. We're talking Galas to Braeburns.

As you'd expect, T&Cs apply.

What's included in commercial landlord legal protection?

Commercial landlord legal protection includes a range of covers designed to help with legal disputes, employee matters and tax enquiries. Here are the core areas covered by a policy:

Tax and accountancy

This cover can help pay for an accountant or tax consultant if you face situations like a tax enquiry, an employer compliance dispute or a VAT dispute with HMRC.

Employee disputes

If an employee brings a claim against you, this cover can help with legal costs linked to defending your rights in court or a tribunal. This can include disputes involving dismissal and alleged breaches of statutory employment rights.

This cover can help defend your legal rights following an alleged criminal offence (excluding motoring offences) or prosecution under data protection legislation.

Jury service and court attendance

If one of your employees needs to attend court, a tribunal or jury service, this cover can help pay their salary while they’re away from work.

Property protection

If someone causes physical damage to your commercial property, this cover can help with legal expenses linked to pursuing damages through the courts.

Statutory licence appeal

If your local authority suspends, changes or cancels your property licence or mandatory registration, this cover can help with the cost of appealing the decision.

Commercial tenancy disputes

This cover can help with legal expenses linked to breaches of tenancy agreements or repossession proceedings.

Compensation costs

Certain employment disputes may include cover for compensation costs you’re ordered to pay.

Note that this is not a standalone cover. If you want to buy commercial landlord legal protection, you need to buy it alongside another cover, like commercial property landlord insurance.

What's not included?

Commercial landlord legal protection insurance is an add-on cover. This means it cannot be bought unless you have a commercial landlord insurance policy in place. And, like all insurance policies, there are some situations and claims this cover doesn’t include.

For example:

  • Fines, penalties or court-awarded damages not specifically covered by the policy
  • Defamation, bankruptcy or intellectual property disputes
  • Shareholding, partnership, franchise or agency disputes
  • Claims where your appointed lawyer believes the case is unlikely to succeed
  • Claims reported more than 180 days after you became aware of the issue
  • Employment disputes or tenancy issues arising within the first 90 days of the policy
  • Claims linked to tax avoidance schemes, import or excise duties or import VAT

Please refer to your policy wording for full exclusions and conditions.

Once you've completed a quote, you'll be able to view a summary of your cover. Please always refer to your policy documents for full details around exclusions, terms and limits of your customised cover. Read our guide to understanding your policy documents.

What our expert says

Lauren Wootten, Head of Claims

“Legal protection has clear boundaries around the disputes and costs it can cover. Understanding those before you need legal help is important, particularly if you have tenants or employees.

If a dispute starts to develop, get in touch early rather than waiting for it to escalate. We can establish whether the issue is covered and explain what needs to happen next.”

How do insurance claims work?

The following is a good guide to the process and timescales you can expect when you need to make a claim under your policy.

If you’re ever unsure whether you can or should claim, it’s best to get in touch, and we can let you know.

1

You make the claim

For commercial legal protection claims, you’ll need to notify your insurer, ARAG, directly.

You can submit your claim online through ARAG's claims portal: https://claims.araginsurance.co.uk.

Alternatively, you can call ARAG directly on: 0117 934 2111.

2

Your claim will be assessed

Once submitted, your claim will be assessed by ARAG.

If the claim is large, ARAG may need more information from you.

3

Your claim is settled

After it's been assessed, ARAG will let you know if your claim has been successful or not.

If your claim is accepted, you’ll be paid according to the terms and limits set out in your commercial legal protection policy.

If your claim doesn't relate to commercial legal protection, the process to make a claim is different.

Commercial landlords' legal protection insurance FAQs

What does commercial landlords’ legal protection cover?

Commercial landlord legal protection is designed to help cover legal expenses linked to disputes, employment claims, tenancy issues and tax enquiries connected to your commercial rental properties.

This can include:

  • Tenancy disputes
  • Repossession proceedings
  • Property licence appeals
  • HMRC tax enquiries
  • Criminal defence
  • Employee disputes

How much does commercial landlords' legal protection insurance and legal expenses insurance cost?

The cost of legal protection insurance for commercial property owners bought through Superscript depends on several factors, including:

  • The type of commercial units you own
  • How many units you own
  • How many employees you have

Read our guide to learn more about what affects the cost of insurance.

Is landlords' legal protection insurance a legal requirement?

No. Commercial landlord legal protection is optional and can be added to your commercial landlord insurance policy.

Without this cover, you may need to pay any legal expenses, court costs and professional fees yourself.

If you want to buy commercial landlord legal protection, you need to buy it alongside another cover, like commercial property landlord insurance.

Can I make changes to my policy after it starts?

Yes. You can make changes to your policy at any time without admin fees.

If you need to update your cover, our customer support team can help.

Can I add rent guarantee insurance for my commercial properties?

No. Rent guarantee insurance bought through Superscript is currently only available for residential landlord properties and isn’t available for commercial landlords.

What’s the difference between commercial landlord insurance and legal protection cover?

Commercial landlord insurance is designed to help cover damage to your property, liability claims and lost rental income.

Legal protection cover is designed to help with legal expenses linked to disputes, tenancy issues, tax enquiries and employment matters.

The two covers work alongside each other as part of a broader commercial landlord insurance policy.

Does commercial landlord legal protection cover tenancy disputes?

Yes. Commercial landlord legal protection can help cover legal expenses linked to tenancy disputes and repossession proceedings involving your commercial tenants.

Policy terms, conditions and exclusions apply.

Check out our latest posts
More articles for landlords

Individual cover purchased online is offered on a standardised, non-advised basis and is not bespoke. Terms, conditions and coverage limits are predetermined by the Underwriter. If you require bespoke coverage offered on an advised basis, please contact our in-house broking team.

Authorised by the FCA

The FCA supervises UK financial services firms to protect consumers. We are directly authorised and regulated by the FCA and our Firm Reference Number is 656459. These details can be confirmed on the Financial Services Register at www.fca.org.uk or by calling the FCA on 0845 606 1234.

A-rated financial strength

Our insurance products are underwritten by Standard & Poor’s A-rated financial strength or higher. This means the underwriter has been independently assessed by the world’s leading credit rating provider and found to have a strong capacity to meet financial commitments (pay claims).

Protected by the FSCS

If you are a business with an annual turnover under £1m, charity with an annual income under £1m, or trust with net assets under £1m, then you will be entitled to compensation from the FSCS in the unlikely event we cannot meet our obligations. Full details and further information on the scheme are available at www.fscs.org.uk.

Last updated