The particular form of cover offered by the defence bodies has left them vulnerable to sudden or unexpected increases in the cost of settling claims, especially in circumstances where claims arise from events in the past when subscription levels were much lower. In the absence of regulation by the insurance authorities the defence organisations had a particular obligation to ensure they were prudent in their reserving policies and that they charged their members subscriptions sufficient to meet those members' liabilities. When the clinical indemnity scheme is extended to cover consultants, the subscriptions the Medical Defence Union and the Medical Protection Society charge should fall as they will in future only be liable for those aspects of their members' practices not covered by the scheme and the non-indemnity benefits they also provide. The arrangement whereby consultants are reimbursed the bulk of the cost of their subscriptions will also cease when they come into the scheme.