Whether you are an athlete, parent, coach, organizer, volunteer or anyone else involved in athletics at any level, athlete insurance is a wise investment. The world of athletics is complex and affected by many variables outside of your control. Protect yourself, your team, your club, your organization, and even your finances with athlete insurance policies that meet your needs.
Your ESP Specialty team have compiled a list of five reasons you should consider athlete insurance. Before we get into that information, let’s start by taking a closer look at athlete insurance and the different types of policies that may be relevant to you.
What is athlete insurance?
Athletic or athlete insurance policies come in many forms. The phrase can refer to any number of policies related to the large and complicated world of athletics. These types of insurance policies can be used in a wide variety of ways to protect various relevant people, items, and situations:
- Youth, middle school, high school, college, and professional athletes & teams
- Coaches, event organizers, volunteers, board members & other leaders
- Equipment and league, team, club finances
- Bystander(also known as spectator) injuries or 3rd party property damage
- Crime Coverage
- Directors and Officers
- And more!
Athlete-related insurance needs can vary widely. Because of this, many relevant types of insurance policies exist to cater to their unique situations.
Types of insurance for athletes
When considering the various types of insurance policies available for the wide range of athletic needs, it’s essential to look at the situation from various perspectives. For example, an individual college athlete will need different types of insurance in comparison to the coaches or managers of college or professional athletic teams.
Here are some examples of relevant insurance for athletes:
- Disability insurance for athletes protects college and professional athletes who may lose significant earnings if a temporary or permanent injury prevents them from competing. Disability insurance provides financial protection in case this happens.
- Athletes who suffer injuries may qualify for disability insurance payouts from their league or organization. In these cases, insurance also exists to help protect the organization’s financial health as they fulfill their financial responsibilities to the athlete.
- Loss of value insurance is relevant for athletes who suffer a significant injury or illness but are not entirely disabled from competing. This type of insurance protects the athlete’s potential future contract value from decreasing below a set limit.
- For example, suppose a college athlete is expecting to receive a contract after college but experiences an injury that causes the contract value to decrease. In that case, they may be eligible for an insurance payout.
- Sports league insurance describes general athletic insurance policies that protect teams, clubs, & leagues with coverages such as General Liability, Excess Accident Medical, Directors & Officers, Inland Marine, and Crime Protection.
- Crime Protection is a smart move to protect your organization’s funds from theft, embezzlement, and other crimes. Learn about three reasons you should add crime coverage to your sports insurance policy.
- Inland Marine Insurance is a useful policy if your sport uses expensive equipment. This policy helps insure your equipment for situations such as damage during transportation or storage.
- Contractual bonus insurance is relevant for companies or organizations that partner with athletes or teams. Sponsored athletes can earn contractual bonuses for excellent performance, but paying out these bonuses can hit the sponsor organization hard. Contractual bonus insurance is an excellent solution.
Many other insurance policies can be relevant for athletes, athletic organizations, and others involved in the athletic world. ESP specializes in navigating the complexities of athletic insurance to help protect your financial health in all types of situations.
Learn more about some of the athletic insurance programs we offer, and let us know if we can answer any specific questions for you. In the meantime, read on to learn about five reasons you should consider athlete insurance.
1. Athlete insurance can cover various levels and sports
Athlete insurance is necessary for athletes at all levels. Parents and coaches of athletes who are in high school or younger should consider various policy options to protect players, volunteers, coaches, equipment, finances, and more. Protecting young players is especially critical, the reason for which being that not all athletes are covered by family insurance.
Athlete insurance is also vital for college and professional athletes because the player’s future can be put at risk by injuries or disabilities. In these situations, your coverage limit, deductible amount, and other costs can all depend on the sport or position you play as well as your general health.
For example, college and professional athletes may be asked to provide documentation of a recent physical exam to show their “baseline” health. Athletes with pre-existing health conditions may need to pay a higher premium for their disability insurance policy.
2. Athlete insurance can protect players, teams, and more
The world of athletics deals with many complex variables. Players can get injured, things can go wrong during travel, expensive equipment can become damaged, and coaches can be subject to lawsuits for breaches of duty or misuse of funds, just to name a few. Since insurance for athletes comes in many forms, there are relevant policies to cover almost any scenario.
Our overview of what your sports league insurance should cover is a useful guide to help you start thinking about the appropriate policies and coverages you might need for your unique situation. If you haven’t thought about travel insurance, crime coverage, and other specific policies, our experts can also help you determine if these insurance types are suitable for you.
3. Athlete insurance can prepare you for unexpected or unwanted situations
The pandemic has shown us firsthand how unexpected situations can have far-reaching impacts on the physical, financial, and organizational well-being of athletes and teams at all levels. Professional, college, high school, and even younger athletic leagues have all felt these effects. Learn more in our resource on insuring youth sports teams in the age of coronavirus.
Sickness, injury, travel, property damage, and other unexpected or unwanted situations are all very real and plausible occurrences. Athletic insurance policies can help prepare you to handle them with minimal loss so you can maintain financial health.
For example, if your sport holds tournaments, races, or other competitions, have you thought about how the competitive spirit can increase the potential for injury and property damage among the attendees, not just the athletes? Tournament insurance, accident medical insurance, and other policies can protect your financial interests in the event of the unexpected.
Athlete insurance can protect your scholarship opportunities
As described above, athletic scholarship protection insurance provides peace of mind for student-athletes who have earned scholarships to attend college. Accidents and injuries that prevent college athletes from competing for their college as planned should not prevent them from getting a valuable college education.
In these situations, athletic scholarships insurance can help ensure the student-athlete is still able to attend their scholarship school. A college education is a critical stepping stone to a secure future, whether the student chooses to pursue an athletic career or not. College athletes should not have to risk their opportunities and futures as they continue training and competing.
5. Athlete insurance can protect your career & future
For college athletes hoping to get drafted or professional athletes whose income depends on their athletic performance, athletic insurance can provide financial protection in the event of permanent or temporary injury, disability, or loss of value.
Example insurance policies that can help protect your career include Exceptional Student-Athlete Disability Insurance, Permanent Total Disability Insurance, Temporary Total Disability Insurance, and Athlete Loss-of-Value Insurance. Loss-of-value insurance is typically purchased as additional coverage on a permanent total disability insurance policy.
Professional athletes should always have some form of disability insurance to hedge against the risk that they may be too ill or injured to work, particularly if their sports season provides a relatively short window of playable time. College athletes should also protect themselves in this way so that if something affects their physical health before they can play professionally, their financial health will remain intact.
Athlete insurance policies provide peace of mind that if you get sick or hurt, you’ll still be able to protect your career, your future, and your financial health. You can find athletic insurance policies that cover any situations you can think of, including travel, equipment, bodily injury, and property damage.
The people and situations that can benefit from athlete insurance range widely, from athletes to coaches, from event organizers to sponsor organizations, and everyone in between. No matter who you are and what your situation is, your experts at ESP Specialty can answer your questions and help you figure out what policies you need for comprehensive protection at the best prices.
Learn more about athlete insurance by reaching out to ESP Specialty today.
