insurance for student athletes
When pupils on the field or court, accidents are certain to happen. A lot of districts purchase accident medical coverage in order to safeguard student athletes.
State-specific regulations governing school-based accident medical plans differ, but generally speaking, they either provide automatic coverage for all athletes competing in school-sponsored activities or they are optional plans that parents can choose for a price.
Certain policies only take effect after the parent’s primary health insurance takes effect, making them excess policies. Some are first-dollar policies that shield student families from any financial burden in the case of an injury sustained on the field.
According to Lorena Hatfield, marketing manager at K&K Insurance Group, policies are in place to safeguard leagues and schools in addition to athletes.
Young athletes’ health insurance
Many of the same coverages that are offered on campus also apply to youth leagues; however, in the event of an accident involving a youth league, parents are typically responsible for a greater portion of the costs through their family’s medical policy.
If the league decides to purchase accident and medical insurance, the typical lines cover up to $25,000 per participant. However, these policies frequently do not have an aggregate limit, so in the event that ten children are injured at the same time, the league would not exceed the coverage limit because all ten would receive full coverage.
According to Hatfield, league insurance coverage frequently provide liability protection for the organization, including its volunteers and staff, against lawsuits resulting from its operations.
Typically, league general liability plans have an aggregate policy coverage of $3 million and a per event limit of $1 million.
Operating policies, advertising and personal policies, and personal injury policies for nonparticipants are added on top of it.
“If someone does something like fall out of the stands and is trying to decide whether to sue, the personal injury portion is really helpful,” Di Perno said. “This could potentially provide the league with $5,000 to resolve the matter without going to court.”
In addition, the property damage element would apply in the event that someone defaced the fields or if a well-hit homerun struck someone in the crowd.
Should a well-hit homerun smash through a bystander’s windshield or if the fields were vandalized, the property damage part would also come into play. Parts damaged by fire or property usually have $300,000 in coverage.
Typical liability policy limits are $1 million per incident, $3 million total. These might be activated in the event that a spectator fell from the bleachers due to improper maintenance and chose to file a lawsuit, or in the event of any comparable negligence.
Today, abuse coverage is a regrettable reality. Standard $25,000 per incident, $50,000 aggregate restrictions are included with many insurance.
Most facilities only allow entry with a 25/50 policy, but Di Perno notes that in certain cases, more thorough misuse policies are necessary, and those can be worked with individually.
Serious athlete insurance
Should a well-hit homerun smash through a bystander’s windshield or if the fields were vandalized, the property damage part would also come into play. Parts damaged by fire or property usually have $300,000 in coverage.
Typical liability policy limits are $1 million per incident, $3 million total. These might be activated in the event that a spectator fell from the bleachers due to improper maintenance and chose to file a lawsuit, or in the event of any comparable negligence.
Today, abuse coverage is a regrettable reality. Standard $25,000 per incident, $50,000 aggregate restrictions are included with many insurance.
Most facilities only allow entry with a 25/50 policy, but Di Perno notes that in certain cases, more thorough misuse policies are necessary, and those can be worked with individually.
Insurers also provide specific policies for events such as walks and runs. One distinction, though, is that the run/walk programs frequently include explicit restrictions, such a usual policy that caps the entire course length at less than 16 miles.
Some amateur athletes, like a potential Olympian or a five-star high school prospect, may have their sights set on making their sport their vocation.
Specialized disability policies that would safeguard the athlete’s future are available in these situations. But underwriting these speculative policies is tough, and few insurers will issue a policy to, say, safeguard a high school student’s throwing arm.
Playing sports at work
Promoting a corporate sports league could increase employee happiness and retention, but it could also expose the business to additional risk. Workplace sports pose a problem because, even if the company could be encouraging the sport, worker’s compensation insurance is unlikely to cover an injury sustained by a participant.
Many large corporations purchase separate plans to cover their work leagues in order to close that gap. Specialized coverage often makes sense, even though the company’s general liability or business owner’s policy may already cover some of the same items the separate policy would.