Public liability insurance for personal trainers

What this means for the business

Think through a normal month’s work. The useful details are often found in the jobs that differ from the usual routine.

Do not assume that a larger limit also means wider cover. The figure and the scope answer different questions.

Look beyond the value of the invoice and consider: a participant trips over equipment; a bystander is struck during a session; and property is damaged in a client’s home. None of these situations has an automatic insurance answer. They are useful prompts for checking the scope of the quotation.

Write down the facts rather than estimating them in a rush: class size, locations and age groups; activities and equipment used; and qualifications and any online advice. Where the position varies between jobs, explain the usual work and the exception.

Use the policy summary as an introduction, then turn to the schedule and endorsements for the details that affect the work. Query any uncertain point while other quotations are still open to you.

Examples worth considering

Run through these situations against the jobs you accept:

• A participant trips over equipment
• A bystander is struck during a session
• Property is damaged in a client’s home

The policy response depends on the full circumstances. A short list on a webpage cannot replace the wording.

Think about the point described as “a bystander is struck during a session”. Would the job record show what had been agreed, who was present and how the work area was left? Those records can matter as much as memory later on.

The second example, “property is damaged in a client’s home”, may need a different precaution. Check the endorsements for instructions linked to the method of work, not merely the occupation.

The answers should make sense to somebody who has never visited the business. Avoid shorthand that only people in the trade would understand.

Details to gather for the quote

Write down the answers to these points before opening the form:

• Class size, locations and age groups
• Activities and equipment used
• Qualifications and any online advice

Check “class size, locations and age groups”, “activities and equipment used” and “qualifications and any online advice” against recent invoices and the work diary. The description should cover ordinary jobs as well as the less frequent tasks that customers still ask you to do.

Afterwards, compare the answer with the wording about check professional indemnity or treatment liability. It should not point in a different direction from the information you supplied.

Two reminders from this page are “check professional indemnity or treatment liability” and “follow venue rules”; keep them beside the documents when you check the quotation. If the policy takes a different approach to “class size, locations and age groups”, ask about it before the cover is needed and retain any written reply.

Read the finished form once more before sending it. A missing activity is easier to correct at this stage.

Parts of the policy worth finding

• Check professional indemnity or treatment liability
• Follow venue rules
• Do not teach excluded activities

Read the schedule and endorsements beside the main wording. Important restrictions are often shown there.

Keep these notes with the policy

Put the proposed start date beside the first job that needs cover. There should be no unexplained gap.

Then look at the least typical job you expect to accept. If it falls outside the description, deal with that before taking it on.

Store the documents somewhere another responsible person in the business could find them. That is useful if an incident happens while you are away or unable to deal with it yourself.

There is also a page-specific detail to carry forward: do not teach excluded activities; check how this affects the jobs you accept and ask for clarification if the policy takes a different approach.