Call us on 0800 862 0656

learn more about our

benefits.

Our quotes will offer your school the following cover features...

underwriters

Our policies are underwritten by Zurich UK, who have the a financial rating of AA/Stable (Standard & Poor’s) as of November 2025.

Oh support

Staff will have access to unlimited occupational health assessments, pre-placement screenings and use of a 24-hour support helpline.

Maternity cover

Choose to cover potential maternity absences for up to £5,000 per claim; paid even if your employee doesn't return to work.

Price guarantee

We’re so confident that we can offer the best price for your staff absence insurance policy that if you find the same policy elsewhere, we'll beat it!

No claims history

No need to submit a claims history to take cover with us. Simply provide your daily benefit, FTE and waiting day period.

Stress cover

We give you the choice of 30 days or 190 days cover with both options allowing you to claim for a wide range of stress related absences.

Fast settlement

We handle all claims in-house, which allows us to have one of the fastest average claim payment times in the industry - just four working days.

COVID-19 Cover

We shall continue to give our schools the choice of covering absences caused by staff who have a positive COVID-19 test result.

Extra features

We cover non-sickness related absences such as accidents, jury service, adoption and paternity and much more.

Who are Teacher Absence?

From who we are to what we do – our paperless ebrochure introduces your school to our company, policy and partners.

We do things differently.

This document tells you everything you need to know about our honest, open and transparent approach to staff absence insurance.

Our terms of business.

No false promises, hidden documents or unexpected small print. Download our TOBA to make sure you’re happy with everything before you take out cover.

01.

Get a quote.

Simply tell us how many staff you’d like to cover and you’ll be provided with an instant price in seconds.

02.

Confirm cover.

Once you’re happy with everything, we can talk you through our T&C’s and place you on cover over the phone.

03.

Submit staff list.

Via your client area, tell us which staff you’d like to insure. All we need is their name, DOB, FTE and email address.

04.

Teacher absence.

Unfortunately absence is inevitable, and members of staff will not be able to attend work for an array of reasons.

05.

Make a claim.

You can do this online via your client area - simply tell us which member of staff is absent and why.

06.

Claim settlement.

If you claim is valid, we’ll send your settlement via BACS payment. On average this takes five working days.

Getting a quote is

Our new quote process is quick and easy to complete, allowing you to get a price for your insurance in a matter of seconds.

Get a quote

faqs.

Below you'll find answers to the questions we get asked the most about our staff absence insurance.

