Tennis and padel coaches

Coaches are automatically included under the LTA’s Public Liability policy when they become a current member of LTA Coach Accreditation (both Accredited and Accredited+ tiers). They are insured for the on-court coaching that they are delivering at any venue (including local authority courts/parks) provided that:

• They are working within the remit of their competence (competence is defined as a combination of qualifications, experience and training/CPD)
• Adequate risk assessment has been undertaken by the coach and/or venue to ensure that the venue is fit for play before undertaking coaching.

The limit of indemnity for the LTA’s Public Liability policy is £60m. For professional indemnity, it is £10m.

Yes. If you coach under a trading name (e.g. John Smith t/a Elite Tennis Coaching) then you are working as a sole trader and so cover will still apply.

Public Liability cover is provided to you as an individual coach and includes cover for coaching you perform as a sole trader (i.e. under a "trading as" style). If you have formed a limited company, and you are the only employee as the Accredited/Accredited+ Coach, Public Liability cover remains in place. However, if you, as a limited company have more than one employee, then the cover is no longer valid. Coaches in this scenario should arrange specific insurance for a business, separate to that of the LTA’s Public Liability insurance.

If you wish to enquire about why or to arrange this cover, please contact Howden directly on 0121 698 8160.

Please see the below link which details the coaching liability decision tree.

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No. You must be currently an Accredited/Accredited+ Coach to benefit from the LTA’s insurance package. If you are employed (i.e. you are not self-employed) by a venue that is a registered LTA venue, you will be captured under their Public Liability Policy – but only if employed and when working at that one specific venue.

Please note, you are not insured if you are within your Coach Accreditation grace period.

No. 

Yes, the LTA’s Public Liability insurance held by an Accredited or Accredited + will provide cover. This is on the understanding that the Level 1 (assistant) coach is under your direct supervision. Direct Supervision = Assisting a coach as part of a single session, of children or adults, following the same curriculum for that session, usually on the same or directly adjacent courts but always in line of sight of the assistant coach throughout the session. In addition, you will be protected by Employers Liability.

Yes, as long as they are working under your umbrella programme as a higher qualified (typically Level 3 or above) coach, and you are currently Accredited/Accredited+.However please note that the cover does not extend to the unaccredited coach if they are sued personally – only you are covered. For a more extensive definition of ‘umbrella programme’ see below.

Yes. If you are employed, then you must ensure you are covered by the business insurance of the company that is employing you. If you are employed at an LTA registered venue, then you will have cover through their policy whilst working at that specific venue. However, if you are not formally employed (i.e. contracted/self-employed) then you would need your own Public Liability insurance to be insured – irrespective of your level of qualification. A cost-effective way to attain this cover would be to become LTA Accredited.

Your LTA Public Liability cover is valid if you are competent for the activity you are undertaking. Competence is defined as the combination of qualifications, experience and training/CPD combined.  If you coach outside your remit of competence, then the LTA Public Liability insurance you receive as part of being Accredited may be void and may not cover you.

Level 1 coaches are trained to directly assist tennis sessions under direct supervision (i.e. line of sight) of a higher qualified coach.

Level 2s are trained to work independently in a group-based coaching context. Coaching individual lessons where bespoke tactical and technical instruction is provided through the ‘coaching process’, is outside of this remit of what the LTA Level 1 and 2 qualifications cover.

Your LTA Public Liability cover is valid if you have the competence (appropriate qualifications, experience and training/CPD) to undertake the activity you are delivering. Cardio Tennis requires a Level 2 qualification or above, and/or the one-day Cardio Tennis CPD training. Cardio Tennis is included within the LTA Instructor (Level 2), which launched on 1/9/2021

Please ensure you carry out appropriate Risk Assessments for such activity.

Yes. Your LTA Public Liability cover is valid if you have the competence (appropriate qualifications, experience and training/CPD) to undertake the activity you are delivering. Therefore, your LTA Public Liability insurance will cover you to run a tennis camp that includes non-tennis multi-sport activities, as long as they form part of the overall tennis programme for the camp.

Please ensure you carry out appropriate Risk Assessments for such activity.

Please see the section above on Personal Accident insurance

Your bespoke business public liability insurance supersedes the LTA Public Liability insurance you receive as a member of Coach Accreditation; however your Personal Accident cover, SportsCare Physiotherapy protection and the legal advice service are still valid and available to you (Accredited+ only). 

You are insured to coach pickleball as an LTA Accredited tennis coach on the basis that you are competent. Competence is defined as the combination of appropriate qualifications, experience, and training. The LTA recommends getting training or attending CPD on pickleball but if you hold an LTA tennis coaching qualification (Instructor or above), you will be insured to lead pickleball sessions. As with all activities, please ensure it is adequately risk assessed.

As an active coach you need to be LTA Accredited to hold public liability insurance. If you are not LTA Accredited, you will not have public liability insurance as a coach so we recommend anyone active to get LTA Accredited. However, Qualification Learners are subject to an exception. A Qualification Learner is defined as anyone who is currently enrolled on, and actively working toward completing an LTA Qualification.
 
The LTA recommend that you are open with your clients and venue that you are in training and yet to complete the course.
 
Specifically, Qualification Learners will have public liability in place for a period of six months from the date of the last contact day of the core training. Cover extends to any coaching activity on court that is reasonably required for the purposes of passing a course. Specifically this will include cover for the eight hours work experience, and any associated on-court practice lessons/sessions working toward their summative assessment.
 
If you wish to be insured by the LTA beyond this six month window, you should get LTA Accredited.

