Why Dental Practice Owners Need Entity Cover
Many dental practice owners assume that if each dentist or clinician working at the practice has their own indemnity cover, the practice itself is protected. Unfortunately, that is not always the case.
Under established legal principles, a practice owner—or any legal entity providing dentistry, whether a sole principal, partnership, LLP, or limited company—can be held legally responsible for negligent treatment carried out by associates, hygienists, therapists, trainees, and other employees.
There are two separate legal routes by which a claim can be brought against a dental practice.
Vicarious Liability
Vicarious liability arises from the relationship between the practice and the treating clinician.
Even where clinicians are self-employed associates, courts may decide that the relationship is sufficiently similar to employment for the practice to be liable for their actions. This is particularly likely where the clinician works under the practice brand, uses its premises and staff, and is presented to patients as part of the practice.
Non-Delegable Duty of Care
When a patient attends a dental practice, the law recognises that the practice owner or entity owes that patient a duty of care. This duty cannot be delegated to another clinician.
In practical terms, even if an associate dentist provides the treatment, the practice may still be liable if that treatment is negligent. The patient has trusted the practice to provide safe and competent care, and the practice cannot avoid responsibility simply because another clinician carried out the work.
Separate Legal Concepts, Same Financial Risk
Non-delegable duty of care and vicarious liability are distinct legal principles, but both can lead to the same result: the practice owner, partners, or company directors may be sued for treatment they did not personally provide.
Dentist trainers and mentors may also face vicarious liability for treatment carried out by their trainees.
The Real Issue: Appropriate Cover
The legal position is well established. The key question for practice owners is whether they have insurance/indemnity that specifically covers these risks.
Practices should look for entity cover that includes:
- Protection for the practice, principals, partners, and directors
- Cover for historic treatment through a prior acts clause
- Loss occurring protection, rather than claims-made cover (What does this mean – no future run-off costs for each practice disposal and ultimately retirement)
- Without suitable insurance, practice owners may face significant uninsured liabilities arising from the actions of associates and other clinicians.
How TDS Can Help
The policy introduced by TDS is designed to address this exposure by providing guaranteed entity cover, including prior acts protection, on a loss occurring basis.
Conclusion
Dental practice owners can be held liable for negligent treatment provided by others working within their practice, regardless of whether those clinicians are employees or self-employed associates.
That means the focus should not only be on whether individual clinicians have indemnity cover, but whether the practice itself has robust entity protection in place. In today’s legal environment, comprehensive entity cover is an essential part of managing risk.
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