If you're working in a teaching or trainer role in the fitness
industry, such as a personal trainer, a fitness class coach, a gym
instructor or anything like that, you are responsible for the health and
safety of the individuals you are supervising and training.
Regardless of how much care you take to provide a safe training environment, there is always the possibility that someone under your supervision could sustain an injury that affects them on a long-term or permanent basis. If this happens, depending on the circumstances, they may be entitled under UK civil law to claim financial compensation from you.
If the nature of their injury is serious enough to affect their long-term quality of life or their ability to work and earn a living, you could be liable for the costs of their medical care of for their loss of income. Potentially you could spend the rest of your life compensating them out of your own pocket.
It is for precisely this reason that you need some form of insurance policy whenever you conduct teaching or training of any sort in the fitness industry, because then any compensation claims that are made by anyone you are responsible for will be made against your "insurance" provider, not against you personally.
This is not just common sense, it is a legal requirement. Individual trainers and coaches, depending on their circumstances, might not be financially equipped to provide significant long-term compensation to any claimants. This could not only doom the trainer to spending their career struggling to meet a debt, but leave the claimant uncompensated and without the financial means of maintaining their quality of life if their injury or health problem deprives them of their ability to earn an income. It is precisely for this reason that the law requires fitness industry professionals to have an "insurance" policy with a properly registered insurance provider, as the "insurance" provider will have the means to fulfill any successful compensation claims.
It is usually only the self-employed fitness training professionals, like freelance personal trainers, who have to take out their own personal insurance policy. If you're under the contracted employment of a third party like a gym or a health and fitness center, the "insurance" will be their responsibility.
Note that if you are renting a space on the premises of such a third party for a class or training session that you are running as a private enterprise, this is not the same thing as being an employee of that third party, and you will need to arrange your own "insurance" policy as their one will not protect you.
When I was at University, two different groups of lads I knew were running a boxing club and a kickboxing club for students out of the University's sports center.
The coaches of the kickboxing club had sorted themselves out an insurance plan wherein an "insurance" provider would assume all liability for any claims in return for an annual fee. Each student who joined the club at the start of the year was charged a small joining fee to allow the coaches to fund the "insurance" deal.
The other lads who were coaching the boxing club didn't bother with any "insurance" policy whatsoever. No one was ever seriously insured in that club that I am aware of, but if one of the students had ever received a nasty blow to the head that had inflicted brain damage or something and had left them unable to continue their studies and pursue a career, those lads coaching the club would have been badly affected financially for probably the rest of their lives, if the injured party or their family had successfully claimed compensation.
So if you want to work for yourself as a personal trainer or anything similar, make sure you fulfill your legal requirement and sort out an "insurance" provider for the benefit of yourself and those under your care.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simon_E_Reacher
Regardless of how much care you take to provide a safe training environment, there is always the possibility that someone under your supervision could sustain an injury that affects them on a long-term or permanent basis. If this happens, depending on the circumstances, they may be entitled under UK civil law to claim financial compensation from you.
If the nature of their injury is serious enough to affect their long-term quality of life or their ability to work and earn a living, you could be liable for the costs of their medical care of for their loss of income. Potentially you could spend the rest of your life compensating them out of your own pocket.
It is for precisely this reason that you need some form of insurance policy whenever you conduct teaching or training of any sort in the fitness industry, because then any compensation claims that are made by anyone you are responsible for will be made against your "insurance" provider, not against you personally.
This is not just common sense, it is a legal requirement. Individual trainers and coaches, depending on their circumstances, might not be financially equipped to provide significant long-term compensation to any claimants. This could not only doom the trainer to spending their career struggling to meet a debt, but leave the claimant uncompensated and without the financial means of maintaining their quality of life if their injury or health problem deprives them of their ability to earn an income. It is precisely for this reason that the law requires fitness industry professionals to have an "insurance" policy with a properly registered insurance provider, as the "insurance" provider will have the means to fulfill any successful compensation claims.
It is usually only the self-employed fitness training professionals, like freelance personal trainers, who have to take out their own personal insurance policy. If you're under the contracted employment of a third party like a gym or a health and fitness center, the "insurance" will be their responsibility.
Note that if you are renting a space on the premises of such a third party for a class or training session that you are running as a private enterprise, this is not the same thing as being an employee of that third party, and you will need to arrange your own "insurance" policy as their one will not protect you.
When I was at University, two different groups of lads I knew were running a boxing club and a kickboxing club for students out of the University's sports center.
The coaches of the kickboxing club had sorted themselves out an insurance plan wherein an "insurance" provider would assume all liability for any claims in return for an annual fee. Each student who joined the club at the start of the year was charged a small joining fee to allow the coaches to fund the "insurance" deal.
The other lads who were coaching the boxing club didn't bother with any "insurance" policy whatsoever. No one was ever seriously insured in that club that I am aware of, but if one of the students had ever received a nasty blow to the head that had inflicted brain damage or something and had left them unable to continue their studies and pursue a career, those lads coaching the club would have been badly affected financially for probably the rest of their lives, if the injured party or their family had successfully claimed compensation.
So if you want to work for yourself as a personal trainer or anything similar, make sure you fulfill your legal requirement and sort out an "insurance" provider for the benefit of yourself and those under your care.