General information only
This guide explains what published policy wordings say and what Australian law requires. It is general information, not advice, and it doesn’t consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. Policies differ, and wordings change: the PDS, policy wording and schedule for your own cover are the documents that count. The insurers quoted here are examples we could read in full; they are not necessarily on our panel.
The short answer
- For the small private companies we priced, $1 million to $2 million of management liability came back at about $1,785 to $3,850 a year.
- For the same answers, the highest price was 2.1 times the lowest.
- Directors and officers (D&O) cover is usually one part of a management liability policy, beside employment practices, statutory liability, crime and tax audit cover.
- These are annual premiums including GST, stamp duty and the insurer’s fee, before our broker fee.
Real management liability prices from our panel
Every row is one set of answers, priced by each insurer on our panel that would quote it. These are prices the insurers returned in October and November 2026, not estimates, for private companies with no past claims, known circumstances or insolvency concerns.
| Business, limit, size, state | Price a year |
|---|---|
| IT and cyber security consultancy$1m cover · $2.5m turnover · 11 staff · VIC | $1,793 to $3,8493 insurers priced it |
| Business management advisory$2m cover · 8 staff · NSW | $1,785 to $1,9062 insurers priced it |
| Social media and marketing consultancy$1m cover · $2.5m turnover · 14 staff · NSW | $1,8701 insurer priced it |
Prices include GST, stamp duty and the insurer’s own fee, and exclude our broker fee. They are for the answers shown, on the dates priced; your business, finances, staff, claims history and location will change them, and insurers change their rates.
What management liability insurance covers
Management liability is a package for a company and the people who run it. The sections and their limits differ between insurers, but a policy for a small private company commonly includes:
- Directors and officers (D&O) liability. Claims against a director or officer personally for decisions made running the company, and the cost of defending them. This is the part that protects a director’s own assets.
- Company liability. Similar claims made against the company itself.
- Employment practices. Claims by staff, such as unfair dismissal, discrimination, bullying or harassment.
- Statutory liability. Defence costs, and fines or penalties where the law allows them to be insured, for breaches of laws such as privacy, environmental or consumer law. In most of Australia, work health and safety fines can no longer be insured.
- Crime. Theft or fraud by an employee or a third party, which can include some cyber crime.
- Tax audit. The professional fees for responding to an ATO audit or investigation.
Not every policy includes every section, and some insurers sell them separately. The PDS sets out what each one pays and its own limit.
What changes the price of management liability
- What the business does. Some industries have more regulator attention or employee claims than others.
- Turnover and staff numbers. More staff means more exposure to employment claims; insurers commonly rate on both.
- The company’s finances. Profitability, net assets and any solvency concerns matter, because directors’ duties bite hardest when a company is in trouble. Insurers ask about them directly.
- The limit you choose. Commonly $1 million, $2 million or $5 million, sometimes with lower limits for sections such as crime.
- Claims and circumstances. A past claim, a regulatory investigation or a dispute you know about usually raises the price or sends the quote to an underwriter. All the prices on this page are for businesses with none.
- The excess. Often set per section, with a higher excess on employment practices claims.
Why the same business gets very different prices
For identical answers, the Victorian consultancy above was $1,793 with one insurer and $3,849 with another for $1 million of cover, 2.1 times as much. Each insurer has its own appetite, its own claims experience and its own idea of what belongs in the package, so the sections, sub-limits and excesses behind each price are not the same.
That makes the cheapest price a starting point, not a like-for-like answer. Gary prices management liability with more than one insurer in a single form, and shows the PDS beside each price.
Who management liability insurance is for
It is built for private companies (Pty Ltd) and the people running them: directors, officers and managers. It is commonly bought by businesses with employees, outside investors or lenders, or a board that wants its directors’ personal assets protected. Not-for-profit associations have their own versions.
It sits beside, not instead of, the other covers a business holds. Advice that goes wrong for a client is professional indemnity, an injury or property damage claim is public liability, and a data breach is cyber insurance.
What’s in a management liability price
- The base premium: the insurer’s charge for the risk.
- GST: 10%.
- Stamp duty: a state tax on the premium, which varies by state.
- The insurer’s fee: some insurers add a policy fee.
- The broker fee: what a broker charges for arranging it. Gary shows its fee before you pay.
See your own price, not an average
One online form, more than one insurer pricing it, and the PDS beside every price.
Questions people ask about management liability
How much is management liability insurance in Australia?
For the small private companies we priced, $1 million to $2 million of management liability came back between about $1,785 and $3,850 a year. The business, its turnover and staff numbers, its finances, the limit and the insurer all move the price.
Is management liability the same as directors and officers insurance?
Directors and officers (D&O) liability is usually one part of a management liability policy. A management liability package for a private company commonly adds cover for the company itself, employment practices claims, statutory liability, crime and tax audit costs. Large and listed companies often buy D&O on its own.
Why did the same business get prices so far apart?
For one Victorian consultancy with identical answers, the highest price was 2.1 times the lowest. Insurers package management liability differently: which sections are included, the sub-limits, the excess on each section and the exclusions all vary, so compare the PDS as well as the price.
Does management liability cover work health and safety fines?
In most of Australia the law now stops insurance paying work health and safety fines, although legal costs can often still be covered. Other statutory penalties may be insurable where the law allows. The policy wording says what each section pays.
Can a sole trader get management liability insurance?
Management liability is written for companies and their directors and officers. A sole trader has no company or directors, so the insurers on our panel price it for private companies. Some of them also cap the number of staff they will price online.
Can I pay for management liability monthly?
Many policies can be paid monthly through premium funding, which is a loan for the annual premium and usually costs a little more in total than paying once. The prices on this page are annual premiums.
Is this advice for me?
No. The prices here are real examples for specific answers, not a quote for your business, and this guide is general information. It doesn’t consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. Read the PDS for any cover you are considering.
More plain-English reading in Gary’s guides.
Important
This guide is general information only and is not personal advice. It doesn’t take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. It summarises published documents as they stood when we read them; insurers change their wordings, and a policy’s schedule and endorsements can change how its wording applies. Quotations are reproduced for commentary and are accurate to the versions listed. Before deciding on any cover, read the PDS, policy wording and Target Market Determination for that product. Gary is not suggesting any of the insurers named is, or isn’t, right for your business.
Want to see what business cover costs you?
One form, the PDS beside every price, and a broker to ask when a condition doesn’t make sense.