Absence Insurance can cover your locum insurance needs and more.

Absence Insurance is an annually renewable policy, offered by Practice Cover and underwritten by Alpha Underwriting. It is designed to meet locum and other costs if a practitioner cannot work due to illness or an accident.

We will provide any information you need to help you make up your own mind about the cover you want. We will not, however, provide advice or recommendations.

Practice Cover's Absence Insurance has been designed for the following people:

• GPs, whether practice partners or salaried GPs, including single-handers
• Dentists
• Vets
• Opticians
• Allied Health Professionals
• Practice staff e.g. nurses, HCAs and practice managers in any of the above types of practice

The policy can be taken out by either:

• the practice, with premiums being paid by the practice, in which case the practice will be the policyholder.
• an individual, with premiums, generally, being paid by the individual. In this case, the individual would be the policyholder.

You need to ensure that the sum insured you choose for each person is enough to pay for a locum (or to reimburse colleagues who may provide cover), less any sums you may receive from other sources eg from the Primary Care Trust.

Absence Insurance will cover you, worldwide*, for absence from work due to accident and illness. Depending on the cover you select, you may also be covered if you are summoned for jury service, suspended from practising, take maternity, paternity or adoption leave, are infected by HIV via a needlestick injury in the course of your work and a number of other eventualities.

Full details of the cover are contained in the Policy Document

*with the exception of Afghanistan, Chechnya, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Israel (Gaza and West Bank only) and Somalia

The full range of exclusions is shown in the Policy Document, available on request.

In summary, they are:

• Aeronautics, mountaineering, rock climbing, boxing, bungee jumping and certain other specified hazardous pursuits
• Racing
• Participating in professional sports
• self-inflicted injury
• criminal acts,
• war, terrorism
• being under the influence of alcohol, drugs or solvents
• radioactive contamination
• HIV/AIDS, venereal disease

Please note that you may also be covered if you are infected by HIV via a needlestick injury or assault in the course of your work.

The Benefit Period is the maximum period for which the weekly sum insured will be payable, after expiry of the deferment period. It is generally 52 weeks but you can select a shorter period if required e.g. 13, 26 or 39 weeks. The shorter the Benefit Period, the lower the premium.

In the case of a claim for illness or accident, the Sum Insured will be paid for as long as the insured person remains temporarily totally unable to work, up to a maximum of 52 weeks, or less, if you have requested a shorter Benefit Period. Payments will commence after the end of the deferment period.

The deferment period is the initial period, after the illness or accident, during which the sum insured will not be paid. The deferment period is selected by you when you take out the policy. The longer the deferment period, the lower your premium will be.

We recognise that it is not always possible to find a locum to cover when someone is unable to work. If this is the case, or if you would prefer to arrange for colleagues to provide cover, Absence Insurance will pay the weekly Sum Insured for the Benefit Period (after expiry of the deferment period) or until the person returns to work, if sooner.

The duration of the cover is 12 months. This means that, shortly before the end of the year, we will contact you to ask you whether you would like to renew your cover and we will tell you what the premium and terms will be for the forthcoming year.

We can insure people from 18 to 70 attained. Those aged over 70 require special consideration by our underwriters.

You may be eligible for tax relief on the premiums as a business expense of the practice - please consult your tax adviser or your Tax Inspector.

The premium can be paid:

• In full, by BACS
• In full, by cheque
• In 10 monthly instalments, subject to a credit charge.

IPT is a tax on the premium you pay for all general insurance policies where the risk is located in the UK. This includes Locum Insurance as well as motor, household, travel and other protection cover. IPT is automatically included in the premium we quote.

The first stage is to get a quote. You can have as many quotes as you like and, once you have one that suits your requirements, you will need to complete a proposal form (one per person). Or you can give us a call and we'll do this over the phone for you.

We are generally able to set up your cover the same day, if that's what you need.

Please let us know as soon as possible if you think you may need to claim by contacting enquiries@practicecover.co.uk or calling us on 023 8051 3286, giving us your policy number. We will ask you to complete a claim form which we will then send to the underwriters for assessment of your claim.