Employment law support and indemnity - explanatory notes

MDDUS provides assistance, advice and representation (together “employer support”) and access to indemnity (“employer indemnity”) to members of MDDUS and relevant partnerships (as defined) who are employers, on terms and conditions set out in full below:

• The “employer support and employer indemnity” covers legal liabilities, duties and obligations incurred by a member of MDDUS (or by a relevant partnership) as an employer, in the ordinary and usual course of practice of medicine or dentistry to any former or current employee of that member or relevant partnership.
• If you carry on your practice of medicine or dentistry as a sole practitioner then you, and if you carry on your practice of medicine or dentistry in partnership then you and each other partner in the partnership, must (a) be a member of MDDUS and (b) have subscribed to the “employer support and employer indemnity” (a partnership which meets this condition being a "relevant partnership").
• The liability of MDDUS to any practice (whether the employer is a sole practitioner or a relevant partnership) in respect of the employer support and employer indemnity in any subscription year is capped at £250,000 in aggregate. Subject to that aggregate financial cap on the “employer support and employer indemnity” no excess applies to the employer support and/or the employer indemnity.
• “Employer support and employer indemnity” will not cover or extend to any liability which arises out of a circumstance which occurred, or out of a series of circumstances which commenced, prior to MDDUS agreeing to provide the “employer support and employer indemnity” to the employer, and will not extend to any liability which arises out of a circumstance which occurred, or out of a series of circumstances which commenced, after the employer ceased to be entitled to the “employer support and the employer indemnity”. This means MDDUS will only support you in respect of problems that arise whilst you have a subscription to this product.
• The employer indemnity will not be available in respect of any circumstance or liability arising out of matters such as:
  - any change in the terms and conditions of employment of any employee; or
  - the disciplining of any employee; or
  - the termination of the employment for any reason of any employee; or
  - any other act or any failure to act, or any error or omission, in respect of any employee unless the employer of that employee has both (1) before changing the terms and conditions of employment or disciplining the employee or terminating the employment or otherwise acting or failing to act in respect of the employee, and before taking any steps to change the terms and conditions of employment, discipline the employee, terminate the employment or act or not to act, obtained advice (from an adviser nominated by MDDUS to give employment advice to that employer) that the employer is entitled lawfully to make the change and/or lawfully to discipline the employee and/or lawfully and fairly to terminate the employment and/or otherwise lawfully to act or fail to act in respect of the employee and (2) in making the change, taking the disciplinary action, terminating the employment or otherwise acting or failing to act, acted upon, followed and implemented that advice.
• The employer indemnity does not cover:
  - any remuneration (including any salary, wages, bonus, holiday pay, benefit in kind, pension contribution or pension payment), PAYE, income tax (whether payable by employer or employee) or national insurance contribution (whether payable by employer or employee)
  - any sick pay or any holiday pay
  - any redundancy payment (whether statutory, contractual, discretionary or otherwise)
  - any payment in lieu of notice
  - any interest, penalties or other charge in respect of the failure to make any payment on the due date
  - any liability in respect of the death of, or any actual or alleged injury to, any employee
  - a claim brought in the civil courts for personal injury claims, interdict or injunction and any claim for breach of statutory duty save those arising in connection with the employment relationship
  - any claim in the criminal courts
  - consequential loss and any liability for consequential loss
  - any settlement, compromise or other payment unless the amount and terms of the payment have been approved by or on behalf of MDDUS
  - any liability which an employer deliberately, knowingly or recklessly incurs.
• MDDUS may, at its discretion, reduce or cancel the “employer support and employer indemnity” provided by MDDUS to any employer if MDDUS is not satisfied that that employer has followed and is continuing to follow good employment practice.
• The “employer support and employer indemnity” will not cover or extend to any liability in respect of an employee or potential employee who is a Voting Member of MDDUS (as defined in the Articles of Association of MDDUS) or who is a doctor or dentist.
• MDDUS may at is discretion extend the employer indemnity, or waive any condition or limitation on the employer indemnity, provided by MDDUS to any employer.
• The employer must seek the advice of an advisor nominated by MDDUS as soon as reasonably practicable after the employer becomes aware of a relevant claim or potential relevant claim. An employer must act upon, follow and implement the advice of that advisor as to how to mitigate, resist, challenge, defend, arbitrate, mediate and/or settle the claim.