A landmark legal judgment has found for the first time that an NHS dental practice owner is directly responsible for the actions of an associate working under contract.
The judgment was ramifications for the entire NHS dental sector as, prior to the court case, practice owners could defend themselves from accusations of negligence by arguing that associates were self-employed independent contractors and were therefore individually responsible for their actions.
The court ruling means that NHS dental practice owners may need to consider ramping up their insurance cover to include ‘vicarious liability’ in order to protect themselves from negligence claims.
The case which led to the landmark judgment centred on the negligent treatment of a patient’s bridgework. Two of the three dentists allegedly responsible were no longer registered as dentists on the GDC register and were no longer resident in the UK. There was also no evidence of indemnity cover for any of the three associate dentists who treated the patient.
The patient’s lawyers sought compensation to pay for the cost of corrective treatment took the dental practice to court, successfully arguing vicarious liability and the non-delegable duty of care.
Although the ruling is not a binding precedent, lawyers believe this precedent could be ‘persuasive’ in similar negligence claims.
Dental practices are now being urged to review the level of insurance cover they have to ensure that they also cover for vicarious liabilities and non-delegable duty of care.
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