Liability insurance for a security company: what to ask for

Law 2518/1997 sets out the company’s operating licence, staff work licences and the reporting duties to the police. It does not require civil liability insurance. A company can operate lawfully with none, or with a policy that does not cover your site.

“Fully insured” in a quote proves nothing. What counts is what you can read in an insurer’s document and what the contract says.

• Insured party: the legal name and tax number must match the company signing the contract. A Greek security company’s name must include the phrase «ιδιωτική επιχείρηση παροχής υπηρεσιών ασφαλείας» (art. 4 §1α Law 2518/1997, as amended), which makes the match easy to check.
• Insurer and policy number: so you can ask the insurer directly whether the policy is in force.
• Validity dates: start and end. If it ends before the contract does, renewal must be proven to you before expiry.
• The general and specific terms that define cover: not just the front page. Exclusions usually sit in the terms.

• Activities: static guarding, patrols, alarm response, reception, event security — whatever you buy must appear in the description of the insured business.
• Locations: your site, or its region, must be covered. If the policy lists sites, ask for yours to be added.
• Keys, codes, systems: if the guard holds keys, knows alarm codes or operates your cameras, ask in writing whether loss linked to these is covered.
• Subcontractors: if the contract allows subcontracting, ask whether the subcontractor’s guards are covered, or whether it holds its own insurance that you will be shown.

What exactly you are buying is in the quote; how to read a security guarding quote shows how to pull it out line by line, so you can set it against the policy.

• Per-occurrence and aggregate limit: ask whether the policy has both and what they are. An aggregate limit shared across all the company’s clients may be used up before your claim arrives.
• Deductible: the part of each loss the insurer does not pay — the contract should say who bears it.
• Exclusions: read the list with the post orders beside it. For each of the guard’s duties, ask: if a loss happens here, is it excluded?
• Territorial and time scope: a loss that occurred during the policy period but was reported after it ended — is it covered? Ask, and get the answer in writing.

This guide does not suggest limit amounts. The right limit depends on the site, the value protected and your own insurance — so set it with a professional who knows your site.

1. Written notice to the company, to a named person, within a deadline the contract sets.
2. Report to the insurer by the security company, telling you the claim reference and who is handling it.
3. Evidence: the incident report, the shift report and that night’s patrol logs. Without them it is hard to show what happened and when.
4. CCTV footage: with no incident, footage is deleted within 15 working days at most; when there is an incident, the relevant extract may be kept longer (Hellenic DPA Directive 1/2011, art. 8). Ask straight away for it to be preserved — see CCTV footage retention.

At OVIT, incidents, reports and patrols are logged in the Guardly platform with time and the person responsible, so a shift’s records exist when you need them.

• “The Provider shall maintain, throughout the Contract, civil liability insurance covering the services in Annex [__] at the sites in Annex [__], with a limit of [__] per occurrence, an aggregate limit of [__] and a deductible of [__].”
• “The Provider shall supply a certificate from its insurer on signature and [__] days before each policy expiry.”
• “The Provider shall notify the Client in writing at least [__] days before any cancellation, non-renewal or reduction of cover.”
• “If the insurance ceases to be in force, the Client may [__].”
• “Subcontractors, where permitted, shall hold equivalent insurance, proven in the same way.”
• “In the event of a loss, the Provider shall report it to its insurer within [__] days of the Client’s notice and keep the Client informed.”

This clause is one part of the contract. For the other terms — scope, replacement, reports, data, termination — see security contract terms. Have a lawyer review the final text.

A theft or damage can happen without any fault by the guard. Then the security company’s insurance may not come into it at all, and what matters is your own property insurance. Ask your insurer in writing whether it wants to know how guarding is organised (hours, posts, patrols) and whether any change to it must be declared.

When you want to see how all of this is written into a real proposal for your site, request a proposal from OVIT.