Professional Indemnity Insurance for Nursing

Even the best nurses can make mistakes. Working long hours in high-stress, emotionally demanding environments increases the likelihood of human error. If an error in your care harms a patient, you could face disciplinary proceedings or legal action.

Professional indemnity insurance (PII) can cover your legal defence costs, court compensation, and civil liability claims, helping protect your career and personal finances.

Why do nurses need indemnity insurance?

The nursing industry features a diverse mix of working situations. For example there are entire nursing teams in hospitals as well as personal carers in homes and more. Regardless of where the nursing care takes place however, there's a genuine possibility of making errors. This includes:

• Administering the wrong medication to a patient
• Failing to carry out instructions properly to care for a patient
• Being wrongfully accused of unprofessional conduct either while performing clinical duties or administration work
• Giving incorrect advice to a patient
• Applying or removing dressings negligently, resulting in damage or injury to a patient
• Making a mistake or error in judgement due to being overworked

Professional indemnity insurance (PII) is designed to protect you in the event where you make a mistake and are sued. Although you take care to ensure these situations don't happen, PII will give you peace of mind knowing you're covered - just in case.

Is indemnity cover not already included?

You may be offered some level of cover under your employer's professional indemnity policy, but it's also a good idea to compare cover options for yourself. Some professional associations offer professional indemnity cover to members. You can also take out a policy from an insurance provider.

Professional indemnity insurance offers financial protection against the many risks nurses face, ensuring they can simply perform their vital jobs without having to worry about the damage their finances and careers would suffer if something went wrong.

Who needs nursing professional indemnity insurance?

All registered nurses, enrolled nurses and nurse practitioners must have appropriate professional indemnity insurance to practice in Australia. Under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, nurses and midwives must not practise the profession unless they are covered by professional indemnity insurance arrangements.

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) outlines the minimum requirements for nurses in its registration standards.

To meet the standard, your professional indemnity insurance must:

• Cover all aspects of your practice, including any advanced practice roles or specialised services you provide
• Include appropriate run-off cover to protect you against claims that might arise after you retire or stop practising
• Provide cover that is appropriate to the risks of your particular practice

Cover isn't mandatory if you're currently studying nursing or midwifery, or if you have a non-practising registration.

How does it protect nurses?

Professional indemnity insurance protects you if a patient, client, or employer makes a formal claim alleging an error, omission, or breach of professional duty in your care.

Professional indemnity insurance can help pay your legal costs, compensate you for your time if you are summoned to court, and pay compensation costs associated with being:

• Sued for malpractice or negligence. Such as from administering the wrong medication to a patient, giving incorrect advice to a patient, or applying or removing dressings negligently and injuring a patient.
• Sued for breaching intellectual property rights.
• Sued for defamation. This only applies if the defamation or libel claim is somehow connected with your work.
• Called before the Coroner. As a medical professional dealing with living patients, this is a real possibility.
• Accused of dishonesty. Such as if you're accused of theft or fraud.
• Accused of breaching privacy. Such as if you share patient notes or other confidential info.

How much professional indemnity cover do you need as a nurse?

According to the NMBA, you need to ensure you have "appropriate" cover for your specific scope of practice. What is considered appropriate varies depending on your practice setting, patient acuity, and clinical role.

Most standard individual nurse policies provide cover limits starting from $10 million or $20 million in aggregate, which satisfies NMBA registration guidelines.

You can expect this to cover $10 million per claim, with most policies capping payments at a certain level. Make sure it covers both:

• Claims made. This covers you against claims made while you're practising.
• Run-off. This protects you from claims after you've stopped practising.

If you have stopped practicing, you should still retain a decent level of run-off cover in case a claim is made against you by someone you've treated in the past.

What happens if you don't have an appropriate level of cover?

If you practice without adequate PII:

• You are in breach of the National Law and may face disciplinary action by the NMBA.
• You could lose your registration or face sanctions and fines.
• You'll be personally liable for any compensation, damages, and legal costs awarded against you.

No matter which option you choose, be sure to review and compare your options. If you have any doubts, reach out to the insurer, an adviser, your employer or association and check that you're making the right decision.

How long do you need cover?

If you're an enrolled nurse, midwife, nurse practitioner or registered nurse, you'll need to have an appropriate and adequate level of cover for as long as you are practising. If you're not practising but are registered, you won't need to have PII arrangements for that period.

However, once you do decide to stop practising, you'll need to make sure you have an appropriate level of run-off cover, so that you're protected from claims that arise from your actions at a later date.

What other insurance should I consider?

While PII is mandatory to practice as a nurse, there are two other forms of insurance that you should consider in your profession:

Insurance requirements

FAQs

• Is professional indemnity insurance mandatory for nurses in Australia?

  Yes. Under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, all registered nurses, enrolled nurses and nurse practitioners in Australia must hold appropriate professional indemnity insurance arrangements in order to practice.

• Does my hospital or clinic employer cover me for professional indemnity?

  Most public hospitals and private health facilities provide vicarious liability cover for their employed nurses while performing work on-site. However, employer policies might not cover you for disciplinary hearings before the NMBA, coroner's court appearances, or any independent advice or care you provide outside work hours.

• What is run-off cover and why do nurses need it?

  Run-off cover protects you from malpractice or negligence claims that are filed after you have retired, taken parental leave, or left the nursing profession for incidents that occurred while you were practising. Because professional indemnity operates on a 'claims-made' basis, you must have active run-off cover when the claim is lodged.

• Can nursing students get professional indemnity insurance?

  Students enrolled in an approved nursing or midwifery program are typically covered by their university or educational institution's policy during clinical placements, so standalone PII is generally not required until applying for registration.

Written by

Gary Ross Hunter

Journalist

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Gary Ross Hunter has over 6 years of expertise writing about insurance, including life, health, home, and car insurance. Having reviewed hundreds of product disclosure statements and published over 800 articles, he loves simplifying complex insurance topics for everyday readers. Gary has contributed to major outlets like Yahoo Finance, The Sydney Morning Herald, and news.com.au, and holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in English Literature from the University of Glasgow, along with a Tier 2 General Advice certification, ensuring his work adheres to ASIC’s RG146 standards. See full bio

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