FAQ (Insurance)

If you are a coach who is a registered member of a club that is affiliated to the British Softball Federation, you are covered for civil liability insurance while coaching baseball or softball in your club environment. This is through the club's insurance that it obtains through affiliation to the BSF. It might also include personal accident insurance if that is part of the Federation's insurance offering.

If you are a member of the BaseballSoftballUK Coach Licence Scheme, you get civil liability and personal accident cover that extends beyond your club environment to apply wherever you are coaching baseball or softball. Find out more about the Coach Licence Scheme in the coaching section of our website.

Find out more in the insurance section of our website.

Details should be captured in writing at the time of the incident when they are still fresh in the minds of those present, and an incident report should be submitted to BaseballSoftballUK as soon as possible. It would be ideal if the incident report is compiled by a team captain, umpire, coach or event organiser, by speaking to the people involved and any witnesses.

In the case of an incident that might lead to a claim on the civil liability insurance (i.e. where someone might claim negligence on the part of your club) it is crucial you do not admit liability or agree to pay for any damage caused as this could result in the insurers not meeting the claim. The club should not issue compensation payment on the assumption that it will be reimbursed when the insurance claim is processed. Liability will be assessed by the insurers should a claim subsequently arise.

Please visit the insurance section of the BSUK website for a full Guide to Incident Reporting and our standard incident report form

You can find out what is covered by the civil liability and personal accident insurance policies on the insurance section of the BSUK website.

Civil liability claims are based on an allegation of negligence on the part of an insured baseball or softball organisation. If you wish to make a civil liability claim against a baseball or softball organisation and believe your circumstances satisfy the criteria of the civil liability insurance cover, your claim should be put in writing to the insurance brokers.

For a summary of the insurance cover and contact details for the insurance brokers, please visit the insurance section of the BSUK website.

It is important to report any incident linked to a baseball or softball activity that results in an injury or accident. This could include an injury to an individual or damage to property. By building up a picture of the type of incidents that most commonly occur in our sports, BaseballSoftballUK and the British Softball Federation can look to make improvements to help reduce these in future.

Another reason to report incidents is associated with insurance provision. BaseballSoftballUK is required to maintain a record of any incident that might give rise to an insurance claim, and to pass it on to the insurance brokers for their own records in case a claim arises later.

Please note that sending in the incident report does not automatically make it an insurance issue and does not constitute an insurance claim being made; it is initially just part of our record keeping. We will only forward the record on to the insurance brokers if the incident is something that would be considered under the terms of the insurance policies should a claim arise.

For more information, please read the Guide to Incident Reporting.

If you have been injured during a baseball or softball activity, you should check the summary of insurance cover to see if your circumstances satisfy the criteria of the personal accident cover. If you believe you qualify for a claim, you can download and complete the appropriate claim form, which is available through the BSUK website.
 

Once the claim is made, the insurers will investigate the claim. 

A summary of the insurance cover and to how to make a claim can be found in the insurance section of the BSUK website.

The British Softball Federation require affiliated clubs to have civil liability insurance. They also offer personal accident insurance for club members.

The BSF require that players be registered with their club on the British Softball websites as a condition of insurance. This is to make sure that we can identify who is insured in the event of a claim. These sites also contain information on the affiliation/payment process.

Find out more about insurance.

Insurance is handled as part of the affiliation process between a club and the relevant national governing body (i.e. The British Softball Federation). It works in a slightly different way depending on whether it's baseball or softball:

Generally, it is softball leagues which affiliate and pay an insurance fee to the British Softball Federation. Going down the chain, clubs pay membership and insurance fees to their league, and players pay membership fees to their club, which includes annual insurance cover. The exceptions are tournament teams which don't play in a league but take part in BSF tournaments through the year. They will affiliate directly with the BSF, sometimes done through a tournament entry fee.

Baseball clubs, on the other hand, affiliate with their governing body directly and pay an insurance fee in the process. Players then obtain insurance through membership with their club.

The BSF require that players be registered with their club on the British Softball websites as a condition of insurance. This is to make sure that we can identify who is insured in the event of a claim. These sites also contain information on the affiliation/payment process.

In some cases, a league or team will obtain insurance through the Federations' development agency, BaseballSoftballUK (e.g. by being a member of the Hit the Pitch programme)

Find out more about insurance.