Aipedia: Osteopaths and chiropractors

AI home exercise apps: what osteopaths and chiropractors need to know

Aipedia, by the Apex broking team · Last reviewed 2026-10-30

If you recommend or supply an AI exercise app, you are likely to share responsibility when a patient is hurt following it. The statutory indemnity rules for both professions require product liability cover, and the GCC says cover must extend to products you sell or recommend.

Part of: AI in osteopaths and chiropractors

In short

Some clinics may send patients home with an app that sets exercises, tracks adherence and adjusts the programme automatically. That can improve engagement, but the app may progress load without anyone checking, and patients follow it unsupervised. The GOsC says osteopaths remain responsible for AI use and must understand the tools they use. The GOsC and GCC indemnity rules both require public and product liability cover, and the GCC says chiropractors' cover must include products sold or recommended. Whether a given policy responds to an app-related injury depends on how the app is described to the insurer.

How clinics use exercise apps

There are three common arrangements. A practitioner recommends a consumer app and leaves the patient to use it. A practitioner prescribes exercises through a clinical platform, which then adjusts reps, sets or difficulty based on reported pain and completion. Or a clinic offers its own branded app, built on a white-label platform, and may charge for it. The further you move along that scale, the more the app looks like your product or your service, and the harder it is to argue that an injury is purely the supplier's problem.

The duties that apply

Several existing duties apply to this work:

Accountability: the GOsC guidance says responsibilities for AI use cannot be outsourced to AI, developers or employers.
Understanding the tool: you should understand an app's risks, benefits and limits well enough to explain them, including how it progresses exercise.
Patient safety: OPS C4 requires action to keep patients from harm. The guidance says you should know how to raise a concern with the provider if output could cause harm.
Consent and information: OPS A3 and A4. Patients should know the programme is app-driven and when to stop and contact you.
Device status: check whether the app is a regulated medical device; the GOsC points to the MHRA.

What can go wrong

Illustrative scenario: a chiropractor recommends a branded exercise app to a patient recovering from a shoulder problem and sets an initial programme. The app increases resistance after several days of low pain scores. The patient, keen to progress, keeps going through increasing pain and suffers a further injury. The patient complains that the chiropractor recommended the app, never reviewed the progression and gave no warning signs to look out for. The claim names the chiropractor and the clinic, which sold the subscription.

Other risks include exercises unsuitable for a condition the app does not know about, symptom reports in the app that no clinician reads, and patient data shared with the app supplier without a clear agreement.

The product liability element

Rule 4 of both the GOsC indemnity rules and the GCC indemnity rules lists public and product liability among the prescribed risks, alongside professional negligence. The GCC says chiropractors' cover must include products sold or recommended. That matters here: if you sell or recommend an app, an injury claim may be framed as both negligent advice and a product claim. Policies treat software and digital products differently, and some product liability sections are written with physical products in mind. Check that the policy recognises digital or app-based products you supply, and that any branded app is disclosed. See PI versus product liability.

How PI usually responds

Where the claim is about your recommendation and supervision, the professional negligence section is usually the natural home, subject to the policy terms. Where you supplied or branded the app, the product section may also be engaged, and your insurer may look to recover from the supplier under your contract. Read the supplier terms: many limit their liability heavily, which leaves more of the risk with you.

Practical controls

You can reduce the risk with these steps:

Review how the app progresses exercise before recommending it.
Set review points and check patient-reported symptoms.
Give written stop rules and contact details.
Record which app and programme you recommended.
Do not brand or sell an app without telling your insurer.
Check data terms and MHRA status.

Compare the physiotherapy guide to AI exercise apps. Related: wearables and AI movement reports, AI treatment planning, does your PI cover AI? and the hub.

How Apex helps

Apex arranges PI for osteopaths and chiropractors, and a broker can check how your policy treats apps you recommend or sell. See our manual therapy PI guide.

Sources

Frequently asked

Am I liable if a patient is injured using an exercise app I recommended?

You may be. The GOsC says responsibility for AI use cannot be outsourced to developers, and a patient is likely to look to the practitioner who recommended and supervised the programme. Review progression rules and set check-ins.

Does my policy cover apps I sell to patients?

The statutory rules require product liability cover, and the GCC says chiropractors' cover must include products sold or recommended. Whether software is treated as a product under your policy depends on the wording. Disclose any app you sell or brand.

What should I check before recommending an exercise app?

Check how it progresses exercise, whether a clinician sees patient-reported symptoms, what the supplier does with data, whether it is a regulated device and what the supplier terms say about liability. Record which app and programme you recommended.

Should I tell patients the programme is AI-adjusted?

Yes. The GOsC expects plain-language discussion of AI use, and valid consent under OPS A4 depends on the patient understanding what they are agreeing to. Explain how the app adjusts exercises and when to stop and contact you.

Check your PI covers how you use AI

Tell us about your firm and the work you do. A broker will review how your current PI treats AI-assisted work, or arrange new cover. No fee for a quote. Or call 0117 325 0027.

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Apex 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.