UK Athletics and Marsh Launch New Insurance Hub

05 May 2022

UK Athletics and Marsh Launch New Insurance Hub

UK Athletics, in conjunction with the Home Country Athletics Federations, and Marsh – the appointed insurance broker - are today launching the new UKA Insurance Hub to access all the essential information on the area for those involved in the sport.

The new website outlines details of the insurance provided as part of your affiliation, how to report an incident, some frequently asked questions and details of additional insurance options you might wish to consider.

UKA Insurance Hub

It covers insurance details for athletes, clubs and organisations, technical officials, school associations, event organisers and promoters, licensed coaches and run leaders, as well as providing thorough FAQs (frequently asked questions) and a link to report an incident.

Insurance is the foundation of Marsh’s activity, but it is in place to cover the unforeseen as opposed to being a quality marker to everyday athletics activity.

The sport benefits from robust insurance cover for its affiliated clubs and coaches across the HCAF’s and other associated organisations, and this level of cover is something we wish to maintain. However, it must be understood that whilst insurance may in principle be in place, the actions that are covered must be reasonable.

UKA along with the HCAF’s provide guidance and standards for athletics activity. The guidance and standards exist to ensure that athletics clubs, coaches, competition, and participation all happen to an acceptable standard which is in line with good practice. Part of the guidance and standards form the basis of licenses issued to coaches, officials or competitions, so breaching these could be seen as actions that are unreasonable.

Safety Lead at UK Athletics, Ash Charlwood, said,

“We are certain that all involved within athletics will subscribe to the position that we collectively want high quality athletics at all levels across the UK. This is not an insurance issue. Insurance is in place to cover the unforeseen as opposed to driving quality.

“UKA and the HCAF’s wish to avoid actions outside of the guidance and standards being tested for reasonableness in court following an incident. This can be incredibly stressful for all involved and largely unnecessary.

“Therefore, we would advocate that all involved with athletics always participate within the guidance and standards relevant to their chosen athletic activity. In doing so, the quality of activity is high, and the insurance will respond in the way needed and required.”

The UK Athletics Insurance zone can be accessed here: https://www.uka.org.uk/about/what-we-do/insurance/?locale=en

The platform will continue to undergo enhancements over the next two months; however, it will be fully operable during this time.