If I want to become self employed (gardening / horticulture), what sort of personal insurance should I get ?
and is it expensive ?
As a self employed individual You would need coverage to protect yourself and your clientel.
Yourself: Health insurance, Life insurance, Maybe disability coverage.
Your clientel: General Liability insurance
You will need the following types of insurance: Health, Life, Liability, Disability.
Answers:
You should have Public Liability insurance to cover yourself against injury to third parties & third party property damage during the course of your work.
If you have no employees (and therefore do not need employers liability cover) you should not pay more than £80-£100 for £1,000,000 Public Liability cover.
You will also be able to cover your tools as an extension to your liability policy- usually around £60-£70 extra for £1500 cover (higher cover available if required)
The previous post states that Liablity cover is there to protect your clients which is true in as far as it will cover damages to them. However really it covers you- the client still has rights to take you to court for damages- without Public Liability insurance all that would happen is that you would have to pay damages out of your own pocket (for expensive claims that could mean putting all your personal assets at risk - car.house...)
Therefore Public Liability is the minimum insurance cover you will require.
As you are self employed you may want to consider a 'Personal accident and Sickness' policy to give you some protection against loss of income for injuries or long periods of illness that prevent you from carrying out your work.
I would advise you speak to an insurance broker
I can help you with the cover you need if you like- www.gothicinsurance.com - or go to your own local broker
ditto what DNorris said... sound advice :o)