Domestic Worker WIBA Compliance Cover
The cover Kenyan law requires every household employer to hold for their househelp, nanny, gardener, driver, or guard. WIBA insurance against work injury, included as a section within your home insurance policy, bound within 48 hours.
If you employ a domestic worker in Kenya: a househelp, nanny, gardener, driver, cook, or guard: the Work Injury Benefits Act (WIBA) legally requires you to insure them against work-related injury, illness, or death, even if you employ just one person. Compliant cover is included with home insurance: the WIBA section adds about KSh 500 per worker on top of your home cover (some underwriters cover the first 2 workers free), and pays the worker's medical bills, wage replacement while they recover, and a lump sum (to them or their dependants) for permanent disability or death, while shielding you from personal liability and prosecution. Cover can be bound within 48 hours on WhatsApp.
- Legally required for any household employing domestic staff, even one worker
- Included with home insurance: the WIBA section adds ~KSh 500/worker (some underwriters cover the first 2 workers free)
- Pays worker medical costs, wage replacement and disability/death benefits
- Shields you from personal liability and DOSHS prosecution
- Covers househelp, nanny, gardener, driver, cook and guard
- Bound within 48 hours: quote and pay on WhatsApp
Reviewed by Lawrence, Broking Manager, Vike Insurance
Most Kenyan households do not realise that employing a domestic worker creates a legal duty to insure them. Under the Work Injury Benefits Act (WIBA), every employer, including a private household with a single househelp, nanny, gardener, driver, or guard: must hold cover for work-related injury, illness, and death. There is no small-employer exemption: one worker triggers the obligation, and the Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health Services (DOSHS) has been enforcing household compliance more actively in recent years.
The good news is that compliance is cheap. Domestic worker WIBA cover is not sold on its own: it is a section inside your home insurance policy. The WIBA section adds about KSh 500 per worker on top of your home cover (some underwriters cover the first two workers free), and can be bound within 48 hours of application: quote, pay, and confirm entirely on WhatsApp. The policy pays the worker's accident medical bills, replaces wages while they recover, and pays a lump sum for permanent disability or death, with compensation to dependants. Just as importantly, it stands between you and an uncapped personal liability: an uninsured household is personally responsible for the full cost of a serious injury, plus potential prosecution.
What It Covers
Medical expenses for work-related injuries and occupational illness
Temporary disability benefit: wage replacement while the worker recovers
Permanent disability lump sum, calibrated to the WIBA scale and earnings
Compensation to dependants on work-related death
Funeral expenses on death in the course of work
Legal defence costs for claims brought against you as the employer
Optional common-law / Employers' Liability extension for negligence claims
One policy can cover multiple workers in the same household
Who It's For
Households employing a househelp, nanny, or cook
Households with a gardener, driver, or pool attendant
Households with a directly-hired day or night guard (not via a security firm)
Landlords and apartment owners with directly-contracted cleaners
Any household employing domestic help: full-time, part-time, or casual
Types We Cover
Each profile is rated and underwritten differently. Talk to us so we can match your specific situation.
Single Worker
Statutory WIBA cover for one named domestic employee, added as a section on your home insurance policy from about KSh 500/worker. The right start for a household formalising one long-standing househelp or gardener.
Household (Multiple Workers)
One policy covering several workers: for example a nanny, gardener, and guard, at a per-worker rate. Simpler to manage than separate policies and the usual choice for larger households.
WIBA + Employers' Liability
Adds common-law cover for negligence claims that go beyond the WIBA scheduled benefits. Important where a serious injury could lead to a large damages award against you personally. Strongly recommended.
Real-World Scenarios
Nanny scalded in the kitchen
A nanny suffers serious burns while cooking and needs two weeks of treatment. The policy pays her medical bills in full and a wage-replacement benefit while she recovers, at no out-of-pocket cost to the household, and in full compliance with WIBA. Without cover, the family would pay every shilling and still be exposed to a claim.
Gardener falls from a ladder
A directly-employed gardener falls while trimming a tree and is left with a lasting back injury. WIBA pays the medical costs and a permanent-disability lump sum scaled to his earnings; the Employers' Liability extension defends the household if he brings a negligence claim over unsafe working conditions.
Proof of compliance requested
A household is asked to show proof of WIBA cover for its staff. Because the policy was bound when the worker was hired, the certificate is produced immediately, avoiding the penalties, and the personal liability, that fall on non-compliant employers.
Optional Benefits & Add-ons
Common law / Employers' Liability extension
Personal accident top-up for the worker
Medical extension above the WIBA scheduled limit
Last expense / funeral cover for the worker
Multiple-worker household block cover
Repatriation costs for non-Kenyan workers
Availability varies by underwriter. Our advisors will confirm what is available on your chosen policy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is WIBA cover for domestic workers a legal requirement in Kenya?
How much does domestic worker WIBA insurance cost?
Which domestic workers must be covered?
What happens if I don't have WIBA cover for my househelp?
How is this different from your standard domestic workers insurance?
How quickly can cover start, and what do I need?
Quotes from Kenya's leading underwriters
Ready to get covered?
Our advisors will compare quotes and find the best fit for you, at no extra cost.
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