You love horses. You love children. You already teach lessons to children and you’re thinking about starting a day or overnight camp on your farm, complete with trails and swimming.
But have you thought about the level of risk for liability and the insurance you’ll need to cover that risk?
In this report we’ll cover:
- The level of risk for liability
- Common claims against horse camps
- How to plan ahead
- The coverage you need
- Coverage offered by a commercial general liability policy
- Government/insurance standards for coaching
How High Is My Liability Risk as a Camp?
Whether you’re running an overnight camp or just a day camp, your risk level is high because you’re responsible for your campers for a long duration of time.
To reduce that risk, it’s best to follow industry standards and have continuous supervision with a high counselor-to-camper ratio.
Top Claim Incidents for Horse Camps
Some of the most common claim incidents for horse camps include:
- A camper wanders away from supervision and gets injured
- A camper gets hurt while horseback riding, playing games or participating in another camp activity
How To Plan Ahead
We know you care about the horses and the people who come to your camp. Below are steps you can take to protect yourself against potential accidents.
Enforce barn rules
Develop rules for your environment for both horses and people. Train staff members so they understand rules and procedures. Document procedures.
Plan for emergencies
Emergencies happen. But the more prepared you are, the better chance you have of providing proper care to your horses. Preparation can minimize the severity of any accident.
Develop regular inspections of your property
By inspecting your premises for potential hazards, you can take care of them before an incident occurs.
Prepare a written waiver and review your province’s Occupiers’ Liability Act
Your province's Occupiers’ Liability Act could state that the stable owner/operator owes a duty of care to the people who enter their premises, which assures that any property they bring on your premises is also reasonably safe.
Anyone who participates in horse activities on your premises needs to complete and sign your province’s waiver, if applicable. Make sure to keep signed forms on file and safely stored. You are free to restrict, modify or exclude this duty of care through your written waiver.
Follow Provincial Safety Regulations
Check your provincial safety regulations regarding helmet use for minors and if helmets need to meet certain criteria, such as ASTM, BSI or European Safety Standards. Footwear is also often regulated (i.e. hard-soled footwear with a heel of no less than 1.5 centimeters).
Purchase an equine liability insurance policy
Protect you and your business with an insurance company that knows horses and your business. You want to make sure that any legal fees are covered, claim costs and settlements to ensure that in the case of an accident, your business doesn’t suffer a financial loss.
Why You Need Equestrian Facility Insurance
When you start to use your property for a business, you need equestrian facility insurance plan. You want to protect your property, your horses and your income.
Some key elements you’ll need include:
- Liability cover of up to $5 million, and exceptionally $10 million when you opt to use high-limit umbrella insurance. This protects you from claims and lawsuits for bodily injury, loss of life or property damage allegedly caused by you, your employees or animals in your care or under your supervision.
- Care, custody and control insurance for boarded horses. This covers illness, injury or death caused unintentionally for horses not owned by you. We can also provide horse insurance for horses you own yourself.
- Property insurance for your buildings, outbuildings, barns, stables and other structures. We can also make sure it covers the buildings’ contents including equipment, tack, feed stores and other materials.
- Professional liability coverage for individual coaches against allegations of professional incompetence, mistakes and erroneous advice.
- Loss of income coverage in the event your operation is disrupted due to insured perils.
- Additional special risks equine facility insurance for one-off or special events, including those held off-site.
- Commercial and farm vehicle insurance.
What’s Included in the Commercial General Liability Policy?
The policy gives you maximum limits or amounts of liability insurance for:
- Lawsuits for bodily injury or property damage caused by conducting your business operations.
- Legal defense costs: You can save your business the financial burden of court costs if you’re sued, whether or not the case has merit.
- Claims or settlement costs: Without this policy, the business could be held responsible for bodily injury and property damage claims.
NOTE: You must have a qualified lifeguard on duty for any swimming activities if you have a pond or a pool.
Equine Facility Operation Standards
Depending on the commercial venture you’re starting, if it involves horses, there are minimum safety standards for activities including coaching, trail rides, equine assisted learning and pony rides.
For coaching, the Equestrian Canada offers coaching certification, registration and licensing
(This isn’t required by law or for your insurance.)
Also check your provincial safety regulations regarding helmet use for minors and if helmets need to meet certain criteria, such as ASTM, BSI or European Safety Standards. Footwear is also often regulated (i.e. hard-soled footwear with a heel of no less than 1.5 centimeters).
We think it’s great that you’re sharing your love of horses with others. By teaching your campers respect and care for horses, you’re giving them a great opportunity.
Get Horse Camp Insurance Today
At Henry Equestrian, Powered by NFP, we think it’s great you want to share your love of horses with others and want to make sure you’re protected. Contact us today to learn more or click below for a free, no-obligation quote.