Gym insurance can be a single policy, such as general liability, or a combination of policies, like a business owner’s policy (BOP), to protect your business in the event of customer injuries, subsequent lawsuits, and damage to your equipment. While costs can vary, general liability for a gym ranges from approximately $200 to $4,900 a year.
A gym or health club may require many different policies, so seeking a professional to help determine your business’s best coverage makes sense. Next Insurance, our top recommendation in this guide, is a great provider of gym, personal trainer, and fitness instructor insurance. Its quote system is simple and intuitive, and it provides customized coverage for your specific business needs. Get a free quote in minutes.
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Gym Insurance Costs
Because of the nature of the business, gym insurance carries with it a higher level of risk, so the premium is typically higher than for other businesses. We received sample quotes for small facilities: around 2,500 square feet and revenue of less than $500,000 annually. The total insurance cost can still be more than $10,000 annually.
Policy | Annual Premium Cost | Deductible |
|---|---|---|
General Liability | $200 to $4,900 | $0 |
Commercial Property | $550 to $2,700 | $500 to $1,000 |
BOP | $400 to $9,500 | $500 to $1,000 |
Professional Liability | $450 to $2,000 | $500 to $1,000 |
Note that the cost of workers’ compensation insurance is calculated using a formula that includes your business’ industry, claims history, and number of employees. As such, the price can vary significantly even within the same industry.
Multiple factors affect gym insurance costs. When applying, be prepared to answer questions about the gym’s square footage, the number of employees, and whether you hire minors or let minors work out. Other questions may include your hours of operation and if you offer massage therapy. Insurance companies may also ask, or even require, members to sign a general waiver.
You may be interested in learning more about a waiver through our guide on what a business liability waiver is. We included a free release of liability template that you can use for your business.
Keep in mind that many insurers have excluded the following activities or will charge significantly more for them:
- Training minors
- Giving nutrition or diet advice
- Hosting fitness competitions
- Selling private label supplements
- Teaching martial arts
When applying for gym insurance, be honest about the type of business you run and the activities available. While it may mean a higher premium, it goes a long way to eliminating coverage issues when you have to file a claim.
Gym Insurance Coverages: What Type Do You Need?
- General liability and professional liability: Best for fitness instructors
- BOP: Ideal for gym owners
- BOP and workers’ compensation for employees: Optimal for boutique, health, and 24/7 key access clubs
- BOP, professional liability, and workers’ compensation: Ideal for fitness centers and Pilates, yoga, and dance studios
Did you know? Even virtual trainers need to consider insurance. When teaching online classes, you could be held liable if your instruction for a specific exercise is incorrect and ends up injuring a client. For a virtual instructor, the most important coverage to consider is professional liability.
Coverage | Description |
|---|---|
BOP | Combination of general liability and commercial property and will sometimes include lost business income coverage |
General Liability | Liability coverage for third-party losses involving bodily injury, property damage, and personal and reputational harm |
Professional Liability | Liability coverage for claims a service provided caused harm or financial loss |
Inland Marine | First-party property insurance for tools and equipment |
Workers’ Compensation | Medical bills and wage replacement for employees who were injured or became ill as a result of their job |
A BOP is a combination of two coverages: commercial property and general liability. Some providers add lost business income coverage to it too. This coverage is essential for boutique clubs, health clubs, and any business owner who owns the building and the gym.
General liability insurance is the most common and essential liability policy because the losses covered are so broad—it protects your business from third-party claims of injury and property damage. If someone slips and falls at your 24/7 key access facility, you could file a claim under this coverage for their injury. Note that this policy is unnecessary if you purchased a BOP.
This insurance is sometimes referred to as errors & omissions insurance. This is a liability policy for any service industry because it protects your business from claims that a service provided resulted in harm or loss to the customer. Consider carrying this policy if your gym has a fitness, Pilates, and dance, as well as any other type of, instructor.
If you do mobile instruction, say at a park, or rent a facility but own the equipment, then you need inland marine to cover your tools and equipment. This is a first-party property insurance where the coverage follows the listed items instead of being tied to a specific location.
In nearly every state, workers’ compensation is a required coverage. If an employee becomes injured or ill from their job, it helps with medical costs and wage replacement and, in some states, also protects the employer from liability
6 Best Gym Insurance Providers
- Next Insurance: Best for gym owners
- Simply Business: Best for comparing quotes from top providers
- The Hartford: Best for fitness coaches and personal trainers
- Insurance Canopy: Best for affordable and quick insurance
- Hiscox: Best for CrossFit trainers
- K&K Insurance Corporation: Best for 24-hour clubs
Quote Process | Accessibility | Instant COI | Financial Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Online | Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific time | ✓ | A- (Excellent) |
 | Online | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET | ✓ | A++ (Superior) |
 | Online | 24/7 call center | ✓ | A+ (Superior) |
 | Online | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mountain time | ✓ | A+ (Superior) |
 | Online | Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET | ✓ | A (Excellent) |
 | Create an account to begin the process or call an agent | Monday to Saturday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Central time | ✓ | A (Excellent) |
Next Insurance: Best for Gym Owners
Next Insurance, in partnership with the National Academy of Sports Medicine, is the best provider for gym owners. This is because it can offer all of the different types of insurance you may need: general and professional liability, workers’ compensation, and commercial property insurance.
