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Insurance for golfers ?


Loiseau
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I have been checking out, during research for a book, details of various golf clubs in France.  When I quiz them about the green-fees and possibilities of club-hire, advance booking etc for visitors coming over from the UK, they always say: "No problem, as long as they have insurance." 

This obviously refers to some sort of sports insurance against injuring people or property while playing. But when I ask my UK golfing friends whether this is something that they are aware of, or maybe already have automatically with their UK golf club membership, they don't seem to have any idea what I am talking about, and have clearly never arranged anything special along these lines for the times when they *have* been across the Channel to play.

Has anybody addressed this subject?  Is it something that for UK-dwellers would be automatically covered by the public liability clause in home-contents insurance or something? 

Angela

 

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Every year we pay 45 euros each for a "golf license" from the Fédération Française de Golf.  This apparently includes insurance, both 3rd party and (so long as you have a medical) personal accident etc.  The club where we are members have about 16 - 20 gites and large numbers of holiday makers, adults and children, from the gites will play golf.  Many are not golfers and I doubt if many will  even think about insurance.  Perhaps the golf clubs include a daily insurance premium with the green fee.
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As french residents lots of our house insurance policies cover accidents, including sporting accidents and third party things to a certain extent, always worth checking with one's insurer though.

I would imagine that holiday insurance from the UK which includes health insurance when doing sports and third party cover would be fine. I know that you can get insurance to cover sporting actitivities abroad from the UK as I have taken some recently for my son.

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I don't think the French clubs actually ask to *see* the insurance; at least, not according to my friends who have played over in France.  And it can't be included in the green fees, or they wouldn't mention it to me as an issue. (It would seem better if it were, really)

I agree about the holiday insurance packages including cover, TU, but I wonder how many people just coming over for a couple of days would think of taking out the extra if they have the basic medical cover with their EHIC ?

I thought the "public liability" bit of a UK home-insurance policy would probably cover golfing accidents to third parties even when in Europe (ours turned out to cover the theft of a jacket of my husband's from a restaurant when he was in Spain; and the theft of my suitcase from a French TGV more recently).  The French are so precise about these things, with their annual licences of course, that they think it's the same everywhere.

Another comment that comes up, when I ask if UK visitors can play in golfing competitions, is "Yes of course, if they have a medical certificate of fitness." 

Angela

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Lots of people I know have annual insurance if they travel a lot, and sporty types, ie climbers, skiers and golfers, well the ones I know at least, have cover for these activities.

I don't really know how british insurance works these days, had no idea there could be third party cover.

 

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[:D][quote user="Teamedup"]

Lots of people I know have annual insurance if they travel a lot, and sporty types, ie climbers, skiers and golfers, well the ones I know at least, have cover for these activities.

I don't really know how british insurance works these days, had no idea there could be third party cover.

[/quote]

I did query the third party thing at the golf club the first year we were told that we had to get the "license" to get that cover and pointed out that our insurance broker said that the public liability bit of our household policy would cover us if, for eg, we hit someones snazzy Italian sports car with a golf ball or perhaps knocked out someone's teeth.  The club owner said that it would be very unusual if a French household policy covered us for sporting accidents.  I have bad enough a time wading through the small print on an English policy document, let alone a French one so I just chickened out and paid up.  I also don't know how British insurance works but our household policy in South Africa used to cover us for all public liability and even specified certain golf situations including  buying drinks for all in the event of hitting a hole in one[:D][:D].

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Well I know that our house insurance covers us for sporting accidents as the insurance in those all too expensive licenses all sporting associations demand, covers 'ugger all.

So far our house insurance has covered us twice. Once it was a couple of thousand euros worth of dental work on our son as he was hit in the mouth during sport by another kid. I will never ever understand why the other kid's insurance wasn't liable or that the license insurance wouldn't cover the costs either.

My husband had his ligament croise petted by his prof and the same thing. It was down to 'us' being the injured party. My husband's license insurance didn't cover it and the prof was not held in any way responsible. To add insult to injury the people running that particular association were up for fraud, no wonder the insurance didn't work if the money was being diverted.

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Thanks for all your info. TU, for us it has arrived at an opportune moment as the letter to renew our licenses arrived Saturday.  As we play golf far less than we used to we feel that perhaps we would be better off to pay green fees as casual players  rather than paying annual subscriptions to be members of a golf club.  This would put us in the same position as most UK holiday makers looking for a casual game.  I think that  a visit to our insurance broker's office is due to clarify the whole thing  before we pay  our 90 euros for another year's  license fee.
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I'm afraid I don't know about golf but every other sport I participate in I need a "license" and part of the cost of that is insurance. Even my dog has to have two licenses (again including insurance).

However these insurances included with licenses are covering RC (Responsabilite Civile) and do not cover me, things like my glider/boat/myself/etc.. These RC covers tend to have been organised/negotiated by each national sporting federation with one of the insurance companies (different federations use different organisations). The price of the license is fixed so there is no aspect of "no claims discounts" and no proposal to be completed.

Some of them allow temporary licenses to be purchased, others do not. For example, the FF Voile allows people to join for a year (i.e. their license is for the year) or you can but one day temporary licenses. Thus people on holiday who want to hire a boat for the day can purchase a temporary license for the day. However, not all federations do this. My dog has agility and flyball licenses and these are only available for a year (i.e. not temporary).

I don't know if golf is the same but it would seem likely. Maybe check the appropriate federation's web site as if the same applies they will probably have a section about the licenses, what is covered and how to claim (contacts, etc.)

Ian

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Hi,

 

I've been living and playing golf here now for 5 years, one of the first things I did when i arrived ( much to the dismay of MOH) was to take a golf licence through the FFG   www.ffgolf.org  as an independant player ( not a member of a club). I sent a copy of my UK handicap certificate and my handicap was transfererd too.  It cost 45 euros, plus, if you want to play in competitions you will need a medical certificate, renewed each year. There is a form to print out from the website, take it to a french doctor, pay 20 euros or so for a quick checkup and his stamp/signiture on the form and send to FFG.

With a licence you get

1. the necessary insurance

2. entry to some clubs, they won't let you play without one

3. can play in competitions

It all depends how often you play in France each year, if it worth it or not.

hope this helps

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Interesting link, ExP.  And very good for French-resident golfers. 

Though I am not sure it'd do for people who *don't* live in France - i.e. people over for a few days and looking to play a few rounds of golf.  It seems one has to get it through one's French club, or if you are not a member of one *but live in France*, then through some other source.

Angela

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