NHS App terms of use

Version 5.1, 13 April 2023

1. Introduction

1.1. We (NHS England) have developed the NHS App so that you can access certain NHS services through a mobile app on your phone or tablet. We have also made the same services available via the logged in area of the NHS website, which you can access using a web browser. These terms of use cover both channels. Your use of the NHS website other than for these services will continue to be covered by the NHS website terms and conditions, NHS website privacy policy and NHS website cookies policy.

1.2. The NHS App enables you to access various healthcare services. These services are either classed as:

• "Core Services" because the NHS App has a direct role in the delivery of the service; or
• "Platform Services" because logging in to the NHS App lets you access the service, but the service itself is provided separately.

Further details are in section 6 below.

1.3. You may also be able to access these services without using the NHS App and nothing in these terms will affect such access.

1.4. Contacting us. To find out more about who we are and our role, visit our organisational website. If you want to learn more about the NHS App, you think there are any faults within the NHS App (whether the mobile app or the logged in area of the NHS website) or you wish to contact us for any other reason, please visit our help and support page, where you can see FAQs and find out how to contact us.

1.5. How we will communicate with you

If we need to contact you specifically we will do so by email, SMS or telephone call using the contact details you have provided.

Depending on your GP surgery or healthcare provider, you may also be able to send or receive messages in the NHS App.

See further details in section 6.

2. When these terms apply

2.1. Please read these terms and conditions and our privacy policy, cookies policy and any other separate terms of use, privacy policies or cookies policies that apply to Platform Services accessed via the NHS App before logging in. By registering for and continuing to use the NHS App, you agree to be bound by these terms.

2.2. We may, at any time and in our sole discretion, amend these terms for any reason. The latest version of our terms will be accessible through the NHS App, and we will inform you via the NHS App and request your continued agreement if we make any significant changes to these terms.

3. How to register to use the NHS App

3.1. It is free to register for and use the NHS App. To use the NHS App you must be registered with a GP surgery in England or Isle of Man.

3.2. If you access or attempt to access the NHS App from outside England or Isle of Man:

• we cannot guarantee you will be able to access the NHS App or that it will function correctly
• you are responsible for complying with any local laws that apply to you in the country from which you are using the NHS App

3.3. You must create and maintain an account using the NHS login authentication platform. A minimum of mid-level identity verification is required to access the NHS App and high-level identity verification is needed to access most services. Find out more about how to prove who you are to get full access to the NHS App.

3.4. In order to use the NHS App you must be aged 13 years or older. If you’re aged 13 to 15, your GP will need to individually approve your access to many of the services, in accordance with any local policies, and you may not be able to access all services. If you have any questions you should contact your GP directly. Other healthcare providers may also apply additional age limits to certain services.

3.5. The NHS App is not a medical device and so is not regulated by the Medicines and Health Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Certain Core Services or Platform Services may be medical devices, and this will be made clear to you when you access the relevant service.

4. Accessing the NHS App

4.1. You are responsible for making all arrangements necessary for you to access the NHS App, including but not limited to:

• a secure internet connection (see Cyber Aware website)
• an appropriate device, operating system and browser that meet our minimum requirements found on our help and support page.
• if you want the mobile app, downloading it from either Google Play or Apple's App Store (subject to their terms and conditions).
• using your own virus protection software (and regularly updating it).

4.2. Your NHS App is only intended to be used by you. If you permit any other person to use your account, you:

• do so entirely at your own risk
• must not share your user identification code or password with such persons
• are responsible for their access and use of the NHS App as if it were your access and use
• must make sure such persons are aware of these terms and comply with them.

4.3. If you know or suspect that anyone other than you knows your user identification code or password to your NHS login account, you must promptly reset your password to something only you know. See our help and support page to reset it.

4.4. You may use passwordless authentication (such as fingerprint or facial recognition) to access the NHS App if your device supports it. Passwordless authentication is voluntary and is based on technology in your device. We do not have access to or control over the biometric data stored on your device. You must ensure that only your own fingerprint, facial data or other biometric data are stored on your device. We have the right, at any time without a separate notification, to block the use of passwordless authentication on any or all devices used to access the NHS App.

5. Updates to the NHS App

5.1. From time to time we may automatically update the NHS App or ask you to update it if you have the mobile app, to improve performance, enhance functionality, reflect changes to the operating system, or address security issues.

5.2. If updates are not installed you may not be able to use the NHS App or you may find that its functionality and/or performance is impaired.

