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Dog walking insurance is specialised business insurance for professional dog walkers. You are a professional if you get paid for this activity - it doesn't matter if you only do it part-time or only for people you know.
You can buy different types of insurance:
Public liability insurance - covers costs if members of the public are harmed
Employers liability insurance - covers costs if employees are harmed
Business contents insurance - covers costs if equipment is damaged or stolen
🚩 Employers liability insurance is a legal requirement if you have staff
🚩Clients may insist you have public liability insurance
Whether you own a dog walking company or are a self-employed dog walker, insurance can financially protect you if something goes wrong at work.
Without insurance you could end up paying some high costs if a pet is harmed while in your care, your employee is badly bitten, or someone steals the laptop or phone you use to take bookings.
If you are a UK business and you have any non-family members working for you then by law you must have employers' liability insurance.
Without it, you can be fined up to £2,500 for every day you're not insured[3]
You can be taken to court if a client or a member or the public believe they have been physically or financially harmed because of your company's business activities, including if their property is damaged. Under UK law, a pet is classed as property.
Dog walkers could be found liable for everything from someone tripping over a lead to the dog chewing up an expensive item of clothing.
Public liability insurance can cover the legal fees and compensation payouts in the event of a claim.
Public liability insurance protects you if any dogs in your care cause members of the public injury or damage any property while you're walking them.
Dogs can be unpredictable. A dog you're walking could jump up on a person and injure them, attack another dog or cause a car accident. In these cases, even though the dog is the cause of the incident, you're responsible, and you may be hit with expensive compensation fees and legal expenses.
If anyone who works for you becomes ill or injured because of their job you could be responsible for the associated costs, including expensive compensation claims.
Employers' liability insurance covers harm caused to employees, contractors, volunteers and anyone else doing any work for you. It's also a legal requirement.
Many dog owners care a lot about their pet's wellbeing, and having the appropriate insurance in place can give them peace of mind that you take your professional responsibilities seriously.
That's how much was paid out in 2024. Without business insurance, those customers would have faced paying that bill themselves.
Comparing quotes from different insurers allows you to find the best deal out there.
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Public liability insurance protects you if your work harms members of the public.
Employers’ liability insurance protects you if your staff become ill or injured at work.
Professional indemnity insurance protects you if you are accused of negligence.
Product liability covers legal fees if your product causes injury to a customer.
Business van insurance Protect your work vehicle and its contents.
Business interruption insurance protects against disruption from events like fires.
(Per Year) | Cheapest | Average |
|---|---|---|
Dog walking | £56.59[7] | £58[8] |
The table shows the average prices paid by our customers for dog walking insurance.
Average price means 51% of customers paid this amount or less. Cheapest price means 10% of customers paid this price or less.
According to our latest data, 10% of customers paid this when taking out an annual dog walking insurance policy.
The cost of fixing insurable problems yourself is usually significantly more expensive than taking out insurance.
Almost 9 in 10[10] of business insurance claims made by MoneySuperMarket customers were accepted last year.
All insurance has conditions and exceptions, so you should read your policy documents carefully to make sure you know what is and isn't covered.
When it comes to business insurance, the cheapest option may not be the best option for you. Sometimes it is worth paying a little more to get a better level of cover.
Financial loss: Covers you for any compensation you would have to pay to a third party that wasn’t caused by damage to or loss of physical property
Legal expenses insurance: Can help you pay for legal costs for things like employment disputes, property disputes, and tax investigations
Accidental death: An accidental death policy offers a lump sum should you or an employee die as a result of an unforeseen incident
Public liability insurance: protects you if any dogs in your care cause members of the public injury or damage any property while you're walking them.
Employers' liability insurance: covers your employees
Personal accident cover: helps cover any lost income and medical bills
Intentional harm or damage: Either by yourself or an employee
Lost dog: If you have a care, custody and control exclusion in your insurance you're not covered for damage to other people's property that's in your care
Injured or killed dog: If you have a care, custody and control exclusion in your insurance you're not covered for damage to other people's property that's in your care
Drugs or alcohol: If you or your employees were under the influence of drugs or alcohol when the event you want to claim for occurred
Wear and tear: Tools and equipment insurance won't pay out for damage or breaking of tools or equipment that are the result of general wear and tear
Breach of contract: Some types of insurance will exclude cover for liability arising from breach of contract
Improper use of business vehicles: If you're using work vehicles for purposes that aren't under the description of use, or if the person driving is someone not covered by the policy, your insurance company won't cover you for any damage to or loss of the vehicle
Possibly not. There is such a thing as a care, custody, and control exclusion (CCC) that is commonly found in public liability insurance policies. With this exclusion, your liability insurance won't cover you for any property (which pets are under law) that is not owned by you while it is in your care.
