Martial Arts Insurance That Covers What You Teach

Insurance that gets martial arts. Built for karate, taekwondo, BJJ, kickboxing, and boxing gyms, from $24/mo. Declare what you teach and you're covered for how a dojo actually runs, no "general fitness" workaround.

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What is martial arts insurance?

Martial arts insurance is gym insurance written for how a dojo actually runs: classes, instruction, kids programs, the day-to-day on the mat. You declare that you teach martial arts, and you're covered for it, instead of squeezing yourself into a "general fitness" box and hoping a claim doesn't get denied. Most martial arts gyms we insure pay about $103 a month, and coverage starts at $24/mo.

Here's the part most owners have lived. A generic carrier prices a dojo like a higher-risk business than it is, or won't write it at all. The one specialty program that will then stacks a program fee on top, and you end up at $2,500 to $3,200 for coverage that should cost half that. We're gym owners. We built the policy we wanted, priced for the real risk, not a worst-case.

What does martial arts insurance cover?

One policy, the coverages a martial arts gym actually needs. The rule we underwrite by is simple: if it's a normal part of running a dojo, it's covered unless the policy specifically excludes it. Here's what's inside.

General liability

The big one. A student catches an elbow sparring, a visitor slips on the mat, a parent trips over a kettlebell at pickup. General liability covers the injury claims and the legal defense, at $1M per occurrence and $3M aggregate. It's also the coverage your landlord writes into the lease. More on general liability.

Professional liability

Your product is coaching, so this is the one you can't skip. If a student says a coach's correction or bad advice caused an injury, professional liability answers it. It's also the piece generic gym policies quietly leave out. More on professional liability.

Business personal property

Your gear: mats, heavy bags, the ring or cage, grappling dummies, weapons racks, the retail rack up front. If a fire or burst pipe wrecks it, business personal property replaces it so you can reopen. More on business personal property.

Abuse and molestation

Run a kids program? You need this, and it's included, at $300,000 per person, with the aggregate limit set by your state's regulations. Abuse and molestation is the coverage nobody wants to think about and nobody wants to discover they were missing.

Business income

A gym lives on monthly dues. Go dark for three weeks after a fire and that income stops, but rent and payroll don't. Business income covers the gap while you rebuild. It rides along on a Gym BOP that bundles your liability and property together.

Martial arts gyms we cover

One discipline or ten under one roof, we write it. If you teach it as a class, odds are we cover it:

  • Brazilian jiu jitsu and grappling academies
  • MMA gyms and cage-training facilities
  • Karate, taekwondo, and traditional martial arts dojos
  • Muay Thai, kickboxing, and boxing gyms
  • Judo, Krav Maga, kung fu, and self-defense schools
  • Kids classes, after-school programs, and summer camps

Most martial arts gyms we insure are everyday training facilities: kids karate and taekwondo, BJJ academies, boxing-fitness studios, self-defense schools, and mixed programs. Teach something that's not on the list? Tell us at quote and we'll confirm it before you bind. That's the whole point of a policy built for martial arts: you never have to call it "general fitness" to get covered.

How much does martial arts insurance cost?

Coverage starts at $24/mo, and within martial arts we don't charge more for your discipline or your kids classes. Here's what martial arts gyms actually pay, next to a typical broker or specialty-program quote for the same coverage.

Provider Typical annual cost Fees
Gym Insurance by PushPress $1,100–$1,400 (from $24/mo) No broker or program fees
Typical broker or specialty program $2,500–$3,200 Program access and brokerage fees often added

Median martial arts premium across the gyms we insure is about $103/mo ($1,236/yr), pulled June 2026. Your rate depends on your training type, facility size, location, and coverage limits. See full pricing details.

What's covered, and the few things that aren't

Picture a normal week on the mat. Here's coverage in practice:

  • A student catches a knee during sparring drills and needs an ER visit.
  • A white belt tweaks a knee rolling in their first week of class.
  • A kid lands wrong practicing a throw in the after-school program.
  • A parent slips on a wet mat during pickup.
  • A heavy bag mount tears out of the wall and damages the floor.
  • A former student claims a coach's correction caused a lasting injury.

