What Does Pharmacy Insurance Cover?

As a pharmacist, you need specialist insurance for your business. But what does pharmacy insurance actually cover, and how are you protected?

A pharmacy insurance policy will cover you for regulatory fines, stock and contents, cash and more. At a bare minimum, it should protect you against legal liability including third-party injury and damage to your pharmacy’s property.

Read on to find out the answers to these questions:

• What is pharmacy insurance?
• Am I covered if I dispense the wrong medicine?
• Is pharmacy cyber insurance included?

If you own a pharmacy then it’s important to ensure you have the right insurance cover in place to protect you, your chemist as well as your customers.

What is pharmacy insurance?

Pharmacy insurance is a specialist type of policy that caters for a variety of businesses in this sector, including chemist insurance and dispensary insurance. Pharmacy insurance is made up of protections which are tailored to the specific risks you face in your line of work, such as liability cover with property damage, legal assistance and much more.

Pharmacists are trained professionals who often operate in retail premises. This makes your pharmacy different from the other shops around you, and your business costs will be higher, especially for business interruption.

Not only that, but pharmacies are subject to specific regulations. By adding specific cover to your policy, you will be able to cover your defense costs if you are brought in front of the regulator in respect of your fitness to practice.

It’s important to be clear about what insurance you may need in the future, as well as your current needs. Pick up the phone and tell us about your pharmacy, and we’ll be happy to help.

Am I covered if I dispense the wrong medicine?

As long as you have professional indemnity cover on your policy (and you really should), yes, you will be covered. If you dispense the wrong medicine or dose, you will need to claim against this section of your policy.

Everybody makes mistakes, but in a pharmacist’s profession doing so comes with exceptionally high risks. That’s why being fully insured is so important.

Your retail insurance policy will also cover you for public and employers liability, which is essential for covering risks to your staff and to members of the public.

As for your stock and contents, including drugs kept in the fridge, cash both in the till and overnight in the safe, that will all have cover as well. During winter months, it’s likely that supplies will increase as the demand for cold and flu remedies rise. Speak to your insurer, and they may be able to allow for a seasonal increase in stock to put your mind at ease.

Is pharmacy cyber insurance included?

Not as standard, but it is becoming more common. As more pharmacies and other retailers move online, cyber insurance is more essential to protect your data and that of your customers.

Ask for pharmacy cyber liability cover when you take out your policy. This will cover you against data breaches and hacking by criminals. International gangs often target small to medium businesses, as they know their security defenses are weaker than larger organisations, yet they still hold valuable information.

As a pharmacist, you likely hold confidential medical information about your patients. Do not underestimate the seriousness of a leak occurring, as it’s possible that hundreds or thousands of people’s information, from their allergies to their credit card details, could be at risk. Blackmail, fraud, stalking – it all becomes possible when data is released to criminal networks.

Your pharmacy cyber insurance will cover the costs of investigating what went wrong, mitigating the damages, and preventing it from ever happening again. You will receive expert help while the data breach is ongoing, as well as aftercare if needed. Your insurer will also help you notify the data protection commissioner as well as affected parties.

Talk to our pharmacy insurance experts today!

If you have any questions regarding your pharmacy insurance and how best to protect your business. Call our experts today and they can help guide you through the different options to ensure your business, staff, and customers are all protected. We look forward to helping you today!