Why do drone tech companies need E&O?
Consider the high expectations and complex projects in this field. If your autonomous flight software has a bug that sends drones off course and delays a critical survey for a client, that client might demand compensation for the setback. If your team fails to integrate a drone system into a client’s operation as promised, causing the client to miss their own targets, they could claim damages for breach of contract or negligence.
Drone companies often provide data, analysis, or operational services that clients rely on for big decisions – a mapping error or an analytics mistake can carry a hefty price tag. Tech E&O insurance is designed to step in for exactly these situations, covering legal defense costs and settlements if a client holds you responsible for an economic loss.
Common claim scenarios
- Software or algorithm error: A drone platform’s navigation algorithm malfunctions, leading to incomplete or incorrect data collection. The client incurs extra costs to redo the work or suffers a loss because of the bad data, and they claim your product or service was negligent.
- Project failure or delay: Your company is contracted to deploy a drone inspection system by a certain deadline. Due to technical issues or mistakes in project management, the deployment is delayed and the client faces penalties or lost revenue. They may pursue a claim for those losses.
- Professional negligence: During an infrastructure inspection project, your drone team misses a critical defect (perhaps due to operator error or incorrect sensor calibration). The defect later causes damage that could have been prevented, and the client alleges your professional services were performed negligently.
Aligning insurance with contracts
Drone and tech projects usually come with detailed contracts – SLAs, uptime guarantees, performance milestones, etc. It’s crucial that your Tech E&O policy is broad enough to cover unintentional breaches of those obligations (within reason). For example, some E&O policies can include coverage for unintentional breach of contract, which may cover claims if you fail to meet a specified performance warranty.
However, remember that insurance policies have limits; if you agree to unlimited liability in a contract, your insurer will only pay up to the policy limit. We strongly advise reviewing indemnity clauses and liability caps in your contracts to ensure they’re in sync with your insurance. Part of our service is to help you navigate this balance – making sure you’re not taking on uninsurable promises.
Don’t assume your general liability or aviation policy has you covered. A common mistake is thinking that if you have drone liability insurance for bodily injury and property damage, it will also cover any lawsuit a client throws at you. It won’t. Those policies typically exclude purely financial claims. Tech E&O is the coverage that fills that gap.
In fact, many larger clients (especially in the US and Europe) will explicitly require you to carry a minimum level of professional liability insurance in their contract. Having a robust E&O policy not only protects you, it also signals to clients that you stand behind your product and have the means to compensate if something goes wrong.
Holistic risk management
Tech E&O often overlaps with other coverages, and a coordinated insurance program ensures no gaps. For instance, if a software bug in your system causes a drone to malfunction and crash, the physical damage and third-party injuries would fall under aviation liability, but any purely economic loss suffered by the client (say downtime costs) would be addressed by E&O. By structuring policies with the same insurer or with carefully designed endorsements, you can avoid finger-pointing between policies in a complex incident.
For drone tech companies providing cutting-edge solutions, Professional Liability insurance is mission-critical. Our team helps tailor E&O coverage to your specific risk profile – whether you’re a SaaS platform with thousands of users or a project-based integrator working on multi-million dollar deployments. We ensure the coverage encompasses your key exposures, from software code errors to contract penalties, so that one mistake doesn’t put your entire business at risk.
Not sure if your current E&O policy is up to the task? Schedule a consultation with us. We’ll review your existing coverage, examine your client contracts and risk factors, and help adjust your insurance program so you can deliver innovation with peace of mind.





















































































































