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.
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.
Covers you if a client sues on the basis of poor professional advice or breach of contract.
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.
There are other types of insurance you may want to consider depending on the scope of your personal trainer business, including:
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.
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:
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:
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.
Paul Davies
Independent life insurance broker
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.
Mark Vanzo
Founder, SMART Business Insurance
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.
Jane Kilkenny
Founder, Fitness Energy
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.
Nikki Ellis
Owner, Cinch Training
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