Golfer and golf equipment insurance

What’s golf insurance?

Specialist golf insurance policies can cover your equipment, personal injury if you hurt yourself and public liability if you accidentally hurt someone else.

You can also get cover for sporting trips overseas, golf buggies, club membership payments and hole-in-one cover.

Golf equipment insurance

Your putters, wedges, woods and drivers can cost a lot, as can the golf bag you (or your caddy) need to carry around the course.

The right insurance will offer you financial protection in the event of theft, loss, vandalism, accidental damage and replacement hire charges.

You might also be able to get cover for any equipment you hire while it’s under your care, but remember that any equipment you lend or hire out probably won’t be covered.

Balls, tees, clothing, buggies, scratches and dents are usually excluded and you should pay attention to a policy’s excess levels, if you’re protected for items left in a vehicle and whether new-for-old replacements are offered.

Before you buy, check whether you already have sufficient cover through your home insurance and/or travel insurance; if you’re relying on your home policy, it might help to learn more about insuring personal possessions away from home.

Public liability cover

A wayward club or misdirected golf ball can cause a lot of damage, whether to another person or their property.

The player can be personally liable, even if they’ve given the traditional warning shout of “fore!”.

An incident like this could lead to costly legal cases, medical and/or dental bills, loss of income claims and more.

Public liability insurance will cover the cost of these for you.

Some clubs might offer an element of public liability insurance through their membership fees, green fees and/or for an additional premium.

Personal injury cover

If you’re involved in a golfing accident, personal injury cover can make sure any medical, dental or legal bills are paid.

You can get this included on your golf insurance policy or through your income protection, life insurance, critical illness cover and health insurance.

If you hire any equipment, the hire company might already have cover in place or offer cover as an add-on

Golf insurance overseas

The right, dedicated golf policy can protect you and your equipment if you’re planning to play abroad - check whether you’re covered for the UK, Europe and/or worldwide - but also remember that you could already have adequate protection through a travel insurance policy.

Watch out for cover for the cost of hiring equipment if yours is lost or delayed in transit and for reimbursing you for non-refundable green fees should your trip be cut short or cancelled.

As always with insurance, look out for exclusions, paying particular attention to the duration of your trip and how many trips you’re covered for during the course of the policy.

Buggy insurance

A policy might cover a golf buggy if it’s lost, damaged or stolen. This usually applies to a buggy you’ve hired from a club, so if you drive your own buggy you’ll need to find a policy that covers this.

Golf buggies can be heavy vehicles that could do a lot of damage, so consider a policy with public liability insurance and personal injury cover.

Membership fees, tournament fees and golf trophies

Some policies offer to reimburse you for your membership or tournament fees if you’re unable to play due to illness or an accident.

It's possible that you'll also find cover for golf trophies that are stolen or damaged.

Hole in one cover

Getting an ace in the hole traditionally means that the successful striker buys a round of drinks for the clubhouse.

Your golf insurance policy may include a prize indemnity and cover the bar bill up to a limit. You might even get this type of cover with your travel insurance or home insurance if you get a hole in one abroad.

We found that 19 out of the 337 contents insurance policies on Defaqto offered hole in one cover and it was at least £250 on all them.^[2] 

Beware of exclusions - the hole in one might have had to be registered during an official club competition for you to make a claim.

Also, it’s only a tradition. If you make a hole in one and you don’t want or can’t afford to buy drinks for everyone on the course, you don’t have to.

Do I already have golf insurance cover?

You might already have cover for your equipment through your home insurance and/or travel insurance, especially if you have personal possessions cover away from the home.

Avoid doubling up on cover as it can complicate things if you need to make a claim.