It also offers savings of up to 10% when you bundle multiple coverages through it. It is best for gym owners with standard operating hours because it provides high liability and property limits. Despite being only seven years old, Next Insurance has an A- (Excellent) rating from AM Best.
You can learn more about it in our review of Next Insurance.
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Simply Business: Best for Comparing Quotes From Top Providers
Digital insurance brokerage Simply Business specializes in providing insurance options from over 15 top providers, online, without speaking to anyone. Its emphasis is on smaller businesses.
After entering key information about your business, Simply Business will provide multiple quotes with information on the coverage and provider, giving you the freedom to pick the right coverage. It isn’t simply good at comparing quotes—you can also purchase coverage and then manage your policy online after becoming a customer.
Simply Business works with top-rated carriers. For our quote below, the companies were NASW with an AM Best rating of A- (Excellent) and Hiscox with an A (Excellent) from AM Best. Also, Simply Business is owned by Travelers, which AM Best rated A++ (Superior).
You can learn more about the broker through our review of Simply Business.
Get a Quote from Simply Business
The Hartford: Best for Fitness Coaches & Personal Trainers
For gyms that employ fitness instructors or fitness professionals working as independent contractors, The Hartford is the best provider. It offers a professional liability policy specifically for fitness professionals. This policy helps you if, for example, you instruct someone how to lift incorrectly and they are injured.
An established carrier with over 200 years of experience, The Hartford has a rating of A+ (Superior) from AM Best. Our review of The Hartford dives deeply into its coverages and services and can help you decide if the provider fits the bill.
Insurance Canopy: Best for Affordable & Quick Insurance
Insurance Canopy offers policies for personal, yoga, dance, Pilates, CrossFit, Zumba, and other instructors. It also has insurance for dietitians and nutritionists. It provides a standard policy for all of these different fitness jobs, and the policy starts at $12.50 a month. If you purchase an annual plan, you’ll save 14%, which brings the policy to $129.
These low prices make it the most affordable provider for gym insurance—and the ease of purchasing a policy in just minutes makes it the fastest way to get gym insurance. However, it does not have any mobile application to create and share COIs, and if you want to change your policy by adding additional insureds, that will cost $30.
The policy is administered through the Great American Insurance Group, which AM Best rated A+ (Superior).
Note that while Insurance Canopy and Hiscox both offer insurance for CrossFit trainers, the main difference between the two is the structure of the policies. Insurance Canopy offers preselected policies that focus primarily on liability and equipment coverage, whereas Hiscox has a larger range of available options, like workers’ comp, to choose from. Both are solid options—it just depends on your particular business needs.
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Hiscox: Best for CrossFit Instructors
Hiscox is an insurer who only insures small businesses. Its core customer base is micro-businesses with one to three employees. It is a great option for CrossFit instructors because a key coverage for this industry is professional liability—and Hiscox offers a great professional liability policy.
Its policy includes multiple coverage enhancement options like subpoena assistance and defense proceedings outside of the policy limits. Its definition of personal injury is expanded to include personal and advertising injury, a bonus for professional liability since that is usually a general liability coverage.
While a relatively newer provider, Hiscox has its roots in a brokerage that goes back nearly 100 years. Its financial rating is A (Excellent) from AM Best. We cover its policies, policyholder services, and more in our review of Hiscox.
K&K Insurance Corporation: Best for 24-hour Clubs
Being open 24 hours is a type of risk many providers do not wish to insure. However, K&K Insurance Corporation will cover facilities that have controlled access to a gym open all day and night; thus, it is the best provider for a 24-hour club.
K&K Insurance is owned by Aon, which has an A (Excellent) rating from AM Best.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Gym insurance is a policy or combination of policies purchased to protect a gym from the financial loss of claims. For a gym club owner, the best policy is a business owner’s policy (BOP) closely followed by workers’ compensation for employees. Personal trainers and fitness instructors will want to consider professional liability.
General liability for a gym can range from $200 to $4,900 annually. Gyms occupy a potentially risky space, especially if it is open 24/7, employs dieticians, or hosts fitness competitions. This, coupled with the expensive property and equipment, can lead to a premium being over $10,000 annually.
No. While a business liability waiver can help protect your business from lawsuits, it isn’t a magic shield that covers every scenario. It must be in compliance with state laws and regulations and, depending on the activity or loss, doesn’t mean the injured party cannot still pursue litigation against your business.
You can get gym insurance by contacting an agent or insurance company directly to get a quote and purchase a policy. You can also go with a broker like Simply Business, which works with multiple providers. The advantage of working with a broker is they can give you options from different providers, letting you compare coverage and pricing.
Bottom Line
It’s easy to sweat the small stuff, but with the right policy, you won’t need to worry about your business. Whether you own a 24/7 fitness club or work as a personal trainer, gym insurance is a key part of a successful business. It protects you against claims of negligence and provides coverage for your equipment and building.
Next Insurance can help you protect your gym and your livelihood with quality coverage that is customized to fit your needs. Get a quote and purchase a policy in minutes.