Every one of those is normal gym operations, so every one is covered. The edges are simple: training is in, competition is separate. Day-to-day classes, drills, and the light contact that's part of normal training are covered in any discipline. Sanctioned tournaments, full-contact competition, and full-contact sparring outside of training are not. If you host or travel to an event, add event coverage for that date.

Two things we don't do, said plainly. Workers' comp isn't part of a martial arts policy, so if your state requires it you'll buy that separately. And we cover what's inside your gym, not the building shell, so building owners need a broker to add structure coverage.

Why gym owners choose Gym Insurance by PushPress

We're gym owners. We got tired of dojos being priced like the worst-case instead of the day-to-day, so we built the policy we actually wanted. One application, a quote in about five minutes, bind the same day.

The price isn't a guess. It comes from 20+ years in fitness and data from thousands of gyms, so we know what a martial arts gym's real risk looks like. We go straight to A-rated, reinsured carriers and skip the broker layer, which is why there's no program-access or maintenance fee stacked on top. See how we compare to other martial arts insurance providers.

Frequently Asked Questions

I run a fitness gym but offer martial arts classes. How should I classify it?
Declare martial arts as your business type if you teach it, even alongside general fitness. The most common reason gyms get declined is selecting "fitness center" and then listing martial arts, boxing, or wrestling, which reads as undeclared risk. Tell us what you actually teach and we classify it as a martial arts gym, so your training is covered instead of excluded.
Does martial arts insurance cover sparring and grappling?
Yes. A martial arts policy covers your training, including sparring, grappling, pad work, and striking technique, because those are the normal operations of a declared martial arts gym. The line is competition: training is covered, while sanctioned tournaments and full-contact competition events are not.
How much does martial arts insurance cost?
Martial arts insurance starts around $24/mo, and the typical martial arts gym we insure pays about $103 a month (roughly $1,236 a year). Brokers and specialty programs often quote $2,500 to $3,200 for the same coverage once fees are added. See full pricing details.
Are kids martial arts classes covered?
Yes. Kids classes are part of the normal operations of a martial arts gym, so injuries during youth instruction are covered under your general liability. A martial arts policy also includes abuse and molestation coverage, which matters for any program working with minors.
Are after-school and summer camp martial arts programs covered?
Yes, for day camps you run at your gym. After-school programs, holiday camps, and summer day camps are part of normal youth operations, so they're covered under your general liability and the included abuse and molestation coverage. Overnight or sleepaway camps are different: they add off-site, overnight, and transportation risk that isn't automatically included, so tell us before you run one and we'll confirm what's needed.
Do I need special insurance for BJJ or MMA?
Yes. High-contact disciplines like Brazilian jiu jitsu and MMA need a policy without athletic participation exclusions, which many generic gym policies quietly carry. Our jiu jitsu insurance and martial arts coverage are written for these risks, so sparring and grappling in training are covered rather than excluded.
Does martial arts insurance cover open mat hours?
If open mat runs during regular hours while staff are present, even if they are not coaching on the mat, it is covered under your standard policy. If open mat happens outside business hours with no staff present, you add 24-hour coverage to insure those unsupervised sessions.
Do I need both a waiver and insurance for my martial arts gym?
Yes. A waiver sets expectations and can limit certain claims, but insurance is what pays for legal defense and any settlement, and satisfies landlord requirements. The two do different jobs. More on gym waivers.
Does a martial arts policy include workers' compensation?
No. Workers' compensation is not part of a martial arts gym policy. If your state requires it for employees, you buy it separately through your state fund or a workers' comp carrier. Your martial arts policy still covers general liability, professional liability, and your property.
Does martial arts insurance cover competitions and tournaments?
Training for competition is covered, but the competition event itself is not. Sanctioned tournaments and full-contact competition events fall outside a standard martial arts policy. If you host or send athletes to an event, you typically need separate event coverage for that date.
Do I need martial arts insurance to sign a gym lease?
Almost always. Most landlords require proof of general liability with set minimum limits and ask to be added as an additional insured before you sign. They may also request a waiver of subrogation or primary and non-contributory wording, all of which appear on your certificate of insurance.
How fast can I get a martial arts insurance quote?
You can get a quote in about five minutes through one online application. There is no phone tag and no broker back-and-forth, and you can bind coverage the same day once you are ready.

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Don't let high costs or inadequate coverage hold your gym back. Protect your business and your students with insurance built for you.