01.Why do we need absence insurance?
Staff absence insurance will help to protect your school against unplanned expenses incurred as a result of staff absences. In the unfortunate event that a member of staff is taken critically ill and has to take time off work, supply cover can be an unexpected expense for a long period of time. Often this will not have been budgeted for and funds may need to be allocated from other areas of the school. Our insurance protects you against such eventualities, allowing you to manage your budget more closely and ensure that financially at least, you don’t have any nasty surprises.
02.What will we be covered for?
Generally speaking you will be covered for unplanned absence days due to sickness or bodily injury after your chosen waiting day period. You’ll also be covered for non-sickness days such as bereavement (death of a direct relative), jury service, adoption and paternity leave. There are additional cover options for stress / mental health related issues and maternity absences. Visit the policy cover section for more details.
03.How do we get a quote?
It’s easy, just visit the quote section of our website and complete the form. If you’d rather talk to us we can provide you with a quote over the phone too. Our number is 0800 862 0656.
04.What do I need to provide for a quote?
We need very little information to provide a quote for your school. Your chosen FTE, daily benefit and waiting day period enables us to provide you with a quote instantly.
05.Why are you so cheap?
We don’t attend conferences, send out brochures or partake in expensive advertising campaigns. Offering such a no frills, paperless policy means that we’re able to pass these savings onto you.
06.Who are your policy underwriters?
From the 1st April 2026 our policies are underwritten by Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, part of the Zurich Insurance Group enabling us to support schools with providing trusted insurance solutions whilst offering the best financial security available.
07.What rating do Zurich UK have?
Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, part of the Zurich Insurance Group, have a financial rating of AA/Stable (Standard & Poor’s) as of November 2025. This means our policy will give you the best financial protection available on the market, giving you peace of mind that your claims will be paid in a timely manner.
08.What are your exclusions?
We’ll always pay your claim if we can, however there are some things that aren’t included in the policy. Our policy doesn’t cover any pre-existing condition whereby the member of staff has been absent for five days or more in the 12 months before your policy start date for the same (or related) reason. Similarly, we don’t cover for the undergoing of any planned or recommended medical procedure for which a member of staff had suffered symptoms of or been treated for up to 24 months prior to the policy start date. For a full list of exclusions please read your policy.
09.Will you insure clusters of schools?
Yes. We know that schools can be organised in clusters for all sorts of reasons, including being part of the Local Education Authority, be feeders for a secondary school or be a group of specialist colleges. Whatever your situation, it could be far more cost effective to arrange your insurance cover for the cluster rather than the individual school. Our fast, cost effective and online insurance provision makes our teacher absence insurance perfect for clusters of schools looking to manage their staff absences.
10.Do you offer discounts for clusters?
We pride ourselves on simple, efficient and cost-effective teacher absence solutions. Therefore we offer discounts and additional benefits for clusters of schools so please get in touch if you would like to discuss this further.
11.We've found a cheaper quote - can you match it?
Better than that, we’ll beat it and also send you £100 in book vouchers to say sorry. Simply send us the like-for-like quote to review and we’ll get back to you soon.
12.How does your insurance differ to a mutual?
A discretionary mutual, commonly known as mutual societies or a funding group, is a form of protection to cover members against a certain event or risk, such as staff absences. However, mutuals such as these are discretionary, where the member only has the right to have their claims considered, and not necessarily paid. Our policy is a legally binding insurance contract – meaning all claims (which fall within the policy terms and conditions) must be paid. What’s more, our insurance offers additional layers of financial protection that our schools wouldn’t be entitled to as part of a discretionary mutual. Members of a discretionary mutual not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority, do not have access to the services offered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) in the event of a complaint or the failure of the mutual society to meet its financial obligations.
13.Is your cover in any way discretionary?
In short, no. Under our insurance policy, your school has the contractual right to have all valid claims paid.
14.How do I arrange cover?
Once you’ve received your quote you can either accept the terms and condition and click ‘put me on cover’ or give us a call and let us take care of the rest.
15.How do we make a claim?
All claims can be handled online to make it as quick and easy as possible for you. Please remember to submit your claim as soon as possible and within the policy time limits. The sooner you make your claim, the sooner we’ll be able to pay you.
16.How quickly will you pay our claims?
We guarantee to pay all accepted claims by BACS within 5 working days. We know there are providers out there that take months to pay your claims which can lead to financial issues for schools, however not with ourselves! Ask to speak to one of our current clients if you would like to hear it from schools already covered with ourselves.
17.What do we do when staff members change?
Your entire policy can be managed online within your client area meaning you can update your staff list at any time. It’s important to keep this up to date as any new members of staff not on the list will not be insured.
18.Are you registered with the FCA?
Yes, Teacher Absence are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”). You can check this on the FCA Register by visiting the FCA website at www.fca.org.uk/register. Please be aware that the products and services provided under our occupational health, wellbeing and maternity cover do not fall within the scope of the FCA’s regulated activities and, therefore, are not covered by the regulatory protection afforded to regulated business.

We find the website and client area very user-friendly. The staff are always helpful, efficient and knowledgeable when we need to contact them, and their prices are competitive.

The Bishop Harvey Goodwin School

underwriter.

Giving you complete piece of mind.

Exciting news! From the 1st April 2026 our policies are underwritten by Zurich UK!

This year we have teamed up with Zurich UK to support schools with providing trusted insurance solutions, offering the best financial security available; Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, part of the Zurich Insurance Group, have a financial rating of AA/Stable (Standard & Poor’s) as of November 2025.

The relationship we have with our insurers means that our clients will benefit from a flexible approach, financial stability and the protection of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (subject to qualifying criteria) in the unlikely event that they become unable to meet their commitments. Further details can be found on the Financial Services Register here.

Please note policies with a cover start date prior to the 1st April 2026 are underwritten by Astrenska Insurance Limited trading as Collinson Insurance.

Teacher Absence Limited is authorised by Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, part of the Zurich Insurance Group and Astrenska Insurance Limited trading as Collinson Insurance to issue policies, administer them and settle claims on their behalf.