We explore the vital issue of insurance and ask, what level of cover does a fitness professional need?
It’s a question we get asked virtually every day – what level of cover do I need?
Ultimately, choosing what level of cover (Limit of Indemnity) is needed is down to the individual member. Often it is predetermined by the requirements of any club or studio the member is working at. And it is always worth reaching out to any facility to check this.
Where the level is not dictated by a third party, here are a few suggestions to help choose the level of cover needed.
-
Who are your clients?
If you’re working with an international sports star, where the impact of your training/advice could have a substantial impact on his or her career, you’ll need a much higher level of insurance than if your clients are ‘average’ members of the public.
-
Value for money …
Obviously, lower levels of cover will cost you less and, if cash flow is a problem, that difference could really help the bank balance. In most cases, our lowest level of cover (£2m) should comfortably protect you in the event of a claim.
-
… vs peace of mind
However, the higher levels of cover do provide an additional layer of peace of mind and, for the price, represent a better cost per indemnity ratio – for £2m you’d pay £50 and for £10m the price would be £59.99 – basically, £10 more for an extra £8m in cover (prices correct at time of publication).
-
What activities are you teaching?
Not all activities fall under the standard policy and you’ll need to check the FitPro website under Additional Activities to see if you need to extend your policy cover. This could be if you are teaching anti-gravity yoga, tai chi or Nordic walking (see website for full list).
Just as a point of note, if you are teaching an additional activity you will need to take out a base £10m policy to do so.
-
How are you teaching – one-to-one/group/remotely/combination?
How you teach also needs to be thought about. If it’s one-to-one, the impact of bad advice is limited. In a group, that advice could affect more people and, while the policy cover is per claim (basically each claim is covered separately to the limit of your cover), the impact could be significant, with client talking to client creating a chain reaction.
-
Are you producing online content?
Producing online content is a great way for people to see you and the quality of the training you provide. However, your liability doesn’t change if it’s ‘live’ or recorded and, once out in the virtual world, you’ve lost control of it and who views it. And, as mentioned previously, that could be a professional athlete or someone who really shouldn’t participate in the activity.
-
Remove that nagging doubt
Finally, removing that nagging doubt from your mind (around the level of cover needed), means you can do what you do best – train and teach your clients.
High-quality insurance should provide you with peace of mind, so don’t let “What level of cover?” be the thing distracts you!
Check out FitPro’s range of insurance products designed for fitness professionals. Did you know? You can get 5% off your travel insurance this winter using code WINTER5
