New to Public Practice
Starting public practice? Here’s the PI insurance shortcut for new firms
Taking the leap into public practice is exciting – you finally get to choose your clients, your systems and your standards. But with freedom comes a long to-do list: ASIC, TPB, software, branding, website, engagement letters… and somewhere in the middle of that list sits professional indemnity (PI) insurance.
It’s easy to treat PI as another box to tick. For most accountants, PI costs less than their car insurance, so it can feel like a small line item. The catch? If something goes wrong, it’s the one line item that really matters.
Let’s walk through a simple, accountant-friendly way to get your PI in place without losing a day to paperwork.
Why PI insurance matters from day one
As soon as you’re in public practice, you’re giving advice and signing off on work under your own name. That comes with:
Regulatory expectations from your professional body and the TPB
Contractual requirements from certain clients, lenders or referrers
Personal risk if a client alleges an error, omission or misleading statement
You might be meticulous, but you can’t control every client, every staff member or every future interpretation of tax law. PI insurance is there to protect your practice – and your personal assets – when something unexpected lands on your desk.
The hidden cost of “shopping around”
It’s tempting to think, “I’ll get a few quotes and see what’s out there.” In reality, that can mean:
Filling out multiple, similar forms
Re-entering the same data (turnover, services, entities, claims history)
Trying to interpret different policy wordings on your own
If it takes you even two hours at your charge-out rate of $250–$350 per hour, the “saving” from a slightly cheaper policy has to be substantial to be worth it.
That’s why many accountants choose a specialist provider and then stay put – they get cover that suits their work, without losing a day’s billables to admin.
What a good PI policy should cover for new public practitioners
When you’re just starting out, you don’t need the most complex structure on the market, but you do want cover that reflects how accountants actually work.
Key things to look for:
Cover for the services you actually provide
Tax, BAS, bookkeeping, business advisory, SMSF, management consulting – not just “accounting” in a generic sense.
Reasonable limit of indemnity
Enough to give you (and your clients) confidence, without over-insuring. Many new firms start with a level aligned to their professional body’s requirements and typical client profile.
Retroactive cover (where available)
To avoid gaps if you’ve been doing any work before formally setting up the policy.
Support when something goes wrong
Access to claims and risk specialists who understand accountants, not just a generic call centre.
A specialist provider like Abacus focuses on PI for accountants all day, every day – so you’re not explaining the basics of your work just to get a sensible quote.
A simple PI “checklist” for new practices
Here’s a practical sequence you can work through as you set up your practice:
Clarify your services and structure
List the services you’ll offer in year one and whether you’re a sole practitioner, company, partnership or multi-director firm. This keeps your PI application accurate and avoids surprises later.
Confirm your professional body requirements
Check your association’s PI expectations (limit, run-off cover, etc.) and use those as your baseline.
Estimate your first-year fee income
You don’t need perfection here, just a realistic projection. This helps get you into the right premium band.
Gather any claims/incident history
If you’ve been a partner or director elsewhere, note any prior claims or circumstances, even if they were handled by your previous firm.
Get a quote from a specialist PI provider for accountants
Give them a clean, accurate picture of your practice so they can recommend suitable cover and limits. Make sure you understand the key exclusions and conditions.
Calendar your renewal date
Once your policy is in place, add the renewal date to your practice calendar. That way, you can review cover annually without a last-minute scramble.
How Abacus can help
Abacus has been working with accountants for many years, with a strong renewal rate and a member base that tends to stay until retirement or ceasing practice. Our focus is simple: make it easy for accountants in public practice to get the right PI cover in place, quickly.
We speak your language, we understand your services, and we know that every hour you spend filling in forms is an hour you’re not billing.
If you’re about to start public practice – or are in the middle of setting up – now is the ideal time to get your PI sorted so you can focus on building the kind of firm you actually want to run.
