As the NHS sub-contracts more clinical and non-clinical services to private providers, it has become even more important for there to be careful consideration of the contractual arrangements between these parties, particularly relating to indemnity, limitations on liability, scope of services / clarity of obligations, termination and extension provisions and performance management / KPIs.

We have dealt with numerous claims made against the NHS, in which the documentary evidence as to where responsibility lies is either unavailable or unclear. For the NHS this can result in liability exposure, reputational considerations and costs (sometimes into the hundreds of thousands and millions), which could have otherwise been avoided had clear contracts with robust indemnity arrangements been in place between the NHS and private provider.