6. Details about the Services

6.1. The following services may be available to you through the NHS App. Not all services and features are available to all users. This depends on where you live (not all services are available in the Isle of Man) and the services and systems your healthcare provider has chosen to use (generally and for you specifically).

Core Services (NHS App has a direct role in the delivery of the service)

Please see the privacy policy and further information (where detailed) for more details of these services and how they use your data.

Platform Services (NHS App allows you to access the service, but the service is provided outside the NHS App)

Please see the terms and conditions and privacy policies listed for more details of how these services work, terms applicable to your use and how these services use your data.

Using the services

6.2. You must not rely on the NHS App as the sole means by which you (or those for whom you have any proxy access arrangements) continue to receive care from your doctor or other healthcare professional. You should ensure you have another way of contacting your healthcare provider other than via the NHS App.

6.3. If you download, print or export any of your health or medical record data, you are responsible for ensuring that such data is held securely, and we will not be liable for any associated disclosure of sensitive and personal data.

6.4. In order for you to receive the intended benefits of the NHS App and services accessed, you must ensure that all data provided by you is complete and accurate.

6.5. Your GP health records are created and kept up-to-date by your GP and remain under your GP's control. Your GP surgery may choose to only authorise access via the NHS App to key facts, such as your medications and allergies etc, not your full detailed medical records. We do not hold or have access to your GP records, and are unable to add to or modify them or provide hard copies.

6.6. If you are sharing information on your NHS App with a healthcare professional, you should make them aware that the information accessible (including any professional reference material) may not show your complete medical records and is intended to support, not replace, the healthcare professional's knowledge, experience and judgement.

6.7. The NHS App and services within it:

• are not a substitute for seeking medical advice. Always follow any medical advice given by your healthcare professionals
• are provided for information purposes including, to assist you to manage any conditions and treatments that you might require under the supervision and care of a healthcare professional
• do not provide medical or clinical diagnostic services
• are not intended to be prescriptive or authoritative in respect of a diagnosis, condition or treatment, and are not intended to provide information on which you should solely rely.
• reflect current knowledge and practice in the NHS in England. However, medical knowledge and practice is constantly evolving and as such they may not reflect the latest knowledge or practice

6.8. Please note your GP or other healthcare professionals remain ultimately responsible for your health and wellbeing (including but not limited to any diagnosis or other healthcare advice). If you have any questions about your medical records or other health-related information made available via the NHS App, you should contact your GP or other healthcare professional directly, or call NHS 111 by dialling 111 from any landline or mobile phone free of charge.

6.9. We are not responsible for any delay or lack of response by your healthcare provider to any contact you make through the NHS App.

6.10. Certain Core Services and Platform Services may enable you to use them in respect of your child or someone you care for. Access to specific information about such person is controlled by your GP and is subject to such requirements and conditions as your GP surgery may decide.

6.11. If you use Core Services or Platform Services in respect of your child or someone you care for these terms and any other applicable terms and conditions still apply to your use and you:

• must not share your user identification code or password with anyone else, including the person you are accessing services on behalf of
• are responsible for service access and use of the NHS App as if it were your access and use, including being responsible for compliance with these terms and any other applicable terms and conditions in respect of your access
• must, to the extent possible bearing in mind their age, condition and capacity, make the person you are accessing services on behalf of aware of: (i) your access and any steps you take on their behalf, and (ii) these terms and other applicable terms and conditions.

6.12. Where we have assessed it to be useful to NHS App users, we may include links to national health and care websites that are not integrated with the NHS App. We do not monitor the content of such websites. Any link provided in the NHS App is solely for your convenience. We do not accept any responsibility for any third-party website or third-party applications.

7. Ending your use of the NHS App

7.1. You may stop using the NHS App at any time. If you wish to cancel your account, you should contact us via the help and support page.

7.2. If you breach any of these terms we may prevent you from accessing the NHS App and suspend your account. We will notify you of this. If what you have done can be put right, we will give you a reasonable opportunity to do so.

7.3. If your account is cancelled:

• your access to the NHS App will stop. You should delete the NHS App from your devices
• any personal data we hold about you will be dealt with in accordance with our data retention policy, which is set out in our privacy policy
• all rights granted to you under these terms shall automatically cease without further notice (although your statutory rights - for example in respect of data protection as described in the privacy policy - are not affected)

8. Your right to use the NHS App

8.1. We own or have the right to use all intellectual property rights used for the provision of the NHS App, including rights in copyright, patents, database rights, trademarks and other intellectual property rights, ("NHS IPR").

8.2. You have permission to use the NHS App for the sole purposes described in these terms. You need written permission from us or any other owner of NHS IPR to use these items in any other way.

