Timing
Late notification
Waiting weeks before reporting a claim leaves gaps in evidence. Report as soon as you receive any letter, email or verbal complaint.
Employers' liability claims under the Risk Protection Arrangement
How the DfE scheme handles employers' liability claims made against academies, trusts and maintained schools, and what your school needs to do first.
What this cover is for
Employers' liability cover protects your organisation if an employee suffers injury or illness linked to their work and brings a claim against you. The Risk Protection Arrangement (RPA) includes this cover for eligible members, so you do not need to buy a separate policy for it.
- Covers claims by current and former employees arising from work for your organisation.
- Applies to academies, multi-academy trusts, maintained schools and eligible related bodies that are members of the scheme.
- Claims are handled through the RPA claims process, not through a commercial insurer.
- Cover depends on your membership being in place when the incident happened, so keep your membership records up to date.
Making an employers' liability claim
Acting quickly and keeping records makes a real difference to how a claim is assessed. Follow these steps from the moment you learn of a potential claim.
Step 1
Record the incident
Write down what happened, when and where, who was involved and who witnessed it. Keep a copy of any accident book entry and first aid record.
Step 2
Preserve evidence
Keep equipment, risk assessments, training records and maintenance logs relevant to the activity. Do not discard or alter them while the matter is open.
Step 3
Notify the RPA
Tell the RPA as soon as a claim or possible claim is received. Early notice helps the team investigate while memories and evidence are still fresh.
Step 4
Cooperate with the assessment
Provide the documents requested and make staff available for interview where needed. Do not admit liability or make settlement offers without advice from the scheme.
Prevention reduces claims
Most employers' liability claims can be reduced with routine controls: current risk assessments, clear supervision arrangements, safe equipment and recorded training. Review these measures each year and after any incident.
Where claims usually go wrong
These are the points where we most often see delay or confusion.
Records
Incomplete incident files
Missing witness names, unsigned accident forms or undated notes slow the assessment. Complete the file at the time, not later.
Photographs from the field
Frequently asked questions
Eligible members are covered under the RPA for employers' liability, so a separate commercial policy is generally not needed. Confirm your position in the membership pack.
Contact the RPA team through the details on our contact page. Have the incident date, the member name and any reference numbers ready.
Not sure whether an incident is covered? Read the membership pack and then contact the RPA team before you admit anything to the injured person. Open the membership pack or contact us.