National Health Service (Liabilities to Third Parties Scheme) Regulations 1999
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1999/873 |
1999 No. 873
NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE, ENGLAND AND WALES
The National Health Service (Liabilities to Third Parties Scheme) Regulations 1999
Made 17th March 1999
Laid before Parliament 18th March 1999
Coming into force 1st April 1999
The Secretary of State for Health, in exercise of powers conferred by section 126(4) of the National Health Service Act 19771and section 21 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 19902and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, and with the consent of the Treasury, hereby makes the following Regulations:
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the National Health Service (Liabilities to Third Parties Scheme) Regulations 1999, and shall come into force on 1st April 1999.
(2) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires–
“the Act” means the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990;
“an eligible body” means a body of a kind described in regulation 3;
“member” means an eligible body which is a member of the Scheme;
“membership year” means, in relation to an eligible body, any period of 12 months beginning on 1st April during any part of which that body is a member of the Scheme;
“preceding year” means, in relation to a membership year, the period of 12 months immediately preceding that membership year;
“qualifying liability” means a liability of a kind described in regulation 4;
“relevant function” means the function of providing services in England for the purposes of the National Health Service Act 1977 or by virtue of section 7 of the Health and Medicines Act 19883or under paragraph 14 or 15 of Schedule 2 to the Act;
“the Scheme” means the Liabilities to Third Parties Scheme established by regulation 2.
(3) In these Regulations, a reference to a numbered regulation is a reference to the regulation which bears that number in these Regulations, and a reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph which bears that number in that regulation.
Establishment of scheme
2. There is hereby established a scheme, to be known as the Liabilities to Third Parties Scheme, whereby an eligible body may, in accordance with the following provisions of these Regulations, make provision to meet qualifying liabilities.
Eligible bodies
3. A body is eligible to participate in the Scheme if it is–
(a) a National Health Service trust,
(b) a Health Authority whose area is situated in England, or
(c) a Special Health Authority.
Liabilities to which the Scheme applies
4.—(1) The Scheme applies to any liability to any third party to which a member is subject in respect of loss, damage or injury which–
(a)
(a) arises out of the carrying out of any relevant function of that member;
(b)
(b) is a qualifying liability; and
(c)
(c) is not a qualifying liability for the purposes of the National Health Service (Clinical Negligence Scheme) Regulations 19964, the National Health Service (Existing Liabilities Scheme) Regulations 19965or a qualifying expense for the purposes of the National Health Service (Property Expenses Scheme) Regulations 19996.
(2) In this regulation–
“board member” means, in respect of a member, any member of the board of that member whether or not that person is an employee of that member;
“personal injury” includes bodily injury, death, disease, illness and nervous shock and is to be treated as including wrongful arrest, detention, imprisonment and malicious prosecution;
“relevant person” means, in respect of a member, a person employed or engaged by that member;
“qualifying liability” means, in respect of a member, a liability which falls within one or more of the following categories–
(i) a liability in respect of personal injury sustained by a relevant person arising out of and in the course of his or her employment or engagement by the member;
(ii) a liability in respect of or consequent upon personal injury or loss arising out of or in connection with any breach of a duty of care or breach of any statutory duty or breach of a duty under any of the Occupiers' Liability Act 19577, the Occupiers' Liability Act 19848or the Defective Premises Act 19729in each case owed by the member to any person in consequence of any act or omission to act on the part of any relevant person;
(iii) a contractual liability in respect of personal injury to any person or damage to any property of any third party;
(iv) a liability arising out of the act or omission to act on the part of a relevant person which is dishonest, fraudulent, criminal or malicious;
(v) a liability arising out of the making or publishing of any defamatory statement (whether in written or oral form) by the member or a relevant person;
(vi) a contractual liability to make payment to any relevant person in connection with any personal injury sustained by the relevant person directly as a result of assault;
(vii) any legally enforceable liability in respect of or consequent upon personal injury or loss arising out of or in connection with any tortious or other wrongful act committed by any relevant person;
(viii) a liability arising out of any indemnity properly given by any member to any board member;
(ix) any liability in respect of any consequential or ancillary expense which arises in connection with any liability referred to in any of the above categories.
(3) The Secretary of State and a member may agree–
(a)
(a) a minimum level of liability which must arise before a payment or other provision in respect of such a liability may be made under the Scheme; and
(b)
(b) an amount which is to be the maximum amount of any payment or other provision in respect of such a liability which may be made under the Scheme.
Administration of the Scheme
5. The Scheme shall be administered by the Secretary of State.
Membership of the Scheme
6.—(1) An eligible body which, before 31st March 1999, gave notice in writing to the Secretary of State of its wish to participate in the Scheme with effect from 1st April 1999, or such later date being not later than 31st March 2000 as the Secretary of State may determine, shall be a member of the Scheme with effect from 1st April 1999 or, as the case may be, such later date.
(2) An eligible body to which paragraph (1) does not apply which wishes to participate in the Scheme during any period beginning after 31st March 2000 shall apply to the Secretary of State to be admitted as a member.
(3) An application under paragraph (2) shall–
(a)
(a) be made in writing in such form as the Secretary of State may require; and
(b)
(b) be made no later than 1st October in the calendar year preceding that in which the eligible body wishes its first membership year to begin, or such later date as the Secretary of State may agree in relation to any specific eligible body.
(4) An applicant shall provide such information as the Secretary of State may in writing request it to provide, as respects–
(a)
(a) the nature of its relevant functions;
(b)
(b) the number of employees of the applicant who are engaged in its performance of any relevant function, or such part of any relevant function as the Secretary of State may specify, and the qualifications and experience of those employees;
(c)
(c) the nature and extent of any claims made against the applicant in respect of any qualifying liability arising from loss, damage or injury sustained by third parties as a result of the carrying out by the applicant of any relevant function; and
(d)
(d) such other information as he may request in connection with the application.
(5) The Secretary of State shall, having regard to the information provided by the applicant under this regulation, and to such other factors as he considers to be material to the application, determine whether or not the applicant should be admitted as a member, and shall notify the applicant of his decision in writing.
(6) Where the application of an eligible body under paragraph (2) has been successful, that body shall be admitted as a member with effect from the beginning of the membership year next following the Secretary of State’s decision.
(7) In this regulation “applicant” means an eligible body which has applied under paragraph (1) or (2) to be admitted as a member, and “application” shall be construed accordingly.
Termination of membership
7.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a member may terminate its participation in the Scheme on 31st March in any year by giving not less than 12 months' notice in writing to that effect to the Secretary of State.
(2) A member’s participation in the Scheme may not be terminated, by notice under paragraph (1)–
(a)
(a) where its membership takes effect on a date on or after 1st April 1999 and not later than 31st March 2000, before 31st March 2002; and
(b)
(b) in any other case, before the expiry of three consecutive membership years beginning on the date on which, by virtue of regulation 6(6), its membership takes effect.
(3) Where–
(a)
(a) any payment which a member is, by virtue of regulation 8 (contributions under the Scheme), liable to make to the Secretary of State has remained unpaid for a period of not less...
To continue reading
Request your trial