Swim School Business Insurance

Getting insurance for your swim school is essential.

As the owner of a swim school, you will need to protect yourself from a variety of foreseeable risks, including swimming-related accidents and worker-related disputes.

Depending on the size of your business, you will likely also want to take proactive steps to cover the cost of repairing and/or replacing your swim school’s equipment in the event that it gets damaged.

We’ll help you find the most personalized and affordable coverage for your unique business.

Recommended: Next Insurance is dedicated to matching small businesses with the right policy at the best price.

Best Insurance for a Swim School Business

General liability insurance is — generally speaking — one of the most important insurance policies for swim school businesses.

Some of the risks general liability insurance covers are:

Bodily injury
Property damage
Medical payments
Legal defense and judgment
Personal and advertising injury

Even so, your business will likely benefit from purchasing additional coverage. This is because a general liability policy is inherently limited in some aspects, such as in the event that:

Your equipment gets damaged or stolen: You will need to have acquired commercial property coverage.
An employee files a wrongful termination claim against you: You will need to have acquired workers’ compensation coverage.
You are required to temporarily shut down: You will need to have acquired business interruption coverage.

You will also need to decide what type of business insurer is better tailored towards your business’s needs. There are two basic options available:

Traditional insurers: Common choices for small business owners include The Hartford, Nationwide, and Hiscox.
Online insurers: Common choices for small business owners include Tivly and Next Insurance.

We believe that online insurers are the most efficient option when it comes to small and new businesses. This is due to the fact that they have significantly lower operating costs, and can thus afford to offer personalized coverage at much lower rates.

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Cost of General Liability Insurance

The average swim school in America spends between $300-$800 per year for $1 million in general liability coverage.

Compare the average cost of general liability insurance for a swim school business to other professional industries using the graph below.

Several factors will determine the price of your policy. These include your:

Location
Deductible
Number of employees
Per-occurrence limit
General aggregate limit

You may be able to acquire general liability insurance at a discounted rate by purchasing it as part of a business owner’s policy (BOP) rather than as a standalone policy.

A BOP is a more comprehensive solution that includes multiple forms of coverage, such as business interruption and property insurance.

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Common Situations That General Liability Insurance May Cover for a Swim School Business

Example 1: A student is walking from the locker room to the pool when she slips, falls, and hits her head. She sustains a concussion and requires medical care. Your general liability insurance will likely pay for her medical treatment.

Example 2: The parents of a potential student are visiting your facility when the father misses a step and falls, twisting his knee and requiring medical care. He decides to file a lawsuit against your business. The general liability insurance policy you carry will pay for your legal fees, including the cost of a settlement if you settle out of court.

Example 3: One of your competitors has accused your business of libel, claiming that you printed false claims against their business in your last advertising campaign. The general liability insurance policy you have will pay for your legal defense in the case of libel accusations. It will also pay for a settlement if necessary.

Other Types of Coverage Swim School Businesses Need

While general liability is the most important type of insurance to have, there are several other forms of coverage you should be aware of. Below are some of the most common types of coverage:

Professional Liability Insurance

As a professional swim instructor, it is important that you have liability insurance tailored to your job. Professional liability insurance is designed around the specific risks you face in your profession. If you are facing a lawsuit from a customer, such as if they claim your lessons were inadequate and caused them harm, your professional liability insurance will cover your legal fees.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

The swim instructors you hire to help with your business need to be covered by workers’ compensation insurance, both so you can meet state legal mandates and for their own protection. It will pay for treating work-related injuries as well as help cover lost wages due to work-related injuries.

Commercial Auto Insurance

If you have a vehicle that you use primarily for business, such as traveling to different locations to teach swimming lessons, then you need commercial auto insurance. It will ensure that you meet the legal requirements for commercial vehicles in your state and will provide financial help in the event of an accident—both for property damage and for medical treatment for injuries.

Commercial Umbrella Insurance

An umbrella policy picks up where a general liability policy leaves off. So, if you find yourself in a situation where the limits of your general liability policy are exceeded, such as losing a big lawsuit, your umbrella policy would begin to pay for damages.

Additional Steps To Protect Your Business

Although it’s easy (and essential) to invest in business insurance, it shouldn’t be your only defense.

Here are several things you can do to better protect your swim school business:

Use legally robust contracts and other business documents. (We offer free templates for some of the most common legal forms.)
Set up an LLC or corporation to protect your personal assets. (Visit our step-by-step guides to learn how to form an LLC or corporation in your state.)
Stay up to date with business licensing.
Maintain your corporate veil.

Swim School Business Insurance FAQ

Yes, absolutely. You will need to first get a quote from an online business insurance provider like Next Insurance. Next allows you to then purchase a policy immediately and your coverage will be active within 48 hours.

A typical business owner’s policy includes general liability, business interruption, and commercial property insurance. However, BOPs are often customizable, so your agent may recommend adding professional liability, commercial auto, or other types of coverage to your package depending on your company’s needs.

"Business insurance" is a generic term used to describe many different types of coverage a business may need. General liability insurance, on the other hand, is a specific type of coverage that business owners need to protect their assets.

Yes, even if you’re not “required” to have it. You will want to avoid a situation in which liability arises (e.g., as a result of a swimming-related accident, etc.) and you do not have the right business insurance policy. This can cost you a lot of money and can significantly impact whether you will be able to continue operating or not.

Not necessarily. Certain exceptions may be written directly into your swim school business insurance policy, and some perils may be entirely uninsurable.

Yes, an LLC is meant to create a legal barrier between your business and your personal assets and credit. If you haven’t formed an LLC yet, use our Form an LLC guide to get started.

An LLC doesn’t protect your business assets from lawsuits and liability– that’s where business insurance comes in. Business insurance helps protect your business from liability and risk.