Mobile Catering Insurance UK: What Cover Do You Actually Need? (2026 Guide)
Last updated: May 2026
Turn up to a busy food festival without the right insurance certificate and you won’t be trading — the organiser will turn you away at the gate, pitch fee or no pitch fee. Mobile catering insurance is the paperwork that quietly decides whether you can actually pull onto a pitch and switch the fryer on.
For UK mobile caterers, public liability insurance is widely regarded as the baseline cover you cannot trade without, with employers’ liability a legal requirement the moment you take on staff. Most event organisers, councils, and market operators expect to see at least £5 million of public liability cover before they’ll let you book a pitch. This guide breaks down exactly which policies you need, which are legally required, how much cover to carry, and what it typically costs — so you buy the right protection first time instead of discovering a gap after a claim.
Last updated: May 2026
Mobile Catering Insurance at a Glance
| Cover type | What it protects | Typical level | Legally required? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public liability | Injury to customers/public or damage to their property | £5m (some events ask £10m) | Not by law, but effectively required to trade |
| Employers’ liability | Claims from staff injured or made ill at work | £5m minimum | Yes — if you employ anyone, including casual staff |
| Product (food) liability | Illness or injury caused by food you’ve sold | £5m (usually bundled with public liability) | Not by law, but essential |
| Equipment & stock | Theft, loss, or accidental damage to your kit | Sum insured = full replacement value | No |
| Commercial vehicle & trailer | Your van or trailer used for business | Comprehensive, business use | Yes — for any vehicle used on the road |
| Business interruption | Lost income if you can’t trade after an insured event | Based on annual turnover | No |
Why Mobile Caterers Need Specialist Insurance
A mobile catering business carries a very different risk profile to a fixed restaurant, and a generic small-business policy rarely fits. You’re cooking with hot oil and propane in a confined trailer, serving the public at close range, towing or driving high-value equipment between sites, and leaving that kit parked overnight in fields and car parks. Each of those realities is a claim waiting to happen, and each is something a specialist mobile catering policy is built to handle.
The other reason is purely commercial: you simply can’t get on the good pitches without it. Festival organisers, farmers’ markets, council street-trading teams, and private event bookers all ask for an insurance certificate before they confirm your slot. No certificate, no pitch — which means specialist cover isn’t just about protecting yourself, it’s the licence that unlocks where you’re allowed to trade. If you’re still in the planning stage, our guide to starting a mobile catering business in the UK sets out where insurance fits alongside your other licences and registrations.
The Cover You Actually Need
Mobile catering insurance is rarely a single product — it’s a bundle of separate covers, some legally required and some simply sensible. Here’s what each one does and who needs it.
Public Liability Insurance — the non-skippable one
Public liability (PL) covers you if a member of the public is injured or their property is damaged because of your business — a customer slips on spilled oil, a child is burned by a hot serving hatch, or a gust takes your gazebo into someone’s car. PL pays the compensation and legal costs, which on a serious injury claim can run well into six figures. It’s the single cover almost every organiser insists on, and the level they typically ask for is £5 million, rising to £10 million for larger public events.
Employers’ Liability Insurance — legally required with staff
The moment you employ anyone — full-time, part-time, weekend help, or a cash-in-hand mate on a busy bank holiday — you are legally required to hold employers’ liability (EL) insurance under the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969. The minimum cover is £5 million, and you can be fined up to £2,500 for each day you trade without it. The only people who don’t need EL are genuine sole traders working entirely alone. If a family member helps out for free on the counter, check the policy wording carefully — many insurers still expect EL to be in place.
Product (Food) Liability Insurance
Product liability covers claims arising from the food and drink you sell — most commonly food poisoning, an allergic reaction, or a foreign object in a dish. For a caterer it’s arguably as important as public liability, because food-related illness claims are both common and expensive to defend. The good news is that most specialist policies bundle product and public liability together under a single £5 million limit, so you’re often covered for both without buying two separate products.
Equipment & Stock Cover
Your fryers, griddles, coffee machine, generator, and gas equipment are the engine of the business, and they’re portable, valuable, and frequently left unattended — which makes them a prime target for theft. Equipment cover (sometimes called “business equipment” or “tools of trade”) pays to repair or replace kit lost to theft, fire, or accidental damage. Insure for the full replacement cost, not what you paid second-hand, and check whether cover applies while the trailer is parked overnight away from your home address. If you’re still pricing up your kit, our breakdown of what it costs to start a food trailer shows just how much capital is sitting in that equipment.
Commercial Vehicle & Trailer Insurance
A standard private car policy will not cover a van or vehicle used for business — you need commercial vehicle insurance with “carriage of own goods” use. If you tow a catering trailer, check whether your motor policy extends to the trailer while attached and, crucially, whether the trailer is covered for theft and damage while detached and parked. Trailer theft is one of the most common and costly losses in this trade, so many caterers add separate trailer cover with a sum insured matching the build cost of the unit.
Business Interruption and Useful Extras
Business interruption replaces lost income if an insured event — a fire, a write-off, a major equipment failure — stops you trading for a period. For a seasonal trader, losing the summer’s peak weekends can be devastating, so it’s worth costing. Other extras worth weighing up include money cover (for cash takings and the float), personal accident cover (since you’re often the only person who can run the business), legal expenses, and gas/electrical equipment breakdown. None are compulsory, but each plugs a gap that a bare-bones policy leaves open.
How Much Public Liability Cover Do You Need?
