One of the most misunderstood insurance coverages for charter schools is student accident insurance.   Most states do not require charter schools to purchase this coverage, but we highly recommend it to all of our charter school clients for various reasons.   Over the next two blog posts, we will explain what student accident insurance is, what it covers, what is excluded from a standard policy, and what your charter school can expect to pay in premiums.

What is Student Accident Insurance?

A standard student accident policy provides limited health/accident insurance coverage. In contrast, the student is in or on school premises during the days and months when school is in session, traveling directly to and from their residence and school in a vehicle supplied by the school, and participating in or attending activities sponsored solely by the school and are continually supervised by a school official or employee (this will usually include travel directly to and from such sponsored activities).

Some basic student accident insurance policies will include coverage for school-sponsored sports activities; however, all student accident policies will exclude any football-related activities.

You will need to pay an additional premium for full sports coverage, including football.

Student Accident Insurance Definitions

An accident in the policy is defined as a sudden, unexpected, and unintended event which is identifiable and caused solely by an external physical force resulting in injury to an insured student. An accident does not include a loss contributed to by disease or sickness.

Student Accident Policy Limits

A student accident policy is designed only to provide limited coverage to the inured student.   With maximum benefit amounts of either $25,000 or $50,000, the policy will provide defined amounts for various treatments (i.e., $150 to repair a broken tooth or $2,500 for auto-related injuries).   The amounts and coverage types will vary significantly by policy, so reviewing your specific coverage with your agent is essential.

In next week’s post, we will focus on student accident policy limitations and exclusions and provide an estimated cost breakdown for your charter school.