FCA authorised · FRN 724952 0117 325 0027Quote & buy →
Aipedia: Doctors and medical practices
The reporting clinician remains responsible for the report, whether they agree or disagree with an AI flag. A missed finding on an AI-assisted read is usually claimed against the trust under CNST, or against the doctor's own cover for private work.
Part of: AI in doctors and medical practices
In short
Radiologists and other reporting clinicians use AI to prioritise worklists, flag possible fractures, nodules or bleeds, and act as a second reader on X-ray, CT and stroke imaging. These tools are usually medical devices regulated by the MHRA. The GMC expects professional judgement and competence, and GMP para 73 requires reporting adverse incidents involving software. Claims for missed findings in NHS trusts are usually handled under CNST. In private or teleradiology work, the clinician's own indemnity responds, and one defence organisation's help for AI requires that a human remains the decision maker.
AI image tools typically do one of three jobs. Triage tools reorder the reporting list so studies with a suspected urgent finding, such as an intracranial bleed on CT, are read first. Detection tools mark possible abnormalities, such as a fracture or lung nodule, on the image. Second-read tools compare their analysis with the human report and flag disagreements. In stroke pathways, AI may help identify patients who need rapid transfer.
Where you agree with an AI flag, you adopt its finding; the report is yours. Where you disagree, record why, especially if you dismiss a flagged abnormality. The harder case is the AI that says nothing. A triage tool that fails to prioritise a study can delay reporting, and a clean AI read can lower the reporter's guard. Neither shifts the standard of care: the question is whether a reasonably competent reporter would have seen the finding.
Departments also need to think about the system around the tool. If the AI is switched off, updated or retrained, reporters should know, because its sensitivity may change. The MHRA plans draft guidance on managing change in AI devices by December 2026. Where AI informs a result that is shared with the patient, the GMC expects doctors to be able to explain its role and limitations. Doctors in GMC research also warned of deskilling, so keeping independent reading skills current is part of the competence duty.
Illustrative scenario: a chest X-ray is routed as routine because the triage tool does not flag it. Days later a reporter reads it alongside a detection overlay showing no marks, and misses a small lesion visible on review. A later scan shows progression. The patient alleges delayed diagnosis against the trust, and the reporter is asked to explain their reliance on the AI.
In NHS trusts, clinical negligence claims, including those involving employed radiologists, are usually handled under CNST, which covers all trusts in England and independent providers of NHS care that have joined. Private reporting, independent teleradiology and private hospital work fall outside NHS indemnity, so the doctor's defence organisation or medical malpractice policy usually responds, subject to the terms. One defence organisation's published position offers AI assistance only where a human remains the decision maker and excludes fully autonomous systems, system defects and product liability. Where a tool reports without human review, cover may not respond. The trust may look to the supplier under contract, which Rec 28 of the government response is examining. See medical technology insurance for the supplier side.
See also AI decision support, CNST, CNSGP and AI, does medical indemnity cover AI and the doctors AI hub.
Apex arranges indemnity for doctors and clinics, including private work outside NHS schemes. A broker reviews your cover for private and teleradiology reporting and how it treats AI-assisted reads; see does PI cover AI mistakes.
You may be. The report is yours, and the test is usually whether a reasonably competent reporter would have made the same finding. Agreeing with AI does not lower that standard, so record what you reviewed and why you reached your conclusion.
CNST usually covers clinical negligence claims arising from NHS care in member trusts, whatever tools were used, subject to the scheme rules. It does not cover private reporting or work outside NHS care, which needs your own indemnity.
GMP para 73 requires doctors to report adverse incidents involving medical devices, including software and digital tools. The government response to the National Commission also frames reporting product problems as part of a professional's duty of care.
Tell us about your practice and the work you do. A broker will review how your current cover treats AI-assisted work, or arrange new cover. No fee for a quote. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Start an indemnity quote Request a callbackApex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information about how AI is used in the profession and how insurance may respond. It is not legal, regulatory or insurance advice on your circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
