Personal trainer insurance coverage refers to a policy or group of policies designed to protect a personal trainer’s business assets. Personal trainers need muscular coverage, so to speak, and it typically starts with a general liability policy, which covers the costs of common lawsuits business owners face.
Additionally, personal trainers should consider bulking up with professional liability coverage, which covers legal defense costs plus settlements or judgments resulting from claims.
When bundled together, general liability and professional liability coverage may cost around $700 to $3,000 annually. The average annual cost of professional liability insurance for personal trainers can range from $500 to $1,800. For an annual general liability policy, the average cost is $120 to as high as $1,200.
Who Needs Personal Trainer Insurance?
Every personal trainer needs to consider liability insurance because, face it: clients can get hurt lifting weights, doing lunges, or performing other common exercises—and they can sue you.
Nearly 483,000 injuries related to exercise and exercise equipment sent Americans to emergency rooms in 2023, according to the National Safety Council, and that was up more than 8% from roughly 445,600 exercise injuries reported in 2022. The council’s statistics show people are more likely to be hurt using exercise equipment than they are riding bicycles, skateboards, or scooters or playing recreational basketball, football, soccer, or softball.
Given the relatively high number of exercise injuries, there’s a real risk that someone in your care will become hurt—making it vital that you have proper liability insurance coverage.
That’s particularly true if you work as an independent contractor for a commercial gym because the gym’s liability policy may cover only its employees. Additionally, some, but not all, gym owners require independent trainers to carry coverage and will ask to see a certificate of insurance (COI) before allowing anyone to work in their facility. A COI may also be needed if you work independently and train clients at condominiums or housing development gyms where they live.
If you’re a trainer who works for a commercial gym, there’s a good chance your employer’s personal trainer liability insurance covers you. However, you’ll need to confirm this with the fitness center.
Personal Trainer Insurance Costs
When calculating personal trainer insurance costs, providers will consider several factors, such as the number of policies, the amount of coverage needed, and the type of training your business is engaged in.
Insurance Type | Estimated Annual Premium | Deductible | Coverage Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
General Liability | $120 to $1,200 | $0 | $1 million per occurrence/$2 million aggregate |
Professional Liability | $500 to $1,800 | $100 to $1,000 | $1 million per occurrence/$2 million aggregate |
Commercial Property | $200 to $800 | $500 to $1,000 | Varies based on the property value |
Business Owner’s Policy (BOP) | $500 to $1,200 | $500 for property | $1 million per occurrence/$2 million aggregate for liability; property varies |
In addition to the number of policies and coverage amounts, insurers also consider cost-influencing factors, such as the following:
- Location: The risk of a natural disaster is factored into the premium.
- Claim history: Filing multiple claims makes your business look riskier to insurers and can increase your premiums or make it harder to find insurance.
- Revenue: Personal trainers who do more business and earn more money may pay more for their insurance, partly because they are more likely to be sued.
- Employees: Employers are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance in most states, and hiring employees can raise your other insurance costs because it increases your chances of theft, client lawsuits, and property damage.
- Business-owned property: Insurers look at the size, age, and type of property your business owns, plus its overall value.
- Risk management: Some insurers offer discounts to personal trainers who have security systems and fire alarms; they may also reduce premiums if a trainer regularly uses written contracts and liability waivers.
Personal trainers can sometimes save money on business insurance by reducing their coverage limits, raising their deductible, or both. However, these options may cause problems because the trainer takes on greater financial obligations in the event of a claim.
Types of Personal Trainer Insurance Coverage
Insurance Type | What It Covers |
|---|---|
General Liability | Third-party claims for bodily injury, property damage, and advertising injury |
Professional Liability | Legal fees stemming from clients’ accusations of professional negligence |
Commercial Property | Damage to business-owned assets, such as buildings, equipment, and inventory |
Inland Marine | Covers tools and equipment that you take with you to different locations |
Business Owner’s Policy | Combines general liability, commercial property, and usually lost business income |
General liability insurance, sometimes referred to as personal trainer liability insurance, covers third-party bodily injury, property damage, and reputational harm. This is an important policy for personal trainers because of the broad category of risk it covers.
Some examples of situations that personal trainer liability insurance covers include the following:
- Bodily injury: A client breaks a toe tripping over a dumbbell in your gym.
- Property damage: A stray medicine ball shatters a mirror in the studio you rent.
- Reputational harm: An artist sues after learning you haven’t paid royalties for using their playlist in your class.
In incidents like these, general liability insurance helps pay for the injured party’s medical bills and repair costs, as well as your legal fees, if the injured party decides to sue.
Also called errors and omissions (E&O) insurance, professional liability insurance pays the costs of your legal defense plus any settlements or judgments if a client claims their injuries or financial losses directly result from your services. Here are some examples of commonly covered incidents:
- Errors: A client says she was hurt because you instructed her to lift more weight than she was ready to handle.
- Omissions: A man you were training says you offered him weight loss advice but left out a key component, namely any guidance about his diet.
- Failure to deliver: Customers claim you sold a high-level Muay Thai boxing course but offered a simple “boxercise” class instead.
Personal trainer professional liability insurance covers your legal fees, even if the allegations are baseless.
Commercial property insurance covers damage to your business’ physical assets, including your studio and the equipment, furniture, or fixtures within it. Policies pay to repair or replace your property up to the insured amount, minus your deductible if they are damaged in a covered event such as a fire, theft, vandalism, hail, or windstorm.
