Assessing Playground Insurance Needs: General Liability and Beyond
As summer break draws closer, kids flock back to school along Florida’s Gulf Coast. The afterglow of those carefree summer days, filled with laughter, running, and playing, begins to meet the rising excitement of the new school year. Lasting friendships, opportunities for learning, fond memories, and the promise of new beginnings await! Far too often, this sense of back-to-school joyful exuberance gives way to less desirable student outcomes: bumps, bruises, scraped knees, and sometimes more severe injuries, like broken bones, dislocations, and concussions. To mitigate these risks, it’s essential to explore general liability insurance options for playgrounds, which cover accidents and injuries occurring on such premises. According to the National Program for Playground Safety, 75% of playground injuries involving children ages 5-12 require an emergency room visit. This statistic underscores the need for robust playground insurance to protect against potential liabilities.
It’s a startling statistic and a reminder that playgrounds are fraught with danger, especially in active communities like Sarasota and Manatee. As a head of school or key administrator, you face liability and risks if you have playground equipment on your premises.
Insurance Coverage: What You Need for Playground Safety
There are many ways a child or adult can get injured on a playground. Most instances are covered under your general liability insurance. Two insurance products are especially important if you have a playground on your property: premises liability and commercial umbrella insurance. These are often paired with a general liability policy.
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Premises liability covers incidents that occur on your business premises. It may also include product liability coverage for injuries caused by a faulty playground product.
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Commercial umbrella covers costs associated with an event that surpasses your general liability coverage limits. Judgments against business owners often fall in the million-dollar range. A commercial umbrella can help offset those costs.
You can also find coverage through an accident policy or possibly your med pay limit through the General Liability aggregate.
Keeping Your Playground Safe
Insurance is not the only way to protect your school or church against playground injuries. Be proactive and ensure your playground equipment in good working condition. Inspect the playground area often to identify potential problems before anyone gets hurt. Here are 10 safety tips to help prevent playground injuries:
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Post signs with playground rules. Your sign should include clothing items that must not be worn (drawstrings, very loose clothing, flip-flops, etc.) because of safety hazards.
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Increase adult supervision at the playground. This may mean hiring one or two people to ensure children use the equipment properly and enforce posted playground rules.
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Make sure children are using the equipment appropriate for their age and post signage regarding ages.
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Eliminate nails, bold ends and other sharp points. Inspect the playground structures periodically for any loose or exposed nails.
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Allow for adequate space around play equipment. For example, structures more than 30 inches high must be 9 feet apart. Also, front and back areas around swing sets should be two times the height of the suspending bar. Consider limiting the number of children who may use the equipment at the same time.
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Install guardrails, handrails or barriers for platforms higher than 30 inches. Ensure there are bars and barriers that will keep children from falling off walkways leading to various sections of playscapes.
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Beware of spaces where small heads can get stuck. Ensure openings between bars, ladder rungs, rails, and cargo net ropes are less than 3.5 inches or more than 9 inches wide.
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Clear and clean the play area often. Rocks, tree stumps, roots, garbage, liquids, or other debris can cause slip, trip, or fall hazards.
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Install safety ground cover. Surfaces around playground equipment should have wood chips, mulch, pea gravel, or sand that’s at least 12 inches deep, or mats made of safety-tested rubber.
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Hire a professional playground inspector. Make professional playground inspection a part of your safety and maintenance checklist. (The National Program for Playground Safety has a database of certified inspectors in your area.)
Playgrounds are one of the many joys of childhood. But they’re also dangerous. If you have a playground or playground equipment on your premises in Sarasota, you must be prepared to manage the risk of severe injury. In addition to regular equipment checkups, increasing your liability coverage in Sarasota may be prudent. Speak with your insurance professional for help navigating playground hazards and finding the best coverage for your business needs.
