Surgery & Practice Insurance UK 2026

Key takeaway: Surgery insurance protects the practice as a business: the building, contents, medical equipment, drug and vaccine stock, lost income after damage, and liability to staff and visitors. It does not replace clinical indemnity. GPs, dentists and vets each have separate indemnity rules, and employers’ liability cover of at least £5 million is a legal requirement if you employ staff.

How we research this page: We don’t sell insurance, give advice or rate providers. This page summarises published policy details from insurers and brokers including NFU Mutual, Wesleyan, Howden, Everywhen, Lloyd & Whyte, the NPA and Lloyds Bank, plus official guidance from GOV.UK, NHS Resolution, the General Dental Council and the RCVS, checked October 2026. Policy limits change, so treat the figures as examples, not a quote. CoverMap may earn commission from some links; see our Advertiser Disclosure.

What is surgery insurance?

Surgery insurance is a business insurance package for healthcare premises. It bundles the covers a practice needs to keep running after a fire, flood, break-in or accident: property cover for the building and contents, business interruption, and liability cover for employees and members of the public.

It is sometimes called medical practice insurance, GP surgery insurance, dental practice insurance or veterinary practice insurance. The core idea is the same. What changes is the equipment, the stock and the risks that come with each type of practice.

Who is surgery insurance for?

Insurers draw the line in different places. Here is how some of them describe who their surgery or practice policies are for:

Quotezone’s surgery insurance page names medical surgeries, dental surgeries and cosmetic surgeries, with a related link for GP surgeries. It mentions buildings and contents, damage to the surgery, accidents on premises, claims against the practice and professional indemnity (updated March 2026).
Lloyds Bank’s surgeries insurance, arranged through Arthur J. Gallagher, lists osteopaths, chiropractors, homoeopaths, physiotherapists, dentists, doctors, psychiatrists, acupuncturists and veterinary practices.
NFU Mutual’s surgery brochure (July 2026) is aimed at doctor, dentist or vet practices.
Howden’s surgery insurance targets GP practices and private medical practices (updated January 2026).
Pharmacies can use separate pharmacy products, such as the NPA’s Pharmacover.

If you run a physiotherapy clinic, osteopathy practice or similar, check that the policy wording names your profession.

What does surgery insurance cover?

Policies are built from sections. Some are standard and some are optional. The table shows how published policies handle the main ones.

Cover	What it does	Published examples
Buildings	Rebuild or repair the premises if you own them or your lease makes you responsible	Optional with NFU Mutual and Howden; included in Lloyds Bank’s list
Contents and stock	Furniture, fittings, stock and general contents	Core section with NFU Mutual; accidental damage with Wesleyan
Medical equipment	Specialist kit, on and off site	Howden covers medical bags and equipment on and off site; Wesleyan includes equipment breakdown
Business interruption	Lost income and extra costs while you can’t trade normally	£1.5m standard (NFU Mutual); up to 24 months (Wesleyan)
Employers’ liability	Claims from staff injured or made ill at work	£10m with NFU Mutual, Wesleyan, Howden, Everywhen and the NPA
Public liability	Injury or property damage claims from patients and visitors	£2.5m (NFU Mutual); £5m (Howden, Everywhen); up to £10m (Wesleyan)
Money	Cash on the premises or in transit	Up to £5,000 with malicious attack (NFU Mutual); included by the NPA
Glass	Broken windows and shopfronts	Unlimited, with 24-hour glaziers (NPA Pharmacover)
Computer and cyber	Computer equipment and cyber incidents	Optional computer cover (Howden); cyber excluded by Wesleyan and sold separately
Legal expenses	Employment, contract and tax disputes	Up to £50,000 (Wesleyan); optional with NFU Mutual

Source: NFU Mutual surgery brochure (July 2026), Wesleyan, Howden (January 2026), Everywhen, NPA Pharmacover and Lloyds Bank product pages, checked October 2026.

Other sections you may see include fidelity guarantee for employee dishonesty (Howden), environmental liability (£1m standard with NFU Mutual), terrorism, flood and subsidence. Wesleyan lists war, nuclear risks, pandemics and wear and tear among its exclusions.

If you are unsure whether the building is your responsibility or your landlord’s, our guide to buildings vs contents insurance explains the difference. If you own the premises and let part of it out, landlord insurance covers a different set of risks.

Is surgery insurance a legal requirement?

Most of a surgery policy is optional by law. The one part the law requires is employers’ liability insurance if you employ staff.

According to GOV.UK (updated October 2026):

The policy must cover you for at least £5 million.
It must come from an authorised insurer. You can check this on the Financial Conduct Authority register.
You can be fined £2,500 for every day you are not properly insured.
You can be fined £1,000 if you do not display your certificate or produce it when asked.
You don’t need it if your only employee is a close family member, or someone based outside England, Scotland and Wales.

Most surgery policies go well above the legal minimum. Lloyds Bank describes £5m as the legal minimum and £10m as the industry standard.

Surgery insurance vs clinical indemnity

This is the most important distinction to understand. Surgery insurance covers the practice as a building and a business. Clinical indemnity, sometimes called medical malpractice cover, protects you against claims that your treatment or advice harmed a patient. One does not replace the other.

Some surgery policies make this explicit. Everywhen’s veterinary practice FAQ says: “No, your policy does not provide cover for professional negligence.” Lloyds Bank lists medical malpractice as an optional add-on, not a standard part of the policy.

