Insights & Guides
What Insurance Does a Mechanic Need?
Running a workshop exposes you to a handful of very specific risks. Here is a plain-English rundown of the covers most mechanics arrange, and why each one exists.
Why generic business insurance is not enough
A motor trade business is not the same as a shop or an office. You handle other people's vehicles, work with heavy equipment, road-test cars, and carry expensive tools between jobs. Those activities create exposures a standard business pack was never designed to respond to.
That is why most mechanics build cover from a set of purpose-built parts rather than buying one off-the-shelf policy. The right combination depends on how you actually work, whether you run a fixed workshop, operate on the road, employ staff, or work as a sole trader.
As a broker, our job is to help you match those parts to your business so you are not paying for cover you do not need, and not left exposed on the risks that matter.
The core covers most workshops arrange
There is no single mandatory list, but the following covers come up again and again for mechanics and automotive tradespeople. Each responds to a different type of loss.
- Public liability, for third-party injury or property damage arising from your work
- Garage keeper's liability, for damage to customer vehicles in your care, custody or control
- Tools and equipment, for theft, loss or damage to the gear you rely on
- Motor trade road risk, so you can legally drive customer and trade vehicles on public roads
- Workers compensation, which is a legal requirement in most states if you employ staff
- Personal accident and illness, to protect your own income if you cannot work
A common mistake is assuming public liability also covers damage to customer cars. It does not. Damage to vehicles in your care is a separate cover, garage keeper's liability, and workshops that accept customer vehicles usually need both.
How your set-up changes the picture
A sole trader with a home workshop and no employees has a very different risk profile to a five-bay shop with apprentices and a fleet of loan cars. The covers you need scale with the way you operate.
If you employ people, workers compensation moves from optional to legally required. If you road-test or collect vehicles, road risk becomes central. If your income depends entirely on you turning a spanner, personal accident and illness cover is worth a serious look.
Mobile operators have their own considerations again, because the workshop travels with them and tools spend more time in transit.
Getting the structure right
The value in working with a broker is not just finding a policy, it is making sure the covers fit together without gaps or unnecessary overlap. A tools policy, a liability policy and a road risk policy each do a specific job, and the boundaries between them matter when a claim happens.
We take the time to understand how your business runs, then help you review your options and arrange cover that reflects it. There is no obligation, and if a cover is not relevant to you, we will say so.
Frequently Asked Questions
In most Australian states and territories, workers compensation is a legal requirement once you employ staff. Other covers such as public liability are not usually compulsory by law, but they are often required under lease agreements, trade licences and contracts with dealerships or fleet operators.
Related Cover & Guides
This guide is general information only and does not take your specific circumstances into account. Mechanics Insurance is an insurance broker. We help you review and arrange cover, we do not underwrite or issue policies. Cover terms, limits and exclusions vary by policy and insurer.
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