Medical Indemnity Insurance for Doctors in Private Practice

Yes. Once you enter private practice, you are personally responsible for your clinical decisions, advice and treatment. Employer or hospital-based cover often does not extend to private practice work, making separate medical indemnity insurance essential to protect you against complaints, claims and investigations.

Yes. Tego’s medical indemnity policies are designed to respond to patient complaints, AHPRA notifications, regulatory investigations and related medico-legal matters, with access to experienced medico-legal advisers for guidance and support.

Yes. Tego offers discounted premiums for doctors entering private practice, designed to support the transition period following fellowship. Discounts are structured to reflect early-career risk profiles and typically adjust as your practice, billings and scope of work grow.

The cost of medical indemnity insurance in Australia varies depending on several key factors:

• Specialty and risk profile
• Annual billings
• Claims history
• Scope of procedures performed
• Public vs private practice mix
• Location and jurisdiction

Indicative ranges:

• Low-risk non-procedural specialists may pay from a few thousand dollars per year.
• Higher-risk procedural specialties (e.g. surgery, obstetrics) can pay significantly more.

Insurers typically rate based on billing bands and specialty risk categories. It is important to compare like-for-like policy limits and ensure retroactive cover is maintained.

Yes. Tego regularly insures doctors who work across both public and private settings. Cover can be structured to reflect mixed practice arrangements, ensuring personal protection across all declared professional activities.

Medical indemnity insurance is a specialised form of professional indemnity insurance designed specifically for doctors and healthcare practitioners.

It provides:

• Legal defence costs
• Compensation payments and settlements
• Regulatory investigation support (e.g. AHPRA notifications)
• Coronial inquest representation
• Civil liability protection

Unlike general professional indemnity insurance, medical indemnity policies are tailored to clinical risk, billing levels, scope of practice and specialty exposure.

In Australia, medical indemnity insurance is mandatory for registered doctors.

Pricing varies by specialty, risk profile, claims history, hours worked, and procedures performed. Premiums are calculated individually for Australian doctors and practice settings.

Check policy wording, exclusions, retroactive cover, run-off terms, claim support, limits, sub-limits, excesses, and the insurer’s claims expertise with your specialty.

The right cover aligns with your specialty, practice setting, limit requirements, retroactive date, and need for run-off or entity extensions.