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member to member liability insuranceWhen arranging liability cover for a group or club member to member liability is a consideration but what is member to member liability insurance and is it automatically included in to group insurances?

Public liability insurance for groups, societies, clubs and other organisations.

When a club or group seeks to protect itself from claims made against it in respect of it’s liability for property damage or personal injury to third parties, a public liability policy will be issued in the name of the group.  The “group” is then the insured in respect of the policy and it is the group that is protected against claims.

The individual members of the group are not treated as third parties and as such if an individual member of the club is legally liable for personal injury or property damage sustained by another member of the club they would not be covered under the group policy unless the cover has been extended to include member to member liability.

What is member to member liability?

An extension to the public liability policy must be included in the policy wording, this states that the individual members of the group may be treated by the insurer as being insured themselves, this may seem a trivial point to some, but it is vital if members are to be protected against third party claims by other members.

This is an example of a typical member to member extension under a liability policy;

MM2. Member to Member Endorsement

This Policy is extended to include liability where so requested by the Insured as if any individual Policy has been issued to each member of the Insured.

PROVIDED THAT:

(a) this Policy will not apply where more specific insurance is in force.

(b) nothing contained herein shall be deemed to increase the Company’s liability under the Limit of Indemnity.

liability insuranceWho needs member to member liability insurance?

This should be considered by any insured where it represents the interests of a group of individuals or members. Sporting Clubs, Community Action Groups, Re-enactment Societies, committees and so on and so forth. The legal status of the insured is irrelevant to this issue whether the interests of a golf club are represented by a limited company or a group of local volunteers who have formed a local community action group. The principal is the same irrespective of the insured’s legal status.

There has been some confusion in the past regarding member to member cover and employers liability insurance. These are two distinct issues if a club or organisation has employees then they must have employers liability insurance. This protects the insured in respect of claims made against it for ot’s legal liability for death, disease and personal injury sustained by an employee during the course of their employment.

This issue relates solely to the individual members being treated as an insured themselves thereby enabling action under the policy from another member.

How do I obtain member to member liability cover?

For most specialist club insurance policies the cover should be included as standard. You need to check the public liability section of the policy wording to make sure that this is the case. For less specialist and general liability insurance policies, you may be offered it or you may have to ask for it. Cover is generally available for most clubs and groups.

How much does member to member liability insurance cost?

For many straightforward risks under specialist policies the cost of the extension will be automatically included in the insurers pricing for the policy. For other policies the cost and availability of the cover will depend upon the groups the type of group and the activities it undertakes. For some groups the cost of the extension may have a significant effect on the premium that you pay.

if you require any further assistance on this issue please contact us directly to discuss your requirements. If you require liability insurance for your group or society, you can apply on-line or call us to discuss your needs with a broker.