Do Gym Trainers Need Personal Trainer Insurance?

As a new year comes upon us, many personal trainers start to think anew about their business and what they can do to make it better. Some consider buying new exercise equipment while others think about different ways they can get clients (tip: see my trainer marketing book for more on that). One area of business, however, that many trainers overlook is getting personal trainer insurance. If you are self-employed, you definitely need it, and I’d even advise you to look into it if you work in a gym too. Let’s cover some of the fundamentals of why you need this crucial business asset.

 

Why You Need Fitness Trainer Insurance?

Personal trainer liability insurance is more than just a policy for the year; it’s a necessity to any personal trainer’s business – especially self-employed personal trainers. Accidents can happen anytime during a training session, the most common are where improper form leads to a client injury, treadmill cases where a client falls off the treadmill, weight machines where a pin is not inserted all the way leading to an injury or too heavy of weight being used during a workout.

I've been contacted by several attorneys about their clients getting rhabdo from trainers who pushed people too hard during training sessions.

Personal trainer insurance protects a trainer’s career in the event they are named in a lawsuit for any reason, whether warranted or not.

Trainers could be named in a lawsuit if the trainer was directly involved in an accident, as mentioned above, or indirectly involved.

 

An example of being named in an accident where a trainer is indirectly involved is if you forget to put weights from a previous session away and another trainer’s client falls over them and gets injured.

 

I see this ALL THE TIME in gyms. It’s actually one of my pet peeves. If you work in a gym. PLEASE do the same thing. This is risk management 101.

But, I'm Covered By The Gym…

Yes, the gym/health club you work at often carries insurance that covers trainers who are employees, but it doesn’t always cover all the costs associated with everyone who is named in the lawsuit. If you are employed as a contractor or subcontractor, the gym liability insurance policy may not protect you.

Carrying an individual trainer insurance policy that protects you is important to make sure your expenses resulting from a lawsuit are covered such as defense costs, the injured’s medical damages, and lost time from work.

The trainer’s individual policy can do this with no out-of-pocket expenses to the trainer. Defense costs can add up quickly in the situation of a claim, depending on the severity of the injury, so this is something to think about.

 

Another bonus to having your own policy is that can be taken with you wherever you  work, whether it is a new gym/studio, doing in-home

personal training or at an outdoor location such as a public park during boot camp training sessions.

How Much Does It Cost?

Generally, personal trainer insurance is not expensive, with many companies offering it for about $150/ year, making it very affordable for most fitness professionals.

Regardless of which insurance company you go with, it’s good to have peace of mind, knowing the career path you’ve worked so hard for is protected and at the mercy of no one should you ever need to defend it.

Do you have insurance? How much do you pay? Have you ever needed it? Leave a comment below to help others.

What Do You Think?