Each profession has its own indemnity rules:

Profession	Clinical indemnity rule	Who sets it
GP practices (England)	The Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice (CNSGP) has covered NHS services since 1 April 2019. It is centrally funded and automatic. Private work, insurance reports, inquests, complaints without a compensation claim, regulatory proceedings and employment disputes are excluded, so you need an MDO or other indemnity for those.	NHS Resolution
Dental practices	GDC guidance (last updated September 2019) says dental professionals are required by law to have appropriate indemnity or insurance before they practise, under the GDC (Indemnity Arrangements) Rules 2015. It must suit the work being done.	General Dental Council
Veterinary practices	Clause 3.4 of the RCVS Code says vets must ensure all their professional activities are covered by professional indemnity insurance or equivalent arrangements.	Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons

Source: NHS Resolution CNSGP announcement (April 2019) and FAQs; GDC indemnity guidance (last updated September 2019); RCVS Code of Professional Conduct, checked October 2026.

CNSGP covers everyone working in general practice on NHS services, including salaried GPs, locums, trainees, nurses, clinical pharmacists, agency workers and other practice staff, according to NHS Resolution. It applies in England only. It is a clinical negligence scheme, separate from premises insurance.

Medical equipment and drug stock

Several specialist surgery policies have dedicated sections for medical equipment and for drugs and vaccines.

Specialist equipment

Howden’s surgery policy covers medical bags and medical equipment both on and off site. Wesleyan includes equipment breakdown for specialist medical equipment, lifts and escalators. Everywhen covers veterinary equipment on and off site and breakdown of pressurised equipment. Howden’s dental page says its limits can accommodate high-value machinery used inside and away from the practice (page dated May 2024).

Refrigerated drugs and vaccines

Several of the policies we checked include some cover for drugs and vaccines spoiled by a change in temperature. Published limits vary widely:

NFU Mutual: temperature damage to stock, drugs and medicines in a fridge or freezer up to £1,500 as standard. An optional deterioration of stock add-on covers failure of the refrigeration system and up to £25,000 for cleaning and decontaminating units.
Wesleyan: refrigerated drugs and vaccines up to £50,000 at a single location.
Everywhen (vets): refrigerated and non-refrigerated drugs at £5,000 per fridge, with a £30,000 total limit.

Compare the per-fridge and total limits against the value of stock you actually hold.

How much does surgery insurance cost?

None of the insurers or brokers we checked publish a price for surgery or practice insurance. Quotezone, Howden, Wesleyan, NFU Mutual, Lloyds Bank, Everywhen, Lloyd & Whyte and the NPA all quote individually. The cost depends on your practice.

How to compare surgery insurance

Check your profession is named. Make sure the policy wording covers your type of practice, whether that is GP, dental, vet, physio or pharmacy.
Work out who insures the building. Check your lease to see whether you need buildings cover or contents only.
Value equipment and stock properly. Lloyd & Whyte offers a contents calculator for vet practices.
Compare liability limits. Public liability ranges from £2.5m to £10m in the policies above. Employers’ liability must be at least £5m by law.
Check fridge cover. Look at the per-fridge limit, the total limit and whether breakdown is covered or only temperature change.
Look at business interruption. Check the limit and the indemnity period. Lloyd & Whyte, for example, mentions an Emergency Mobile Vet Clinic service if premises become unusable.
Ask about cyber. Lloyd & Whyte lists cyber liability in its vet practice cover. Wesleyan excludes cyber breaches and points to separate cover.
Keep indemnity separate. Confirm your clinical indemnity is in place through CNSGP, an MDO or your professional insurer, as surgery insurance won’t fill that gap.

For other business and property covers, see our insurance guides.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does surgery insurance cover?

Typically buildings (optional if you rent), contents and stock, medical equipment, business interruption, employers' and public liability, and refrigerated drugs. Money, glass, legal expenses, computer and terrorism cover may be included or optional, depending on the insurer.

Is surgery insurance a legal requirement?

Only the employers' liability part is compulsory if you employ staff. GOV.UK says it must cover at least £5 million, and you can be fined £2,500 for every day you are not properly insured.

Does surgery insurance include professional indemnity?

Usually not as standard. Everywhen's vet policy says it does not cover professional negligence, and Lloyds Bank lists medical malpractice as an optional add-on. GPs, dentists and vets each have separate indemnity rules.

Does CNSGP cover my GP surgery building?

No. CNSGP, launched on 1 April 2019, is a clinical negligence scheme for NHS services in England, separate from premises insurance. It excludes privately funded work and other activities, for which NHS Resolution says practitioners need an MDO or other indemnity.

Is vaccine fridge failure covered?

Many surgery policies include refrigerated drugs cover, but limits vary. NFU Mutual covers temperature damage up to £1,500 as standard, Wesleyan up to £50,000 per location, and Everywhen £5,000 per fridge for vets.

How much does surgery insurance cost?

Insurers and brokers we checked don't publish prices; they quote individually, and costs depend on your practice.

Does surgery insurance cover dental and vet practices?

Many policies do. NFU Mutual's surgery cover is for doctor, dentist or vet practices, and Lloyds Bank's includes dentists, vets, physiotherapists and others. Some insurers also sell dedicated dental or vet practice policies.

Sources

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