Over my amateur rugby career playing around the world I have played with several players who wish they had realized the importance of having, or at least being aware of the limitations of their insurance.
In general, all UK rugby players are covered by the Rugby Football Union’s personal accident insurance policy provided they are playing in an RFU affiliated club. Rugby players in schools, colleges and universities are also covered by this policy.
Whilst that sounds like good news, the rugby union’s insurance policy which members are automatically enrolled into provides only basic coverage. This can leave players in a bad situation should the worst happen.
Let’s find out what level of protection is actually on offer.
UK Rugby Player Insurance Policy
In general, rugby clubs in the UK are affiliated with the Rugby Football Union (RFU), i.e. they pay membership fees to the RFU, and in return clubs and registered players benefit from the insurance deals that the RFU have brokered.
The RFU in the UK have arranged public liability insurance and personal accident insurance for members of the scheme through Howden Insurance Brokers Ltd.
What do these policies include, I hear you ask?
Public Liability Insurance For UK Rugby Players
Public liability insurance means that if it can be proven that you as a player have caused injury, loss or damage to another player, referee, or coach through negligence then you become legally liable to pay compensation to the injured person(s).
The RFU in England have got cover for this to the amount of £25 million. So, if you injure another player at the same or another club in a game or a training session and you are found guilty of negligence then you are covered up to this amount.
Schools, clubs, and universities are not covered by the RFU’s public liability policy and these educational establishments need to arrange their own cover.
This is one of the main reasons that rugby is not taken up as much by schools because of the risks involved and the necessity to acquire insurance.
Furthermore, you can understand the RFU’s position. Whilst they can ensure that club coaches and referees meet certain standards through their registration process they cannot ensure the standards of a teacher in school who is perhaps just running a school rugby club on a more casual basis and perhaps has no specific qualifications in the game.
Bottom line, rugby players in schools are not automatically covered by the RFU for public liability but they are covered by the personal accident policy.
By the way you can also read: Do rugby players in the US need insurance?
Personal Accident Insurance For UK Rugby Players
The Rugby Football Union’s personal accident insurance policy is really intended for only the most dire situations, including: permanent disability, death, or catastrophic injuries such as spinal cord and brain injuries.
Let’s hope you never need to claim for any of these benefits:
| £50,000 | Death (Under 16s – £20,000) |
| £50,000 | Permanent total disability from your usual job. |
| £300,000 | Permanent total disability from any type of work. |
| £100,000 | Loss of two limbs, eyes, or hearing in both ears. |
| £25,000 | Loss of one limb, eye, hearing in one ear. |
| £25 | Per each 24 hour stay in hospital (max 1,000) |
NB, Only the single largest sum will be paid in the event of a disabling injury not a cumulation of all of them.
A separate scheme exists for traumatic brain, spinal cord injuries with a payout of up to £300,000 funded by the RFU Injured Players Association.
It should be noted that there are a couple of significant exclusions. Injuries related to a preexisting medical condition are not covered, and any loss of income is not covered.
School, colleges and university rugby players are covered by the RFU’s personal accident insurance policy to the same degree as club players.
You might want to read: Do you need insurance to play rugby?
Key Warning
For me this is the most important point that rugby players need to be aware of, particularly amateur rugby players.
If your job involves some sort of manual labour that you won’t be able to do as a result of, for example, breaking your collarbone on a Saturday afternoon then your employer is likely not going to pay you and you, therefore, have no salary coming in.
Imagine having a wife, two kids, and a mortgage and car payments to cover each month. This has the potential to cause all manner of problems and stress for the injured player. I know, as I have been in this exact situation, except I got lucky.
I was playing recreational amateur rugby abroad with an organised club but one that was not affiliated to any governing body and it certainly did not organise insurance on behalf of players.
Unfortunately, I was playing against the Thai navy and I snapped all three ligaments in my shoulder. It was like a gunshot going off next to my ear as I tackled a player. My arm was left just hanging by my side with no movement possible.
Fast forward to the operating table and the bill came to a eye watering £6,000.
Fortunately, my work’s health insurance scheme did cover for me for sport and the entire sum of money including the physio for months afterwards was covered. This was such a relief as there was no way I could really afford that easily.
My boss was understanding and a combination of taking holidays and sick days meant I could recover at home for a couple of weeks before going back to my teaching job. Had this been a manual job and had I not had good health insurance then I would have been in serious financial difficulty.
In the UK, I played with two players who suffered ‘catastrophic injuries. One poor lad broke his neck at sixteen and has not walked since, and another player dislocated his knee and hip and did not walk for years.
These serious injuries do happen and if you do play a lot of rugby then I would give it some serious thought.
You might also want to read: Rugby Travel Insurance: What You Need To Know
So, should you get a private rugby player insurance policy?
Rugby players would get a sense of security and benefits above and beyond the RFU’s basic public insurance policy. The main advantage being that you can arrange personal loss of income insurance in case of serious injury and gain coverage for other geographical regions outside the RFU’s reach.
You might be interested in: How much do rugby players in the UK earn?
Key Sources:
The RFU Rugby Insurance Centre in partnership with Howden
England Rugby Insurance FAQs
Image Credits
Benjamin Fall sort sur blessure lors de la rencontre Stade toulousain vs Racing métro 92 du 10 septembre 2011 comptant pour la troisième journée de top 14 2011-2012. Léna, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
