Insurance for contract Engineers

[rotormech]

Calling fellow Engineers!

Chasing some info, any info you can provide about the types of insurance required for contracting in this industry....

Are companies now requiring engineers have their own public liability/ professional indemnity insurance, our are some companies still taking guys on under the companies insurance??

Anybody know who might be a good starting point de quotes with insurance etc? Someone who has a bit more than an "on paper" knowledge of the aviation industry??

[angrypalmtree]

If you are going through a sub subcontractor company (labour hire) you will need nothing. But if your going direct you will need either work cover or income protection and hull liability insurance. I haven't purchased income protection but I paid $1500 for hull liability in 2012 (whole year professional liability)

[rotormech]

Can I ask what value of airframe the $1500 covered??

[Planner]

PM sent.

[trgbox]

Don't let the aviation industry do to you guys the same as the building industry did to its subbies. Make a stand you people...............That way us pilots won't have to!

[angrypalmtree]

$1500 covered 10 million

[Kulwin Park]

About $1200 with Allianz gets Income Protection & Liability cover for $20 million for me, but does not cover any test flights.
Cheers, KP

[rotormech]

So if your not covered for test flights, how do you get away with releasing aircraft post servicing if it needs a track and balance??

[Kulwin Park]

You send a guinea pig along on the flight, whilst you do logbooks and paperwork/hangar clean-up - or you just go and live with the risk.

[SuperF]

Not sure about the rest if the pilots reading this, but if the engineer won't hop in for a test flight, then I won't either..

[angrypalmtree]

I do both..... so yeah, there is an incentive for me to get it right the first time.

[rotormech]

Thanks for the info fellas. Emails sent, should get some quotes back soon.

[rotormech]

Have recieved quotes for insurance from QBE. They are under the impression that as a contractor to an AMO, there is no need at all for the Section 2 insurance as the AMO's insurance should be covering it..... Has anyone else had experience with this or heard of it? Have you come unstuck with something going amiss and then being hung out to dry by the AMO?

[Footstomp]

Advised the same, covered under the AMO's. Anyone find out different?

[choppermech1986]

I was under the impression that you work "for and on behalf" of an AMO (assuming that you have been issued the appropriate certification privileges by said company) so they assumed liability for the work that you did. As long as I could stand before a jury and swear that I did the work to the best of my ability, in accordance with the manufacturers instructions and in accordance with the company procedures manual, I believe I can't be held liable for anything that happens after the aircraft is released to service, please anyone tell me if that's not the case! Now if I'm proven negligent for not adhering to the company procedures manual (approved by CASA under which everything else falls under) that's another story and no company is going to back me if it ends up in court. That's why I try to make myself very familiar with that procedures manual wherever I work these days.

In the past I have signed aircraft under just my license number and I am fully aware that should anything happen, I leave myself very open to liability.

[Zeus1980]

I was under the impression that you work "for and on behalf" of an AMO (assuming that you have been issued the appropriate certification privileges by said company) so they assumed liability for the work that you did. As long as I could stand before a jury and swear that I did the work to the best of my ability, in accordance with the manufacturers instructions and in accordance with the company procedures manual, I believe I can't be held liable for anything that happens after the aircraft is released to service, please anyone tell me if that's not the case! Now if I'm proven negligent for not adhering to the company procedures manual (approved by CASA under which everything else falls under) that's another story and no company is going to back me if it ends up in court. That's why I try to make myself very familiar with that procedures manual wherever I work these days.

In the past I have signed aircraft under just my license number and I am fully aware that should anything happen, I leave myself very open to liability.

You are correct while you are employed by another company whether contract or not you should be signing "For and on behalf" of the AMO you are working for.

If you are signing without that I would guess you then have to be an AMO with your own insurance, safety policies, maintenance procedures, operations manual and everything else that goes along with it just to name a few.