If you are an educator with a children’s activity business, then you might be thinking about starting a summer camp program. Summer camp is a lucrative time for children’s activity and education businesses because parents are looking for ways to keep their children active, learning, and socializing while school is out.

There are a lot of steps that go into starting a summer camp including writing a business plan and making a budget, getting the required certifications, securing a location for in-person camp or equipment for virtual camp, hiring and training staff, and ensuring the safety of your campers.

Sawyer works with camp owners to manage their businesses, streamline registration, and save time on administrative tasks. As part of this mission, we want to help you mitigate risk and create an environment where both campers and counselors will be safe and healthy. Use this guide to understand summer camp insurance and then speak with an insurance professional to set your camp up for success. Looking for more support to jumpstart your camp? Check out our ultimate guide to starting and running a kids camp.

• What is summer camp insurance?
• Summer camp insurance programs and companies
• ~Sports camp insurance
• ~Summer day camp insurance
• Summer camp insurance cost

What is summer camp insurance?

Before diving into the types, companies, and programs out there, you might be wondering what is summer camp insurance in the first place? Summer camp insurance covers the operations at the camp. Usually, it is provided by an outside insurance company. Most camps choose the following areas to cover.

• General liability
• Property
• Health (for owners, staff, and campers)
• Worker compensation
• Vehicle liability
• Personal property

Read more about summer camp insurance trends from the American Camp Association annual insurance roundtable.

Summer camp insurance programs and companies

Purchasing summer camp insurance is not the same as insurance for your home or car. Only a few companies provide this type of insurance and they usually require a safety audit before you can make the purchase. Likewise, your insurance program will depend on the type of camp you run. Sports camps and non-sports day camps require different insurance policies.

Use this list to find the right summer camp insurance programs and companies for your camp.

Sports camp insurance

Westpoint Insurance

Westpoint Insurance works to help camp owners cover injury costs for children playing sports at camp. They work with day camps, overnight camps, and even non-sports camps (though they specialize in sports camp insurance) to mitigate risk within the camp’s budget.

Sadler Sports

Sadler Sports offers sports camp insurance based on the type of activities that the children will play at camp. This can help camp owners prepare to set up their summer camp curriculum and summer camp activities that fit under their safety procedures and insurance policy.

Nationwide in partnership with K&K

Nationwide, partnering with K&K Insurance, offers summer day camp insurance for all types of camps, including sports camps. This insurance program is more general, which is beneficial for camps that have a wide range of activities for campers.

Summer day camp insurance

Sadler Sports

For non-sports day camps, Sadler Sports offers a completely different insurance program. This is beneficial for camps that specialize in academics, theater, music, science, cooking, and similar hands-on, but not sports-related, activities.

Morrow Insurance

Morrow offers summer day camp insurance as well as residential camp insurance for a variety of programs around the country. They cover medical for campers, general and cyber liability, equipment and property, worker compensation, and more.

AMSkier

AMSkier insures all lines of coverage for camps including liability, property, worker compensation, vehicles, camper medical, and more. They have been summer camp insurance providers for over 95 years.

Summer camp insurance cost

Purchasing insurance for your summer camp is certainly necessary to protect your campers, staff, and yourself. In fact, in some states, it is required to purchase insurance before opening up your camp. Therefore, as you are writing your budget, you should make sure to add a line item for insurance. 

Of course, the exact summer camp insurance cost for your camp will depend on a variety of items, including the number of campers and staff members onsite, type of activities offered, cost of property and items on the grounds, and more. However, in general most small-to-medium sized camps take out around a $1 million to $2 million insurance policy, which costs about $37 to $59 per month, according to GeneralLiabilityInsurance.com. We recommend speaking with an insurance specialist for more information on selecting the best plan for your camp.

Keeping your campers, staff, and administrators safe and protected is an important part of running a successful camp. If you are looking to spend less time on administrative tasks and more time on the fun side of running a camp, Sawyer is the best camp registration and management software for both in-person and online summer camps. 

With our suite of tools, like signup forms to record allergies and t-shirt sizes, various payment options like gift cards and installment plans, and seamless registration on any device, Sawyer saves camp owners 28 hours per month. If you are ready to spend less time on admin and more time doing what you love, see how Sawyer can help with a free trial or demo.