Locum Insurance

Safeguarding you against risks associated with absent staff

Howden is one of the UK’s leading insurance brokers in the healthcare sector and our team have many years’ experience of working with a wide range of care providers and insurance products.

Our team can advise you how locum insurance works alongside the NHS Sickness Reimbursement so you can make the right decision for your practice.

What is Locum insurance?

Having to cover the costs of a GP or staff member who is unable to work due to sickness can be very expensive.

Locum insurance, or staff absence insurance, is designed to cover the costs incurred by GP's being unexpectedly absent and therefore having to replace them with a locum doctor. You can also cover all other members of staff within the practice with different levels of this policy.

Practice staff who you can choose to be covered under a Locum policy include:

GP Partners
Salaried GP’s
Dispensers
Practice Manager/Managing Partner
Nurse Practitioner
Advanced Nurse Practitioner
Health Care Assistant
District Nurse
Care Navigator

Locum policy coverage:

Full stress/anxiety/depression cover
No exclusion for winter sports
Excess period/deferred period options of between 2 and 26 weeks
Option to guarantee terms of cover and premiums for up to 3 years (subject to additional charge and insurer consideration)
Phased return to work covered
Pregnancy related illness covered
Worldwide cover, 24 hours a day
Benefit based cover – pays your claims without having to prove you have incurred costs

Get the cover you need

Speak to our specialist advisors

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What to do if you are experiencing financial difficulties

We recognise that the current economic conditions are putting pressure on many households and businesses. At Howden, we are committed to finding ways to assist our customers who may require additional support during these times.

If you’re currently facing financial difficulty, please speak to us about your insurance policies by:-

-contacting your Howden Service Team;
-calling Howden on 020 7623 3806;
-using the Enquiry form.

The benefits of having Locum insurance with Howden

Absent staff can cause huge impact on your practice, both financially and operationally.
Howden's policy ensures that you get the right amount of protection to complement the NHS Sickness Reimbursement Scheme, whilst only paying for what you need. We also offer a Top-up Locum policy that our expert team can advise you on in the event that it could be valuable to your practice.

Top-up Locum Insurance

Changes to the GP Contract in 2017 now entitles practices to a Sickness Reimbursement payment for GPs. While the news of this change was certainly well received, the NHS Reimbursement is not ‘full-service’ and could leave your practice seriously out of pocket if you chose to rely on this exclusively.

If you are not sure if you need Top-Up Locum Insurance, our experienced, friendly team are happy to offer you advice.

The main points for consideration of a Top-up Locum insurance include:

Cover for any expenditure incurred due to Sickness Absence, which can include GPs and/or any Employed Staff, such as Managers, ANPs, Nurses, HCAs, Clerical & Administration Staff
Accidental Death Capital Payments of £50,000 per person
Expenditure due to Compassionate Leave
Expenditure due to Jury Service absence
Expenditure due to Suspension from Duty
Expenditure due to Delayed Return from Abroad
Full Stress/Anxiety/Depression cover
Option for cover that pays without the practice having to produce evidence of Locum costs incurred
Option to fix premium rates and underwriting terms for up to 36 months (subject to additional premium charge)

FAQs

Yes, you can. We understand that NHS reimbursement is not always enough to cover the full cost of Locum staff. Our expert team can help you to find suitable plan that fits with your requirements.

Depending on your practice structure, you can buy locum cover that includes absence protection for dispensers that work at your practice if you wish to.

Locum Insurance pays the practice owner. This policy can help to pay for the cost of hiring a locum to fill in for the sick or injured person, whilst income protection provides financial support to that individual.