Legal expenses insurance is built from building blocks. Here is the full map – organised by content, without prices. The exact list of modules differs by insurer, so "typically" is the keyword throughout.
Dismissal, unpaid wages, labour disputes – in separate modules for employees and employers.
Details → Most commonly taken outDisputes after an accident, defence in misdemeanour and criminal proceedings, claims enforcement on the road.
Details → Everyday territoryDefective performance, online shop issues, service-provider disputes – where most everyday disagreements arise.
Details → Home and rentingRenting, letting, neighbour disputes – the legal protection side of housing-related conflicts.
Details → For your defenceThe costs of your defence in proceedings over negligent acts – typically under strict conditions.
Details → If you are the injured partyIf someone has caused you damage, it covers the costs of enforcing your legitimate claim – against the party at fault or their insurer.
Details →The names and exact content of the modules differ by insurer; there are further areas too – for example tax and authority matters or online disputes –, typically within narrower limits. The module combinations article explains how they fit together.
The cost of representation – within the limits set out in the policy terms, typically with the insurer's panel lawyer or a freely chosen one.
Court fees, procedural charges, experts, witnesses – the "invisible" items of enforcing your rights that surface once a dispute is under way.
If you lose the case, cover typically also bears the costs awarded to the other party – this is the least well-known part, yet one of the most important.
Telephone advice on legal questions – it settles many disputes right at the start. Our separate article shows what you can expect from it.
Some policy terms also cover the costs of an out-of-court solution – mediation, settlement – which is often the fastest route.
Legal protection does not pay fines or penalties, or the debt that is itself the subject of the dispute – for an honest look at the boundaries, see what it covers and what it doesn't.
Every element depends on the policy terms: the exact scope, the limits and the exclusions are set by the insurers' current policy terms – it is worth going through them item by item before requesting quotes.
The period after taking out the policy during which some modules do not yet provide service – which is why it's not worth waiting until the dispute arrives.
Read it →When does a dispute "arise" under the policy terms? From a cover perspective, this is the single most important date.
Read it →The insurer may assess the reasonable prospects of the case – a factual look at what this means in practice.
Read it →Free choice of lawyer is a statutory right in court and administrative proceedings and where a conflict of interest arises – insurers may differ in the cost frameworks.
Read it →The upper limit up to which the insurer bears the costs of a case – and one that can run out.
Read it →The share of costs that falls to you – where it applies, it also shapes the premium. The logic, and the pitfalls, explained without pricing examples.
Read it →The full set of concepts lives in the glossary – and the policy-anatomy chapter explores the fine print in ten articles.
Free of charge, with no obligation – I assess your needs and explain the options; the decision is yours.