Discretion

Your MPS membership does not come with a policy document setting out exactly what you can and can’t claim for, and in what circumstances exclusions may apply. What you do get is a copy of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, which sets out the objectives of the Society and how it is to be run. It specifies that the benefits of membership are to be granted at the discretion of MPS Council.

Discretion allows maximum flexibility, and is a powerful tool as threats to a member’s professional character, interests or affairs may manifest in many different ways, from clinical negligence claims to disciplinary proceedings. Over time, new threats may emerge, or existing threats may become more likely. As it is not restricted by exclusion clauses invariably found in insurance contracts, discretionary indemnity allows us to accommodate the real needs of members.

Advances in clinical practice, changing social expectations and political agendas all influence the medicolegal environment to varying degrees, and your indemnity arrangements need to be both robust enough to accommodate escalating costs and flexible enough to adjust to new and unusual demands. MPS discretionary indemnity fulfils just such a need. Because we are not confined by the fixed and rigid terms and conditions of insurance contracts, there have been numerous instances when we have exercised our discretion and assisted members with out-of-the-ordinary problems or responded quickly to emerging issues.

We believe that occurrence-based, discretionary indemnity protection offers members the best possible professional protection, and therefore the greatest peace of mind. It allows us to exercise our discretion to assist members with problems that may not have been foreseen – and therefore not included in a contract of insurance – at the time of an incident.