Triage · managing test results · practice organisation
Professional indemnity – GP practice
In a GP practice, harm rarely arises from one wrong decision. It arises from a test result no one followed up, a call-back request that disappeared or a triage that came out too low.
- Several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Beroepsaansprakelijkheid – Huisartsenpraktijk.
The calculator and the quote form below are in Dutch. Prefer to do this in English? Email info@finassverzekert. nl or call 072 - 509 24 56 and we will take it from there.
Work out for yourself what it would cost.
Enter your details; you will receive a proposal within one working day.
- We compare the offerings of several insurers
- An adviser checks whether the cover suits your activities
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
The practice is liable for mistakes by its staff under Article 6:170 of the Dutch Civil Code, and towards the patient often also for locums working under its name. Unlike for a locum working alone, a practice's risk lies in its organisation: telephone triage by the assistant, the repeat prescription line, following up laboratory results and specialists' letters, and the handover between the daytime practice and the out-of-hours service.
In law that is simply a failure to perform the treatment agreement. Article 7:453 of the Dutch Civil Code requires the care of a good care provider, and that includes a way of working in which results are demonstrably seen and dealt with. Article 7:454 of the Dutch Civil Code requires records to be kept. In practice a claim about a missed follow-up is decided by what is and is not in the GP information system.
Alongside the professional cover, the practice needs AVB for injury and damage to property that has nothing to do with treatment: a patient who falls in the waiting room, water damage at the neighbours', injury caused by a defective examination couch under Article 6:173 of the Dutch Civil Code or by the building itself under Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code. The relationship between the two policies is set out on the hub page.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare professional indemnity insurance (BAV).
What a practice policy has to arrange
Four subjects on which practice policies differ from one another the most.
The group of insured persons
Practice owners, salaried GPs, doctor's assistants and practice nurses belong on the policy. Locums, self-employed GPs, medical students on placement and GP trainees are often not automatically included. Have the description set out word for word and update it as soon as the staffing changes. The patient claims against the practice, regardless of who saw him that day.
Triage and delegation
An assistant who assesses urgency too low on the telephone acts under your responsibility. Under reserved procedures under the Wet BIG it must be established that the instruction was clear and that competence was present. Record triage protocols, training and competence statements. That is both quality policy and evidence when a claim arises.
Wkkgz, complaints and the disputes body
You have a complaints officer and are affiliated to a disputes body that can award compensation. Report a dispute when the first letter arrives and not when the decision comes, otherwise the insurer can argue that it was unable to steer the matter. The Wkkgz (the Dutch healthcare quality, complaints and disputes act) also requires you to check on care providers before taking them on.
Three exclusions to read in advance
Outside the cover are: administrative fines from the Inspectorate or the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (the Dutch data protection authority), damage caused by intent or wilful recklessness under Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code, and claims already known when the policy came into force. Dispensing activities and supplying medicines yourself are usually not covered without a separate declaration.
What does your premium depend on?
- Number of registered patients: often the basis instead of turnover
- Number of GPs and support staff: including salaried GPs, somatic practice nurses and mental health practice nurses
- Range of procedures: minor surgery and invasive procedures are taken into account
- Dispensing practice or not: supplying medicines yourself is a separate risk
- Sum insured and excess: per claim and per insurance year
- Claims and complaints history: including current disputes before the disputes body
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV |
|---|---|---|
| An assistant assesses urgency too low on the telephone and the patient is seen too late | No | Yes |
| A specialist's letter is left in the record and the agreed follow-up is missed | No | Yes |
| The disputes body awards a patient compensation after a complaint about the practice | No | Provided that |
| A patient falls because the adjustable leg of the examination couch gives way | Yes | No |
| A vulnerability in the repeat prescription module makes patients' medication data visible | No | No |
| You supply medicines yourself without that activity having been declared and something goes wrong | No | No |
Report a dispute before the disputes body when the first letter arrives, not when the decision comes, otherwise the insurer can say that it was unable to steer the matter.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
A test result has come in but was not followed up. Is that insured?
Yes, this is a classic professional error within the practice organisation and it falls under professional liability cover, provided that cover includes injury arising from professional practice. The insurer will ask how your handling of results is organised and whether the protocol was followed. A system in which results are demonstrably signed off is the difference here between a defence and an admission.
We work with changing locums. How do we arrange that?
In two ways at once. Include in the locum agreement that the locum maintains their own professional indemnity insurance and ask for proof each year, and also have it recorded in your own policy whether locums count as insured persons. Without one of the two, the practice stands alone in a claim about a consultation it did not carry out itself.
Does a disciplinary complaint against one of our doctors fall under the practice policy?
In principle not. The disciplinary law in Article 47 of the Wet BIG is directed at the individual care provider and does not produce compensation. Defence costs are only covered if disciplinary law assistance is included as a separate section. Check whether that section is limited per care provider or per practice. This differs from insurer to insurer.
What if the GP information system goes down or data leaks?
That is not a liability claim but a cyber incident. Investigation, recovery, notification and liability towards patients belong on cyber insurance for GPs. If the practice has to close for days as a result, business interruption insurance covers the continuing costs. The duty of confidentiality in Article 7:457 of the Dutch Civil Code also continues to apply.
Read more
Within Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekeringthe main page
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering fysiotherapiepraktijk
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering huidtherapie praktijk
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering huisarts zzp
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering mondhygiene praktijk
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering chiropractie praktijk
- Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering tandartspraktijk
Similar pages
- Professional indemnity – Physiotherapy practice
- Professional indemnity – GP
- Professional indemnity – Skin therapy practice
- Professional indemnity – Physiotherapist
- Professional indemnity – Dental practice
- Professional indemnity insurance (BAV) for a chiropractic practice
- Professional indemnity insurance (BAV) for a self-employed practice nurse (POH)
- Professional indemnity insurance (BAV) for a dental hygiene practice