Here are examples of when you’d file a claim:
- A fire destroys the gym you’ve established.
- Thieves break in and steal your weights, mats, and other gear.
- A tornado sweeps away your studio.
Some trainers may instruct virtually or lead classes outdoors. Others may rent space and can get property policies, called inland marine insurance, that cover only the business’ property. Examples include weight machines, Pilates equipment, and kettlebells.
Whether you should get commercial property insurance vs inland marine insurance will come down to the value and type of your equipment. If you cart pricey equipment around to client appointments, then inland marine is probably the better option for personal trainer insurance because it is often used for covering higher-value items.
Examples of when you’d file a claim:
- A $15,000 portable exercise bike is stolen out of the back of your van.
- A lightning strike and fire wreck thousands of dollars’ worth of Pilates gear you were keeping in storage.
- A hurricane damages a warehouse where you were storing electronic fitness monitors costing tens of thousands of dollars.
A BOP combines both general liability and commercial property, covering a business’ most common risks. Combining both is not only convenient but also more affordable.
Personal trainers who own their own studios should get a BOP. Business owners can also include business interruption when damage to property stops the business from operating.
A BOP is effective when an incident touches on multiple types of risk. Let’s say a fire breaks out in the studio you opened in a small strip shopping center.
- The commercial property portion of the policy would cover the losses related to your equipment and other property in the space.
- The general liability coverage would kick in if a neighboring business claims it sustained smoke damage.
- The business interruption insurance would cover your lost income and expenses while you’re unable to provide training after the fire.
How to Buy Personal Trainer Insurance
Insurance for a personal trainer is normally sold online. You can use an online broker to gather quotes from multiple insurers and compare features and prices side by side, or you can go directly to a carrier’s website to get a quote and buy your coverage.
When you use a comparison-shopping portal:
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Ease of entering your information just once | Getting more phone calls |
| Receiving multiple price quotes | Receiving text messages and emails from individual insurance companies than you’d care to receive |
| Being able to compare them easily | |
When you deal directly with an insurer’s website:
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Limiting your communication with insurance companies | Not being able to easily compare the quote and policy terms you receive against what competitors are offering |
| Keeping your personal information (name, email, and phone number) from being disseminated to multiple insurers | |
Can You Trust Reddit for Personal Trainer Insurance?
Reddit has numerous threads offering advice to people asking whether insurance is mandatory for personal trainers and looking for tips on the right types of coverage to buy. Redditors generally respond that insurance is not something trainers need. But that’s not completely accurate.
It’s true that there’s no law requiring trainers to carry insurance the way auto insurance is mandatory in nearly every state. But, as we said earlier, gym owners—including condo buildings and housing developments with private gyms—will often want to see proof of insurance before allowing a personal trainer to work on the premises.
Regardless of whether insurance is necessary, Redditors almost universally say liability coverage is something trainers should want to have.
Other advice on the platform is more dubious. A commenter on one thread suggests that a personal trainer skip the cost of insurance and do business as a limited liability company (LLC). While an LLC is a good idea, the advice is to use it as a shield in the event of a lawsuit; bankrupting the LLC is not a wise approach.
While an LLC protects personal assets in the event of bankruptcy, a filing could be expensive in terms of court costs and attorney fees, and you’d be forced to sell all the assets of your training business.
Personal Trainer Liability Waiver
As a personal trainer, you often enter into a contract with your clients. We’ve put together a sample liability waiver form specific to personal trainers for you to download and use.
Thank you for downloading!
DISCLAIMER: This Release of Liability Waiver Form is a general template provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice or as a substitute for professional legal counsel. The user assumes all responsibility for the use of this template. In no event shall we be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental special, exemplary, or consequential damages arising from the use of this form. Always consult with a qualified legal professional before using this or any legal document.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Personal trainers will need professional liability insurance because the emphasis of their business is on instruction. They should also carry general liability if they operate a physical business and workers’ compensation if they have any employees.
While costs will vary, the average cost of professional liability for personal trainers can range from $500 to $1,800 annually. Insurers will consider a number of factors when determining the premium, including claims history, experience, and size of the business.
Depending on the language of the contract and the gym insurance policy, the policy may exclude coverage for contractors. Double-check with the gym, but be prepared to purchase your own personal trainer liability insurance coverage.
Insurance is important even if you don’t see clients in person and even if you’re providing exercise instruction and advice merely through online videos. If there’s a risk that someone can be injured as a result of your virtual or video training, then there’s a risk that you can be sued. Insurance will provide some peace of mind against that potential liability.
Yes. In general, any insurance that protects a business from losses or lawsuits is a deductible expense. The premiums are considered an ordinary cost of doing business in the eyes of the IRS. Your accountant or tax software can help you take advantage of the write-off when filing the return for the tax year in which the premiums were paid.
Bottom Line
Getting in shape requires a commitment to a routine. If you’re aiming to go the distance with your personal trainer business, you’ll want to ensure your business is protected. Personal trainer liability insurance protects your business from financial losses that come from liability claims or claims for losses to your property. General liability is a common policy for all businesses and should cost $200 to $1,200 annually for a personal fitness trainer.
As an online broker, Simply Business can be your one-stop shop for all of your personal trainer insurance needs. It is also one of our top picks for personal trainer insurance. Get started comparing quotes, and purchase a policy online in just minutes.
