Compare dental practice insurance

A dental surgery needs cover for the building, its specialist equipment and the people who visit it. Practice insurance protects the business side, while each dentist also needs their own indemnity for clinical work.

Single surgeries and groups with several sites can compare dental practice insurance quotes from UK providers on Quotezone with one short form.

What does dental practice insurance cover?

A practice policy is built from sections that protect the business side of the surgery. The ones most practices consider are:

• Buildings: damage to a surgery you own caused by fire, flood or vandalism (business.gov.uk).
• Contents and equipment: chairs, X-ray units, scanners, sterilisers and computers (business.gov.uk).
• Business interruption: income lost while a covered event, such as a flood, keeps the surgery closed (business.gov.uk).
• Public liability: claims from patients and visitors for injuries not linked to treatment, such as a fall in reception.
• Employers’ liability: a legal requirement for practices with staff, worth £5 million or more (GOV.UK).
• Cyber: help after a data breach or hack, as practices hold patient records (business.gov.uk).

Equipment breakdown is often an extra. Ask whether it covers specialist kit and the cost of hiring a replacement while it is repaired.

Practice insurance and dental indemnity

Practice cover does not pay claims about clinical treatment. The GDC says the law requires every dental professional to hold suitable indemnity or insurance before treating patients (GDC).

Only a very small number of dental professionals, such as some in non-clinical roles, do not need it (GDC). Read more in the dental section of our professional indemnity insurance page.

Regulation that affects your cover

In England, the CQC regulates health and adult social care (CQC) and publishes guidance for dental services (CQC). Anyone providing regulated activity in England must be registered, or they commit an offence (CQC).

HSE lists X-ray devices used by dentists as work that needs registration (HSE). It says a dentist or dental practice using X-rays needs registration for radiation generators, not consent (HSE).

In England and Wales, whoever is responsible for the premises must also keep a fire risk assessment in place (GOV.UK). Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate rules.

Equipment breakdown and specialist kit

Dental chairs, imaging units and autoclaves are expensive and hard to replace quickly. Standard contents cover deals with theft, fire and accidental damage, but mechanical or electrical breakdown is usually a separate section.

If a key machine fails, ask whether the policy pays for hire of a replacement and for income lost while you wait. Keeping service records for each machine can help show it was looked after.

Patient data and cyber risk

Practices hold patient records, payment details and appointment systems. A ransomware attack or a lost laptop can stop bookings and lead to costs for notifying patients.

Cyber cover can pay for specialist help, restoring systems and some third-party claims. Check any conditions about backups and software updates.

Associates, rooms and shared premises

Many practices share a building with other clinics or let surgeries to associates. Make clear in writing who insures the building, the shared areas and each piece of equipment, and who pays if a shared waiting room is damaged.

If an associate brings their own scanner or loupes, the owner’s contents cover may not include them. Each party should check their own policy covers what they bring and where it is kept.

Who needs insurance for a dental surgery?

• practice owners and partners
• dentists who lease a surgery and own the equipment
• orthodontic and cosmetic dental clinics
• groups running several practices
• associates who rent a room and bring their own kit

Renting your surgery? Read the lease first, because business.gov.uk notes a lease can make buildings cover your job (business.gov.uk).

How are dental surgery premiums set?

Every practice is priced on its own risk, from the equipment it holds to the building it uses. Insurers usually look at:

• the cost of rebuilding the surgery, if you own it
• the value of chairs, X-ray and imaging equipment
• the number of surgeries and staff
• security, fire protection and flood risk
• claims you have made before

Insurance Premium Tax at 12%, the standard rate since 1 June 2017, is added to each premium (HMRC).

A two-surgery practice in leased premises

As an illustration, a two-surgery practice leases its building and owns its chairs, X-ray unit and scanner. The landlord insures the building, so the practice needs contents, equipment and business interruption cover.

A burst pipe that closes the surgery for two weeks could mean lost income and hire costs, which interruption cover is designed for. The practice also checks that its policy covers the cost of moving patients to another surgery while repairs are done.

Getting dental surgery quotes through Quotezone

Enter your premises and equipment values in one short form, then pick the covers you need. Each quote can then be weighed up on how it handles equipment breakdown and business interruption.

With your equipment values to hand, start a dental surgery quote on Quotezone.

You might also need

Practices that hold patient data may want cyber insurance. For other healthcare premises, see opticians insurance.