Disclaimer for kids soccer group organiser

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BlueSpud

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I am organising a game of soccer once a week for the kids in my sons class (7 year olds), as they have limited opportunity to play in and after school. We have an organised session one evening a week with a great turnout, but I am concerned that if anything goes wrong, myself & other organisers might find ourselves on the receiving end of a law suit. I do not want to go down the route of forming a club and all that goes with it, as we will only play in May/June & Sept/Oct.

What I would like is to get my hands on a disclaimer that the parents would sign to say that the parents are responsible for their own kids and not the organisers.

Anybody got anything that I could use, that is known to be solid?
 
vanillas right bluespud. Call First Ireland at 01-8820818 and ask for a First Ireland Club Care Quotation. They'll give you all the info you need.
Theres another crowd called ODriscoll/ONeill who used to do sports insurance not sure if they still do and I dont have a number for them.

Also, ask the kids if their parents have health insurance, they should be covered under that, VHI/BUPA policys would be be far better then anything youd get from sports insurers.
 
Be carefull especially in the area of child protection. Soccer coaches have to undergo training to avoid incorrect accusations being levied at them. For instance there should always be two adults present when you are coaching or transporting kids. I would say you have to join a club!
 
BlueSpud said:
What I would like is to get my hands on a disclaimer that the parents would sign to say that the parents are responsible for their own kids and not the organisers.

Anybody got anything that I could use, that is known to be solid?
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Sad that this is the world we live in that you cannot do such a thing without personal risk. Will have to cover bases in red tape and insurance as the others say. May make it financially infeasible thoguh :-(
 
simplyjoe said:
Be carefull especially in the area of child protection. Soccer coaches have to undergo training to avoid incorrect accusations being levied at them. For instance there should always be two adults present when you are coaching or transporting kids. I would say you have to join a club!
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In this situation, most of the parents will be present, and we will not be transporting tids to play matches. The games will be among themselves.
 
car said:
Call First Ireland at 01-8820818 and ask for a First Ireland Club Care Quotation.
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Called these guys and they said that they will only cover us if we form a club and play against other teams......



car said:
vanillas right bluespud.
....
Also, ask the kids if their parents have health insurance, they should be covered under that, VHI/BUPA policies would be be far better then anything youd get from sports insurers.
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Surely the above is inconsistent. If the VHI/BUPA policies would do, we would not need for cover at all.

As most parents will be present, I don't expect issues with child protection. What I am more concerned about are injury claims. If a child gets a nasty injury, can the parent come after me for negligence, even though I am not purporting to be an expert adhering to well defined guidelines.

The whole thing was my brainchild, but other parents ref the matches etc and are involved in other capacities. Could a number of people be targeted in the event of a problem, and surely a disclaimer should carry a lot of weight, i.e. that the parent knows that the organisers do not take responsibilities on themselves.
 
If the kids parents are present, then I don't see how you could be sued short of you or one of the other parents actually hurting one of the kids. If a group of adults were meeting up once a week for a football game (not unusual) and one of them breaks a leg falling over the ball can he sue the guy who's turn it was to book the venue and send the texts ? If you are not a club, are not holding yourself out as giving lessons for a fee, or offering to mind the kids, then how can you be responsible for them.

Seven year olds are small kids, shouldn't be out and about without a parent, just make sure the parents know that - tell them they have to stay and watch.
 
ramble said:
If the kids parents are present, then I don't see how you could be sued short of you or one of the other parents actually hurting one of the kids. If a group of adults were meeting up once a week for a football game (not unusual) and one of them breaks a leg falling over the ball can he sue the guy who's turn it was to book the venue and send the texts ? If you are not a club, are not holding yourself out as giving lessons for a fee, or offering to mind the kids, then how can you be responsible for them.

Seven year olds are small kids, shouldn't be out and about without a parent, just make sure the parents know that - tell them they have to stay and watch.
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Thats more or less what I feel, but I would like it to be confirmed legally. Guess i will have to go to a solicitor to get a definitive ruling.
 
Surely the above is inconsistent. If the VHI/BUPA policies would do, we would not need for cover at all.
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Ive been involved with soccer clubs for years and insurance is always a greyish area, the general rule seems to be if you form a club that plays against other teams you need to take out team insurance ala that crowd I mentioned, If a player signs for the team then he/she is automatically covered under the teams policy. Ive no connection with any of those companies btw I was just aware that they did sports ins.
However, if you have your own insurance through VHI/BUPA the level of cover you have is generally higher then that through the club insurance. I may be wrong on this but I think if you claim under one policy you cant claim under the other. Not everyone has their own insurance though.
It might depend on the venue as well e.g, private hall/astro pitch/council field as to what level of cover is required as there might be cover already built into whatever monies you're parting with to pay for the facilities.
Fair play for doing it anyway.
 
car said:
It might depend on the venue as well e.g, private hall/astro pitch/council field as to what level of cover is required as there might be cover already built into whatever monies you're parting with to pay for the facilities.
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We are using the local park, and bcos we are not a club, the park dont want to know about us. We are just a bunch meeting for a game of footie & would have to move if they wanted to use the pitch.
 
good on you bluespud for organising such an event.. it's a pity some other parents don't ake such an interest in their kids and do the same...
 
I'm not a moderator actually. I can't see what basis you have for labelling me as childish. Surely your nephew's case is directly relevant to the OP's query on this thread? I don't see much difference, except perhaps the setting...
 
ubiquitous said:
I'm not a moderator actually. I can't see what basis you have for labelling me as childish. Surely your nephew's case is directly relevant to the OP's query on this thread? I don't see much difference, except perhaps the setting...
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Actually the fact that the OP has gone to the bother of asking this question means he is acting in a responsible manner! As you can see from the replies life isn't as straightforward as you seem to think, everyone needs insurance for all sorts of activities these days, you make it sound like anyone who makes a claim for insurance is on the take!
 
This Thread was started by Bluespud regarding his concerns so I'm not getting into a tit for tat with you, your oponion on insurancs is obvious from your posts, your entitled to your oponion and I'm entitled to mine.
 
ubiquitous said:
See http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=55164 for an example of the type of thing you are up against.
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Scary, isn't it, and I am sure there are many that would not even ask if they had a leg to stand on, just jump straight in.

Shame really, I would hate to back out of this gig we organised as we have had almost 100% attendance since we started & the kids love it, even the ones that cant kick a ball.

Spoke to my solicitor & she said she would not like to advise me on the subject as she had no experience. What chance do you have.
 
I agree it is a shame that small events like this cannot take place without the inevitable worry over liability.

I've often had clients come to me in the past about similar issues- from allowing something to take place on their land- to companies organising employees events- to this type of voluntary activity. My advice has always been the same- you could be held liable, so get insurance. If the insurance costs too much, then ask yourself do you want to put your house, your property on the line if one person decides to sue you.

The reality is that no solicitor will draft a disclaimer for you because one does not exist to cover the situation. If you do something negligent and because of that negligence someone is injured then you can be sued. Even where the negligence is questionable, you can still be sued- you might not be held liable, but do you want to face a few years of worry and legal bills before a court verdict?
 
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