In many situations, personal trainers are required to hold an adequate level of public liability insurance. However, there are additional business insurances that PTs may want to consider.
Public liability
The most common cover for personal trainers. This covers you if someone sues for injury, damaged property, or death due to your business activities.
Public liability insurance is often compulsory if you work as a contractor, for example within a gym, or at a public space such as a park.
Example 1: A member of the public trips on your bootcamp equipment and breaks their arm.
Example 2: You accidentally scrape a clients new car when carrying equipment into their home.
Professional indemnity
Covers you if a client sues on the basis of poor professional advice or breach of contract.
Example 1: You design an recovery plan for an injured client, but it worsens their injury.
Example 2: You guarantee a client will win a competition with your help, but they don't.
Life insurance
Life insurance doesn't just pay out when you die. It can also cover a percentage of your income or pay a lump sum if you're unable to work due to injury or illness.
Example 1: You're injured and unable to work for six months. The income protection policy you purchased covers 70% of your wage while you're off.
Example 2: You're diagnosed with a degenerative disease and can no longer work. The total and permanent disability policy you purchased pays a lump sum.
There are other types of insurance you may want to consider depending on the scope of your personal trainer business, including:
Do personal trainers need insurance if they're working from a gym?
Your insurance needs will vary depending on your particular employment situation. In most cases, this is what you can expect:
Direct employees - Insurance needs are usually covered by the gym.
Contractors - Will likely be required to hold an adequate level of public liability insurance at a minimum. Should consider professional indemnity cover too.
Sole traders - Will likely be required to hold an adequate level of public liability insurance. Should consider professional indemnity cover too.
Is it worth getting public liability insurance for personal trainers?
Public liability is an extremely important type of insurance for personal trainers. It covers accidental property damage as well as injury or death of another person.
In many cases, it's mandatory for working in particular environments. You may want to consider public liability insurance if any of these apply to you:
You're a contractor, sole-trader, or self-employed
You operate out of a gym or fitness studio
You operate in public spaces, such as parks or beaches
You visit clients in their own homes
Is it worth getting professional indemnity insurance for personal trainers?
Professional indemnity insurance is also important, but is usually considered optional rather than mandatory. You may want to consider professional indemnity insurance if any of these apply to you:
You're a contractor, sole-trader, or self-employed
A major factor for personal trainers is protecting their ability to earn an income. As their job involves constant physical exertion, it's important that they have income protection and/or TPD to ensure that their income is protected in the event of a short or long term disability.
While a personal trainer may not think their client's injury was their fault, sometimes a client may think otherwise and sue the personal trainer. This is why it's important for personal trainers to take out Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance to protect themselves, as the policy may help pay for legal fees in these scenarios.
I own a boutique fitness studio in Melbourne and employ full time, part time and casual trainers. I have a comprehensive professional indemnity and public liability policy that covers my team both in the studio and also if they are required to work outdoors. It's a substantial expense, but one you simply cannot be without. Professional registration and insurance are two essentials for anyone working in the industry.
I have professional indemnity to $5m and public liability to $20m. These are important to me for peace of mind, especially as nowadays as a group PT I see a huge number of clients in a week – it's very different to working with people one on one. The professional indemnity is there to cover me if I were to make a mistake demonstrating or explaining an exercise leading to someone getting hurt. The public liability covers me should someone hurt themselves under my care by falling over a piece of equipment – whether it's mine or even someone else's – a drink bottle left on the floor for example. Of course, I always do my utmost as a fitness professional to uphold my duty of care but accidents will occasionally happen even in the best run gyms and studios.
The most common insurance for personal trainers is public liability insurance. You may also want to consider professional liability, life insurance, or other forms of business insurance.
The cost of business insurance is calculated based on a range of factors, including your business size and revenue, your number of clients, and any previous claims. It's best to request a tailored quote for an accurate picture of how much a policy might cost you.
It's not a legal requirement to have insurance as a personal trainer in Australia. However, many gyms and fitness studios require PTs to have a particular level of insurance, as do councils if you want to work in a public space or acquire a permit.
It is highly likely that if you rent a space within a gym, the gym will require you to have a particular level of insurance. The amount may vary between gyms.
Nicola Middlemiss is a contributing writer at Finder, with a special interest in personal finance and insurance. Formerly a business and finance journalist, Nicola has written thousands of articles helping Australians better understand insurance and grow their personal wealth. She has contributed to a wide range of publications, including Domain, the Educator, Financy, Fundraising and Philanthropy, Insurance Business, MoneyMag, Mortgage Professional, Yahoo Finance, Your Investment Property, and Wealth Professional. Nicola has a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Leeds.
Just like any other form of insurance, if you are operating a drone for commercial purposes, it makes good sense to insure your business against damage or injury to others and damage or loss of your equipment.
When faulty products cause injury or loss, your business needs to protect itself with product liability insurance. Learn how product liability cover works and get quotes.
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