Wednesday, February 24, 2010

A Note on Accident & Liability Insurance for Dojo Instructors

I have recently been doing a lot of research about accident and liability insurance and how it applies to me and my dojo. This is something of vital importance to every martial arts instructor and is not something that should be taken for granted, even if you are part of a larger organization that is supposed to have you covered insurance-wise.

Having spoken to the insurance broker responsible for our coverage, he told me of a number of horror stories in which sport participants were not covered by insurance because of technicalities that the sport association people in charge were not aware of.

I want to warn all martial arts school instructors everywhere that whether you have your own private accident/liability insurance coverage or you are obtaining it through a sporting organization, be sure to read your insurance policies in detail. If you're a member of a sports organization, make sure you also read its constitution and bylaws to so you can ensure that you are not operating in a way that would preclude the possibility of insurance coverage.

There can be a number of loopholes that could limit your insurance coverage and it is your responsibility to yourself and your dojo's students to be fully informed so as to ensure safe training for all.

(P.S. I haven't forgotten about my promise to do up a video showing some ground defense in application. I promise to get to it next. Sorry for the delays...)

Monday, February 8, 2010

New Class Times for the Dojo

We've recently decided to expand our evening classes to encourage the growth of our dojo.Since our location is in an industrial business area, we're going to start offering an after work time slot, 5:30 - 7:00pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

While we are expanding my class times, rest assured that we won't "sell out" in the process though. We have no intention of ever becoming a McDojo.