Whether you own a fitness gym, a rock climbing gym, or a boxing gym, here’s some specific advice to help you choose the insurance policies that are right for you.
Fitness Gym
If you own a fitness gym (such as a crossfit gym or a health club), you need comprehensive coverage to cover your property, employees, and general business liability risks. Whether you rent or own your business location, it’s usually required to have General Liability and Commercial Property Insurance; however, several other policies can further protect your business from claims and lawsuits towards your gym’s services.
Your Commercial General Liability insurance may cover full-time employees or personal trainers working at your gym. However, your policy limit will apply to all employees rather than each individual. To make sure you’re sufficiently covered, you have the option to increase your limit. Alternatively, you can ask employees or personal trainers to carry their own Liability Insurance.
Gym owners and the employees that work at the premises often provide professional fitness advice. Professional Liability Insurance will protect your business from claims alleging negligence or misconduct that causes injury to a third party or damage to their property. For example, a member follows your advice on using a piece of equipment to exercise a muscle with a history of injury. This advice turned out to be incorrect and caused them to tear a muscle – so they sue you for negligence.
Product Liability Insurance covers injuries or property damage caused by defective products you manufacture, sell, or distribute. For example, if the resistance bands your sell snap under weak pressure and causes serious bodily injury to the user, they may sue you.
Finally, if you use a booking system to store members’ data (e.g., financial, medical), it’s your legal obligation to protect this information. Cyber Insurance covers costs like legal fees associated with cyber incidents (e.g., a cyber hack) involving your technology systems and data.
Suggested Coverage:
• Commercial General Liability Insurance
• Commercial Property Insurance
• Business Interruption Insurance
• Product Liability Insurance
• Professional Liability Insurance
• Cyber Liability Insurance
Boxing Gym (or other Mixed Martial Arts Gym)
A martial arts gym (such as boxing or Muay Thai gym) likely involves less equipment than a fitness gym, but probably a lot more physical contact. Generally, the same coverage applies to these types of gyms as with fitness gyms. To make sure you understand how your policy would cover your gym, we’re providing examples applicable to your services. Whether you own or rent your boxing facility, it’s typically required to have Commercial Property Insurance. However, several other policies can protect your business from claims and lawsuits.
Commercial General Liability insurance may cover full-time instructors and other employees working at your gym in the event of a claim due to third-party bodily injury or property damage. However, a policy limit will apply to all employees rather than a limit for each individual. To make sure you’re sufficiently covered, you have the option to increase your limit. Alternatively, you can request that your instructors, personal trainers, or other employees carry their own Liability Insurance.
Professional fitness advice is provided daily, such as demonstrating a new technique or exercise move. Professional Liability Insurance would protect your business from claims alleging negligence or misconduct that causes third-party bodily injury or damage to property. For example, if you misdescribe a move, and your client ends up injuring themselves due to your instruction, you may be liable.
Lastly, you have a legal obligation to protect the personal data you hold about your members. Cyber Insurance will cover costs like legal fees associated with electronic incidents (e.g., a cyber hack) involving your computers and data.
Suggested Coverage:
• Commercial General Liability Insurance
• Commercial Property Insurance
• Business Interruption Insurance
• Professional Liability Insurance
• Cyber Liability Insurance
Rock Climbing Gym
People with varying ability levels can use a rock climbing gym. Whether you host recreational one-off rock-climbing sessions or professional rock climbers use your facility for practice, you’ll need similar coverage to fitness gyms. Here are some examples of Gym Insurance coverages that are applicable to rock climbing gyms.
Whether you rent or own the location, it’s normally required to have Commercial Property Insurance. On top of this, several other policies can protect your business from claims and lawsuits towards your rock climbing gym’s services.
If you have full-time instructors working the ropes or any other full-time employees, they may be covered by your Commercial General Liability insurance. Note that there is an overall policy limit rather than a limit for each employee under this policy. To accommodate all of your employees, you have the option to increase your limit, or you can ask your employees to carry Liability Insurance.
Professional Liability Insurance may protect your business from claims alleging negligence or misconduct that causes injury to a third party. As rock climbing instructors provide professional advice to climbers – such as explaining how to use ropes or which rock to reach – it’s essential to consider this coverage should they injure themselves.
If you provide equipment to use or sell rock climbing gear, Product Liability Insurance could cover you for any injury or property damage caused by a defective product. For example, a rock climbing harness cannot stay tight, causing bodily injury from a fall.
Cyber Insurance covers costs like legal fees associated with electronic incidents (e.g., a cyber hack) involving your technology systems and data. Chances are you use a booking system to store customers’ data – it’s your legal obligation to protect this information and keep it confidential.
Suggested Coverage:
• Commercial General Liability Insurance
• Commercial Property Insurance
• Business Interruption Insurance
• Product Liability Insurance
• Professional Liability Insurance
• Cyber Liability Insurance
