Insurance 101 for yoga therapists

We’re excited to share this guest post from our trusted partners at beYogi! If you’ve ever felt confused about yoga therapist insurance, this article breaks down liability coverage with real-life examples to help you better protect your practice.

Key Takeaways

• Yoga Therapists Need Specialized Insurance
  Even gentle modalities carry risk. Insurance protects you from claims related to injuries, accidents, or misunderstandings during sessions so you can focus on your clients.
• Professional and General Liability Are Essential
  Professional liability covers claims tied to your instruction, while general liability covers accidents like slips and falls. Both are crucial for yoga therapists teaching in studios, client homes, or retreats.
• Online Coverage: Advertising Injury, Identity Theft, and Telehealth Coverage
  As a yoga therapist promoting your services online, you need protection against slander, copyright issues, and identity theft. Telehealth coverage ensures you’re protected during virtual sessions.
• Nationwide and Travel Flexibility Keeps You Covered Anywhere
  beYogi’s insurance covers yoga therapists across all 50 states, allowing you to host retreats, travel to clients’ homes, and teach in various settings confidently.
• beYogi Offers Comprehensive, Yoga-Specific Coverage

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As a yoga therapist, you play an important role in supporting your client’s physical and emotional health. But what happens if something goes wrong? Even after hundreds of hours of training and practice, mistakes do happen. Every yoga teacher and yoga therapist wants to help people and it’s important to make sure that you’ll be able to continue on your mission to help others heal, even if the worst does happen. You may think that yoga insurance is only for studio or vinyasa teachers – or other fast-paced practices – but every person who is sharing yoga should be covered. It’s important to understand your insurance coverage, even for gentler modalities like yoga therapy.

What should you look for in a yoga insurance policy? beYogi is a trusted insurance provider for yoga professionals, offering comprehensive, yoga-specific coverage, but it’s only one of the many options out there. No matter which insurance company you choose, it’s helpful to know what some important aspects of your coverage mean. 

It’s most important to get an insurance that is right for your business but you might be interested in knowing a little bit about some basic coverage options such as: professional liability, general liability, advertising injury & personal injury, identity theft protection, online/telehealth coverage, nationwide and travel flexibility, for example.

Why Yoga Therapists Need Insurance

First thing’s first: how are yoga therapists different from yoga instructors? For one thing, yoga therapists are working with special populations, typically in one-on-one sessions, implementing personalized therapeutic applications, and working towards a specific goal or relief from a particular symptom.

This means that your clients are trusting you with their health even more than they would a regular yoga teacher. Yoga therapists are working more closely, more in-depth, and more personalized than typical teachers and, though that can facilitate more effective healing for your clients, it may also mean that there is a higher possibility of misunderstanding or a higher-stakes injury.

Instead of worrying about any potential legal setback, fees, tech claims, or general reputation conflicts, you need to focus on your gift: being the best yoga therapist you can be. How can yoga liability insurance help with that?

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Professional Liability

Professional liability provides coverage for claims related to the services you provide. So, whatever happens in the yoga therapy sessions themselves, including bodily injury or claims of negligence.

Example: After taking a detailed background of a client, let’s say a yoga therapist created a health plan that included a session or two that focused on lower back pain and later the client claimed aggravated injury during the session. This may lead to a professional liability claim. 

Most liability insurance comes with this type of coverage; it is the basic necessity for any yoga teacher in any modality. Without insurance, a claim like this can derail your career and possibly your own finances.

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General Liability

While professional liability covers any injury or damage to personal items based on your instruction, general liability covers accidents that happen in your teaching environment unrelated to your teaching. This is sometimes referenced as “slip and fall” coverage.

Example: Imagine a client trips over a bolster in the studio where you are leading a workshop and breaks a wrist before the session begins. This client could submit a general liability claim that could cost you a lot of money and time.

The good news is that coverage of this kind with beYogi is applicable for over 500+ modalities. Chances are, if you are qualified to teach it, beYogi is prepared to cover you for it, which will help you focus on your offerings.

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Advertising Injury & Personal Injury

Even new yoga therapists or those with smaller practices should be covered for slander, libel, or copyright infringement.

Example: If you’re working hard to get your practice off the ground or to keep it running, there’s a good chance you are putting a lot of energy into marketing your yoga therapy offerings online and via social media channels. 

Let’s say a yoga therapist posts a social media testimonial. Social media is a great (free) way to have new clients discover you. But, if that testimonial unintentionally offends a client they can file a claim against the yoga therapist.

The more you promote your business and services online, the more potential you have for advertising-related claims. Keep this in mind when looking for yoga liability insurance.

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Identity Theft Protection

This type of coverage may be surprising for some. You have likely heard of identity theft since we are living in an increasingly digital world, but identity theft for yoga therapists? Yes! 

It can be something as simple as having a business credit card or bank account hacked, like this yoga therapist did. But it isn’t always so simple.

Example: Yoga therapists handle client intake forms, payment info, and personal health information. Any of those items can lead to identity theft and a huge hassle if your business email is hacked, leading to compromised client data and identity theft issues. So, don’t forget to get covered for this kind of risk.

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Online Coverage (Telehealth For Yoga Therapists)

One of the many perks of becoming a yoga therapist in this day and age: offering your yoga therapy services online or as telehealth. Not only does this mean your business reach isn’t held back by trying to find local clients, it also means you can help people from anywhere. With Online Coverage for online sessions, which are increasingly common for yoga therapists, you can lean into the wanderlust while still helping people live healthier, happier lives.

Example: A client claims injury during a virtual session when performing a posture you recommended or while replaying a prerecorded class. This kind of claim may not be covered under professional liability, which is why beYogi created a coverage policy just for online claims. Be sure to look at your insurance company’s policy, especially if you plan on offering virtual or telehealth yoga therapy sessions.

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Nationwide & Travel Flexibility

Speaking of location flexibility, beYogi covers yoga therapists in all 50 states. This frees you up for workshops, retreats, in-home sessions, and travel teaching.

Example: After teaching a private session while visiting another state or hosting a retreat, a yoga therapy client claimed that your instruction led to new or worsening wrist pain. If your coverage only covers your studio or business location, you might need to update your policy.

When you have nationwide flexibility, like you do with beYogi, you have the peace of mind to expand your offerings without worrying about whether your coverage will follow you.

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In Conclusion

Whether you are newly graduated or have been helping others heal for decades, insurance is essential for yoga therapists to protect their livelihood, reputation, and peace of mind. When shopping for yoga liability insurance, it can help to see some of the coverage options written out clearly and with examples – no overcomplicated legalese to parse.