Medical professional indemnity in the United Kingdom is an arrangement rather than a single product. Registration requires clinicians to hold adequate and appropriate indemnity for their scope of practice, and in practice that is met by a combination of state backed NHS cover and something bought for private work.
What registration requires
An indemnity arrangement appropriate to the practice, as a condition of registration. The regulator does not prescribe a product and does not police the market; it requires the clinician to have made and checked the arrangement, which puts the judgement on the individual.
NHS and private work
NHS clinical work is generally covered by state backed schemes. Private practice is not, and it is the private list that usually needs an arrangement of its own. A clinician whose private work grows should revisit the arrangement rather than assume the original one still fits.
Insurance or a defence organisation
A contractual insurance policy with a limit and a claims made trigger, or membership of a defence organisation offering assistance that has historically been discretionary. Both are used widely. Knowing which you hold is the point, because they behave differently when a claim arrives.
Scope, which is what adequate means
Adequate is adequate for what you actually do. New procedures, aesthetic work, remote consultations and work in a new setting each change the scope. Notifying at the time rather than at renewal is what keeps the arrangement matched to the practice.
Questions people ask about medical professional indemnity insurance
Is medical indemnity compulsory?
An appropriate indemnity arrangement is a condition of registration, and the clinician is responsible for checking that it is appropriate.
Does NHS work need private cover?
NHS work is generally covered by state backed schemes. Private practice usually needs its own arrangement.
What happens if my scope changes?
The arrangement must follow. Notify at the time rather than at renewal, because cover written for the previous scope may not answer.