Insurance for counsellors: what you need and what it costs

Insurance is one of the non-negotiables of private practice, and one of the cheaper ones. You need it before you see your first paying client, your professional body almost certainly requires it, and it costs less than most people expect. Here’s what to get and why.

The two types you need

There are two kinds of cover that matter for a counsellor, and a good specialist policy bundles them together.

Professional indemnity is the main one. It protects you if a client alleges that your work caused them harm, whether through negligence, a breach of confidentiality, or a claim that the therapy fell below a reasonable standard. Even an unfounded complaint can cost money and time to defend, and this is the cover that stands behind you if one arrives.

Public liability is the second. It covers you if someone is physically hurt in connection with your practice, for instance a client who trips in your consulting room. If you see people in person, at home or in rented rooms, you want this alongside the indemnity cover.

Most policies aimed at therapists include both, often with product liability too, in a single annual premium.

Why it’s not optional

Beyond the sense of protecting yourself, cover is a condition of membership for the main professional bodies. BACP, for example, requires registered members to hold “adequate, current and ongoing professional indemnity insurance,” and its Ethical Framework expects members to be “covered by adequate insurance when providing services.” Practising without it can put your registration at risk, quite apart from leaving you exposed if a claim lands.

The exact wording varies between bodies, but the requirement itself doesn’t: UKCP, NCPS and BABCP all expect members to hold adequate professional indemnity cover too, and none of them sets a specific figure. That’s deliberate, because you’re expected to judge what’s adequate for your own practice rather than meet a fixed number. Check your own register’s specifics. The direction is the same across the field: if you’re seeing clients, you’re expected to be insured.

What it costs

Less than most people fear. Through the schemes attached to professional bodies, practitioner cover can start from around £57 a year, including tax and fees, for someone in standard private practice. The figure rises with the level of cover you choose and the nature of your work, but for a typical counsellor it’s a modest annual outlay rather than a major cost.

Cover is offered in levels. The scheme attached to BACP, for example, provides £6 million of combined professional, public and product liability in a single policy, and other bodies’ schemes are broadly comparable. Rather than default to the cheapest option, match the level to your circumstances, and treat the premium as the price of practising with a clear head. (Figures correct at the time of writing, July 2026; get a current quote for your situation.)

Where to get it

A handful of specialist insurers dominate this market in the UK, and they understand counselling specifically, which matters when you’re describing your work on an application. Balens, Howden, Everywhen (formerly Towergate) and Marsh Commercial are among the established names, and several professional bodies run their own member schemes, often underwritten by one of these. It’s worth getting more than one quote, and checking that the policy covers everything you actually do, including any online work and any additional modalities.

Getting it sorted

Insurance is a foundations job, alongside your ICO registration and your supervision arrangements. Put it in place before you take on a paying client, keep it current, and hold on to the certificate, because your professional body may ask to see it and some room-hire providers and EAPs will too.

This is general guidance to help you get set up, not insurance or legal advice. Cover needs vary with your practice, so confirm your own professional body’s requirement and make sure any policy you take out is appropriate for the work you do.