This particular form of business insurance recognises some of the more common features in running a surgery generally and typically focuses on the following types of risk and liability:

Buildings and contents – the fabric of the building itself is clearly critical to the smooth running of a surgery and this element of insurance is designed to offer protection of the premises against the standard risks of fire, flood, storm, explosions, earthquakes and so forth. With respect to contents insurance, most surgery insurance will recognise the current reliance on automated and computerised records and accounting systems and therefore ensure that these are fully protected against loss or damage. A typical level of cover for the insurance of surgery contents is up to £2 million and it is important to check whether “all risks” are included so that certain equipment – laptop computers, for example – continue to covered even when taken away from the surgery itself;

Employers’ liability insurance – this is a legally required commitment to the staff employed by the surgery and is designed to cover damages and legal costs and expenses arising from claims brought by employees who are injured or contract illnesses as a result of their employment at the surgery. The law requires cover of at least £5 million and most surgery insurance policies will automatically extend cover for up to £10 million;

Public and product liability insurance – although there is no legal requirement for such insurance, practically every surgery will recognise the benefits of being covered against claims arising from injury to patients and members of the public using the surgery or damage to their property. Typical levels of cover under this heading are in the region of £2 million;

Loss of income/business disruption – most surgery insurance policies also include compensation for any loss of income or disruption to the surgery’s business following any insured event or incident. A typical level of cover under this heading is a maximum of £500,000, over a two-year period.

Professional indemnity – although this is cover for the professionals working within it, rather than surgery insurance per se, many insurers will also offer professional indemnity and medical malpractice cover to indemnify the professional consultants against claims of negligence or medical malpractice.