This means that many standard public liability insurance policies won't cover you if anything happens to your clients' dogs while you are walking them. This includes loss, injury, and death.
For example, if a dog that you're walking is hit by a car, you may be held liable for the dog's injuries and required to cover the cost of veterinary treatments. If your liability insurance policy contains a care, custody, and control exclusion, it will not help you cover those costs.
Always read your policy wording carefully. Specialist dog walking insurance is more likely to fully cover you than a general policy.
If you use your car for your business as a dog walker, you will need to tell your car insurer, and you may need to change your insurance policy to include business use.
You will need to check your local council’s rules on dog breeds. If the dog you are walking is on the dangerous dog list, the owner may need to show proof of an exemption certificate.
Your pet business insurance policy will detail how many dogs you're insured to walk, and your local council will also has a specific limit on the number of dogs you can walk at one time.
For general guidance, The Dogs Trust guidelines for professional dog walkers recommends that you don't walk more than four dogs at once.
Yes, you can be a self-employed dog walker or you could work through a company. If you are self employed you will need to fill in an annual self-assessment tax return.
Most dog walkers charged between £10 and £20 an hour for dog walking. The amount will depend on the type of dog, how long the walk is, and how often the dog needs walking.
Unless you hire staff, or you’re using your car for your dog-walking business, there’s no requirement to buy insurance but it can be very valuable. The costs you would need to cover yourself without insurance can be significant. If someone were to sue you because of damage your dog walking business has caused, for example, you would need to pay for the court fees.
On top of that, if you’re unable to work for any reason, if you’re self employed you would need to cover your lost income. These costs can cause significantly financial problems and stress, and having insurance provides the peace of mind that you wouldn’t need to pay out if something were to go wrong.
Rebecca Goodman Personal Finance & Insurance Expert
It's against the law for a dog to be dangerously out of control, as they pose a risk of injuring someone or making people worried they may cause harm.
If you allow a dog to be out of control, whether it's on lead or off lead, you could face an unlimited fine, and even a prison sentence.
Depending on where you live, you may require a dog walking licence. Some authorities, including London boroughs Lambeth and Wandsworth, for example, insist that dog walkers have a licence. If you are taking care of a dog within your home or business, you may need a qualification to meet Defra Animal Activity Licensing requirements.
You don’t need a DBS check to be a dogwalker but some clients may prefer working with dogwalkers who have one.
A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check is a copy of your criminal record, provided by the UK government. You can apply for a basic disclosure certificate online. It costs £21.50 and takes up to 14 days to arrive.
There are public spaces protection orders all across the UK, which require you to:
Keep your dog on a lead
Clean up after your dog and dispose of this responsibly
Limit the number of dogs you walk.
There may also be areas that are completely off-limits to dogs under public spaces protection orders. If you fail to abide by the rules, you could be fined £100 on the spot, or up to £1,000 if the matter goes to court.
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According to Simply Business data, 10% of customers paid this amount or less monthly for a dog walker insurance policy. Figure based on annual policies purchased in 2024.
Simply Business is one of the UK's leading providers of business insurance, serving 1 million customers across 1,500 trades.
Source: Gov.uk
Simply Business data 2024
YouGov Survey 1st October 2023 to 30th September 2024. Net recommended score derived from “Which of the following online service website would you recommend to a friend or colleague, or tell them to avoid?” Base: Current Customers of (MoneySuperMarket n=19272, CompareTheMarket n=17631, Go.Compare n=10457, Confused.com n= 8421, Uswitch n=681)
From 01.06.23 to 31.05.24 MoneySuperMarket customers received £1.59bn estimated savings based on (i) SuperSaveClub reward redemptions, and (ii) savings claims per product multiplied by the number of sales. Products included - Car, Home, Pet and Travel insurance, Broadband, Credit Cards, Loans and Mortgages.
According to Simply Business data, 10% of customers paid this amount or less for an annual dog walking insurance policy. Figure based on policies purchased in 2024.
According to Simply Business data, 51% of customers paid this amount or less for an annual dog walking insurance policy. Figure based on policies purchased in 2024.
Average claims value for MoneySuperMarket customers who claimed on their business insurance in the last 12 months. Data provided by SimplyBusiness.
88% of business insurance claims made by MoneySuperMarket customers were accepted in the 12 months before March 2025. Data from SimplyBusiness.