8.3. Unless permitted by law or under these terms, you will:

• not copy the NHS App or any NHS IPR except where such copying is incidental to normal use
• not rent, lease, sub-license, loan, translate, merge, adapt or modify the NHS App or any NHS IPR
• not combine or incorporate your (or any other) account in any other programmes or services
• not disassemble, decompile, reverse-engineer or create derivative works based on the whole or any part of the NHS App or other any NHS IPR
• comply with all technology control or export laws that apply to the technology used by the NHS App or other any NHS IPR

9. Prohibited uses

9.1. You may not use the NHS App:

• to collect any data or attempt to decipher any transmissions to or from our servers
• in a way that could damage, disable, overburden, impair or compromise our systems or security
• to transmit any material that is insulting or offensive
• in a way that interferes with other users
• in any unlawful manner or for any unlawful purpose
• in a manner that is improper use or inconsistent with these terms
• to act fraudulently or maliciously by hacking into the NHS App
• to transmit, send or upload any data that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, spyware or any other harmful programs designed to adversely affect the operation of computer software or hardware
• in connection with any kind of denial of service attack
• unless it has been downloaded from official App Marketplaces (Google Play Store or Apple App Store) or you are accessing its services via the NHS website in a web browser
• on any device or operating system that has been modified outside the mobile device or operating system vendor supported or warranted configurations. This includes devices that have been "jail-broken" or "rooted"

If you do any of the above acts you may also be committing a criminal offence, and we will report any such activity to the relevant law enforcement authorities. We will co-operate with those authorities by disclosing your identity to them.

10. Our liability to you

10.1. Although we make reasonable efforts to provide, maintain and update the NHS App it is provided "as is" and, to the extent permitted by law, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied (including but not limited to the implied warranties of satisfactory quality and fitness for a particular purpose), that the NHS App or any particular services you access through the app (a) are accurate, complete or up-to-date; (b) will meet your particular requirements or needs; or (c) will always be available, error free, uninterrupted or free of viruses.

10.2. We are not responsible for external links to or from the NHS App and cannot guarantee these will always work. We are not responsible for Platform Services provided through the NHS App unless they are also provided by NHS England (as indicated in clause 6). Services provided by third parties will have a connection agreement with NHS England and undertake an integration process, but this does not mean that such services have been endorsed by NHS England.

10.3. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits our liability for:

1. death or personal injury arising from our negligence;
2. fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation;
3. any loss or damage to a device or digital content belonging to you, if you can show that a) this was caused by us and b) we failed use to use reasonable skill and care to prevent this; or
4. any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited under English law.

10.4. Subject to clause 10.3 of these terms, we will not be liable or responsible to you or any person you use an NHS App on behalf of for:

• any harm, loss or damage suffered where this is not caused by i) our negligence (for instance, if a healthcare professional makes a misdiagnosis of your condition, or prescribes the wrong medication, or you make any independent decisions based on the information provided in the NHS App we would not be liable); or ii) our breach of these terms
• any loss or damage arising from an inability to access and/or use the NHS App in whole or in part
• any business loss (including but not limited to loss of profits, revenue, contracts, anticipated savings, data, goodwill or wasted expenditure)
• any indirect or consequential losses that were not foreseeable to both you and us when you commenced using the NHS App (loss or damage is "foreseeable" if it was an obvious consequence of our breach or if it was recognised by you and us at the time we entered into the contract created by your use of the NHS App)

10.5. As Platform Services are also governed by separate terms of use you should also read the limits of liability described in those terms of use.

10.6. This clause 10 does not affect any legal rights you may have as a consumer in relation to defective services or software. Advice about your legal rights is available from your local Citizen's Advice or Trading Standards Office.

11. General

11.1. These terms, and any other terms or policies referenced, set out the entire agreement between you and us in respect of your use of the NHS App.

11.2. These terms do not give any rights to any third party to enforce any of these terms.

11.3. Each of the clauses and sub-clauses of these terms operates separately. If any part is determined to be invalid or unenforceable it will be superseded by a valid and enforceable provision that most closely matches the intent of the original and all other terms shall continue in effect.

11.4. Even if we delay in enforcing these terms we can still enforce them later.

11.5. The laws of England shall apply exclusively to these terms and all matters relating to use of the NHS App, and dispute shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England.

12. Previous versions

The terms of use may change from time to time. We will inform you via the NHS App and request your continued agreement if we make any significant changes to our privacy policy, cookies policy or terms of use.