Solicitors' PII renewal: the £2 million and £3 million minimum cover, and the 30, 60 and 90-day clock when a policy is not renewed

A firm whose professional indemnity policy ran out on 30 September 2026 without a replacement is still insured today, by its old insurer, and is on a clock. It has 30 days in which it can carry on as normal, a further 60 in which it can take no new work, and must then close. The SRA has to be told at each stage.

The minimum terms in figures

Every SRA-authorised firm must hold a policy with a participating insurer that meets the SRA's Minimum Terms and Conditions (Indemnity Insurance Rules 2.1). The main figures:

The £3 million figure applies to a "relevant recognised body" or "relevant licensed body". The SRA Glossary excludes from that a partnership in which no partner is a limited company, an LLP or another limited-liability body, so a traditional partnership sits in the £2 million band.

The minimum may not be enough

Rule 3.1 adds a second duty: cover must be "adequate and appropriate" for current and past practice. The SRA's guidance lists what it will look for, including the client profile, the value of the work, the probable maximum loss for each type of work, claims history and any top-up cover. It notes that the likely loss is rarely the full value of the transaction, and says that where a firm can show a reasonable and rational assessment against those factors, it will not second-guess the decision. Write the assessment down at each renewal and keep it with the policy.

Rule 3.2 matters for the client care letter: a firm must not exclude or try to exclude liability below the minimum level of cover.

The clock when cover is not renewed

The rules hang every deadline on the "policy period", the period of insurance in the firm's own policy. For a policy that expired on Wednesday 30 September 2026:

The count checks: 30 days in October, then 1 in October, 30 in November and 29 in December make 60, and 30 plus 60 is 90. We counted from the Glossary wording; confirm the dates with the broker.

Cover in both periods comes from the last insurer, on the minimum terms (clauses 5.1 and 5.2). A replacement policy bought in either period must take effect from the expiry of the old one (rules 2.3 and 2.4), so it is backdated.

The two notifications

Rule 8.1 requires the firm to tell the SRA and its insurer in writing as soon as reasonably practicable, and no later than five business days after each of these:

1. Entering the extended policy period. For entry on Thursday 1 October 2026, that is Thursday 8 October 2026.
2. Entering the cessation period. For entry on Saturday 31 October 2026, that is Friday 6 November 2026.
3. Obtaining a policy while in either period, giving the new insurer's name and the policy number.

The SRA's resource page gives insuredreports@sra.org.uk for these reports.

The SRA's case studies show why the email matters. One firm kept the SRA informed through both periods, planned for closure while still hoping for a quote, and closed in an orderly way. The other told nobody and kept taking instructions during and after the cessation period. The SRA heard from the previous insurer, visited unannounced, and took regulatory action against the partners.

Run-off

When a firm closes without a successor practice, the last policy must give six years of run-off cover on the minimum terms (clauses 5.3 and 5.4). The minimum terms do not set a price for it, so ask the broker for the run-off terms in writing at each renewal.

A renewal checklist

1. Read the expiry date on the policy schedule. The rules define the indemnity period as a year starting on 1 October, but the deadlines follow your own policy period.
2. Confirm the firm's legal form and so the £2 million or £3 million minimum.
3. Record the adequate and appropriate assessment against the SRA's factors.
4. Check the insurer is on the SRA's list of participating insurers for 2026/27. The list says most of them deal through brokers only.
5. Diary day 30 and day 90 after expiry, and the two notification dates.
6. If an insurer on the policy becomes insolvent, replacement cover is needed within four weeks (rule 5.1).
7. Tell the COLP. The guide to the paused COLP and COFA rules sets out what that role requires.

What we could not confirm

The Law Society's renewal guidance would not open for us on 1 October 2026, so this page gives no figure for the share of firms that still renew on 1 October. The SRA pages we read give no premium figures and we state none.

If a tool drafts any part of a proposal form or an SRA notification, a supervising solicitor reviews and signs it before it is sent. This page is general information, not legal or insurance advice.