Buying PII on price alone - the common pitfalls (and how to avoid them)
A competitive premium can be a good outcome - but choosing professional indemnity insurance (PII) on price alone can create unintended risk. ICAS partner Marsh Commercial outline the most common pitfalls it sees when firms focus only on cost, and a few simple checks that can help you feel more confident in your cover.
Pitfall 1: Assuming “standard cover” exists
PII wording is not fully standardised across the market. Policies can differ in how they:
- Define your insured professional services
- Treat related claims (aggregation)
- Apply exclusions
- Handle defence costs and the excess
A useful mindset: If you haven’t reviewed the wording recently, assume there may be meaningful differences.
Pitfall 2: Excess you can’t comfortably absorb
Some accountancy firms are comfortable with a higher excess if they have strong cash reserves. Others find a higher excess becomes a real operational stressor.
Questions to ask:
- If we had to pay the excess tomorrow, would it affect payroll or tax obligations?
- Could multiple matters in one year mean multiple excess payments?
Pitfall 3: Exclusions that don’t match your practice
Exclusions can be appropriate, but they need to be understood.
Practical prompt: List your top five services by fee income and sanity-check that there isn’t an exclusion that makes those services harder to insure or claim against.
Pitfall 4: Not joining the dots between cyber incidents and PII exposure
A cyber incident (for example, ransomware, invoice fraud, email compromise) can quickly become a client-service issue with potential professional liability implications.
Even where cyber insurance is in place (a standalone policy is highly recommended), your PII should be considered in the round - particularly around notifications, third-party allegations, and how claims are managed.
Pitfall 5: Last-minute renewals reducing your options
Time pressure can drive decisions. The closer you get to expiry, the fewer practical options you may have. An early review can help you avoid being “forced” into a decision that isn’t optimal.
A simple 3-step way to protect value (without overcomplicating it)
- Check fit for purpose: Does the wording clearly cover the services you provide today?
- Check the financial mechanics: Excess, aggregation, defence costs - can you live with them?
- Check the claims and support journey: If something goes wrong, what does the process look like?
How Marsh Commercial can support you and your firm
As an ICAS member firm, you can benefit from a free PII insurance review from Marsh Commercial.
As an appointed insurance broker for ICAS members’ PI insurance, Marsh Commercial's dedicated ICAS team can review your existing arrangements and highlight common areas to question before renewal.
Speak to Marsh Commercial about your PII renewal. If you are nearing renewal, they can help you plan the timeline and insurer requirements. Call the team on 0330 175 5876 or request a call back.
For more information, visit Marsh Commercial.
This is a marketing commercial.
Marsh Commercial is a trading name of Marsh Ltd. Marsh Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for General Insurance Distribution and Credit Broking (Firm Reference No. 307511). Copyright © 2026 Marsh Ltd. Registered in England and Wales Number: 1507274, Registered office: 1 Tower Place West, Tower Place, London EC3R 5BU. All rights reserved.
This blog is one of a series of articles from our commercial partners, Marsh Commercial. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of ICAS.
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