Yes. If a coach has the competence (combination of appropriate qualifications, experience and training/CPD) to deliver a specific type of session or tennis product e.g. LTA Youth Start then they will be insured under LTA's Public Liability Policy.

In the case of LTA Youth Start, the session is group based with beginners, so within the remit of competence of someone who has completed the Level 2 Qualification. Furthermore, coaches also receive dedicated training, prescriptive lesson plans, resources and support, which combined ensure that the coach is deployed in a safe manner and are delivering within their remit of competence.

LTA Level 2/Instructors have not been trained to deliver private lessons. However, qualifications alone do not provide a full picture of a coach’s competence. From an insurance perspective, competence is what counts. It is defined as the combination of qualifications, experience and training combined. For this reason, it is not possible for the LTA to definitively say what all level 2 coaches can or cannot do – because every coach is different.

If an accident arose, each claim is looked at on a case-by-case basis. Venues/coaches can reduce the risk that their insurance will be invalidated by satisfying themselves that the coach has a sufficient combination of qualifications experience and training to undertake the activity.

The use of an LTA Level 3 qualified or above coach, where possible, will help to maximise quality and minimise risk, because an LTA Level 3 Qualification specifically covers the competencies linked to delivering bespoke technical/tactical instruction i.e. private lessons/1to1 coaching. 

Yes, as long as the Level 2/Instructor is delivering within their remit of competence. Competence is defined as the combination of qualifications, experience and training combined. Best practice would be to work under a more experienced and qualified coach for guidance, mentoring and/or support. However, this is not a mandatory requirement from the perspective of the LTA. If a claim is brought against you, you will need to demonstrate you are competent for the work you have been undertaking.

Yes. Hitting as a practise partner with a total absence of technical and tactical instruction would be considered as facilitating play, not coaching, and will therefore not automatically invalidate your insurance. As with any insurance claim, each case is looked at thoroughly and on a case by case basis. If a claim is brought against a coach, the competence of the coach is what would be reviewed (qualifications, experience and training/CPD combined).

As an active coach you need to be LTA Accredited to hold public liability insurance. If you are not LTA Accredited, you will not have public liability insurance as a coach so we recommend anyone active to become LTA Accredited. However, Qualification Learners are subject to an exception. A Qualification Learner is defined as anyone who is currently enrolled on, and actively working toward completing an LTA Qualification.
 
The LTA recommend that you are open with your clients and venue that you are in training and yet to complete the course. 
 
As part of the LTA Coach (Level 3) you are trained extensively on how to deliver bespoke instruction through the coaching process. It is therefore deemed reasonable that you would undertake private/1to1 lessons as a Qualification Learner. Therefore public liability cover for this activity will be in place. Please note, this is for a period of six months after the last day of core training. If you wish to be insured by the LTA beyond this date, you should get LTA Accredited (if not already LTA Accredited).
 
As with any activity, what you specifically deliver on-court should be guided by your remit of competence (the combination of qualifications, experience and training combined). In the case of a Qualification Learner currently on their LTA Coach (Level 3), this extra training and experience from the course curriculum is taken into account for insurance purposes (if sued by a client).

Coaches who are LTA Accredited will have first aid training in place. If a coach is not LTA Accredited but undertaking work experience as part of the qualification, they should ensure a) they have first aid in place in time for their work experience or b) they are doing their experience in a venue where there is a trained first aider on site and readily available. Having first aid in place ahead of final qualification assessment should be seen as the latest point at which they can undertake the training.

It is also important to remember that a coach is not insured through the LTA unless they are currently LTA Accredited, with the exception of Level 1s who are covered by the venue policy (assuming they are in their role as an assistant with line of sight supervision).

You are insured through LTA Coach Accreditation if you work within your remit of competence. This is defined as the combination of qualifications, experience and training combined. If you are activating padel (facilitating play not coaching) then as an LTA Accredited coach you would have the competence and will be covered as long as you adhere to the health and safety, session management and organisation skills learnt as a Level 2 and above tennis coach. If you are looking to engage in coaching (including technical and tactical development) you should have dedicated and recognised padel training in place to be insured to ensure you are competent.

We recommend that all coaches looking to deliver padel instruction/coaching get relevant and recognised padel coach qualification training.

The combination of qualifications, experience and training combined. Qualifications in isolation do not constitute a coach’s competence, but they do play a significant role.

Defined as where a higher qualified (typically Level 3 or above) Accredited+ coach provides regular guidance and support to coaches working within a programme. This advice can occur through direct supervision (see below) or more broadly e.g. weekly team meetings, internal team training/CPD, one-to-one meetings, regular coaching/performance feedback. To be considered part of an ‘umbrella programme’, a coach would regularly (at least 1 hour per week) be coaching at the same venue as the higher qualified coach, for it to be considered as under the umbrella programme.

Assisting a coach as part of a single session, of children or adults, following the same curriculum for that session, usually on the same or directly adjacent courts but always with line of sight of the assistant coach throughout the session.

Negligence refers to when a coach fails to take proper care which results in an incident. Most often this can occur as a result of poor or incorrect coaching or omissions in advice that you should have provided as a coach to ensure safety.

Refers to the state of being legally responsible for something. If you are held liable, it essentially means you are at fault or to blame for an incident. 

Refers to whom legal action is taken against. This is the choice of the plaintiff (person suing). In any incident a coach, a club, or assistant coach (or all three) could be sued in relation to any incident. For this reason it is important for both the venue and the coach to hold their own Public Liability insurance.

Refers to acting in a way that would be deemed appropriate by the majority of competent industry professionals and can be deemed as fair. If you don’t feel you can justify what you are doing, then this may indicate cause for concern or be deemed as not reasonable.