For most UK mobile caterers, £5 million of public liability is the practical standard — it’s the level the majority of markets, councils, and mid-sized events specify. Step up to larger festivals, council-run public events, or anything with big crowds and you’ll increasingly see £10 million demanded as a condition of the pitch. Because the price difference between £5m and £10m is usually modest, plenty of caterers simply carry £10m so they never have to turn down a booking over an insurance limit.
The key is to read the booking terms before each new type of event and match (or exceed) the limit they require. Carrying too little is the gap that gets you turned away at the gate; carrying a sensible margin keeps every pitch open to you.
What Does Mobile Catering Insurance Cost?
Premiums vary widely with your turnover, what you cook, how many events you work, your claims history, and how much equipment you’re insuring. As a rough guide, standalone public and product liability cover for a small single-operator setup commonly starts from around £60–£150 a year. A fuller combined policy — adding employers’ liability, equipment, stock, and trailer cover — typically lands somewhere in the £150–£500-plus range annually, and high-turnover or multi-van operations pay more again.
Two things genuinely move the price down: buying a properly packaged specialist policy rather than stacking separate covers, and keeping a clean claims record. Don’t be tempted to under-insure your equipment to shave the premium — if you only insure for half the replacement value, most insurers apply “average” and pay out proportionately less on a claim, leaving you badly short exactly when you need the money.
What Event Organisers and Councils Typically Require
Before you book most pitches you’ll be asked to supply a few documents, and insurance sits at the top of the list. Expect to provide: a valid public liability certificate (commonly £5m, sometimes £10m), proof of employers’ liability if you have staff, your food business registration, your food hygiene rating, and — where gas appliances are involved — a current gas safety certificate. Keep digital copies on your phone, because organisers increasingly ask for them by email weeks ahead and again on the day.
Gas safety is the one caterers most often get caught out by. If you run propane appliances — and almost every off-grid mobile kitchen does — a gas safety certificate from a Gas Safe registered engineer on commercial mobile catering is commonly expected alongside your insurance. Our guide to converting a food van to LPG explains what that gas paperwork involves and why propane (never butane) is the right fuel for UK outdoor trading.
Common Insurance Mistakes Mobile Caterers Make
- Relying on private van insurance. A personal car or van policy won’t cover business use — driving to a pitch on the wrong cover can void a claim entirely.
- Forgetting employers’ liability for casual help. Even one weekend assistant triggers the legal requirement, with fines of up to £2,500 a day for trading without it.
- Under-insuring equipment. Insure for full replacement cost — undervaluing your kit triggers “average” and slashes the payout.
- Buying too little public liability. Turning up to a £10m-required event with a £5m certificate means being turned away at the gate.
- Ignoring trailer theft cover. Trailers are stolen constantly; check the unit is covered while detached and parked, not just while attached to the vehicle.
- Letting cover lapse over winter. Seasonal traders sometimes cancel off-season, then forget to reinstate before the first spring event — and find their equipment was uninsured in storage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I legally need insurance to run a mobile catering business in the UK?
Only employers’ liability and commercial vehicle insurance are required by law — EL the moment you employ anyone, and motor cover for any vehicle on the road. Public and product liability aren’t legally compulsory, but in practice you can’t trade without them because event organisers, markets, and councils insist on seeing a public liability certificate before confirming a pitch.
How much public liability cover do mobile caterers need?
£5 million is the practical standard most UK markets and events expect, with £10 million required for larger festivals and council-run public events. Because the price gap between the two is usually small, many caterers carry £10 million as standard so they never have to decline a booking. Always check the booking terms and match or exceed the limit specified.
Do I need employers’ liability insurance if I only use casual staff?
Yes. The Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 applies to part-time, temporary, and casual workers, not just permanent employees. The minimum cover is £5 million and you can be fined up to £2,500 for each day you trade without it. Genuine sole traders working entirely alone are the only ones exempt — but check the wording if family members help out.
Does my van insurance cover my catering equipment?
Usually not. Standard vehicle insurance covers the vehicle and third-party risks, not the high-value equipment inside or the trailer behind it. You need separate equipment and stock cover for your fryers, coffee machine, generator, and gas kit, and you should confirm whether a towed trailer is insured both while attached and while detached and parked, since that’s where theft happens.
How much does mobile catering insurance cost?
Standalone public and product liability cover for a small operator commonly starts from around £60–£150 a year. A fuller combined policy adding employers’ liability, equipment, stock, and trailer cover typically runs from about £150 to £500-plus annually. Your turnover, menu, number of events, claims history, and equipment value all affect the final premium.
Does mobile catering insurance cover food poisoning claims?
Yes — that’s what product (food) liability insurance is for. It covers claims arising from food or drink you’ve sold, including food poisoning, allergic reactions, and foreign objects in a dish. Most specialist policies bundle product liability with public liability under a single limit, so a standard £5 million combined policy usually protects you against both customer-injury and food-illness claims.
Will event organisers ask to see my insurance certificate?
Almost always. Organisers, market operators, and council street-trading teams routinely request a public liability certificate before confirming a pitch, often by email weeks ahead and again on the day. Many also ask for employers’ liability proof, food business registration, your hygiene rating, and a gas safety certificate. Keep digital copies on your phone so you can produce them instantly.
Is my catering trailer covered against theft?
Only if you’ve arranged trailer cover that includes theft while the unit is detached and parked. Many motor policies cover a trailer only while it’s attached to the towing vehicle, leaving it uninsured overnight in a yard or field — which is exactly when most trailers are stolen. Insure the trailer for its full build cost and check the detached-and-stored wording carefully.