Insurance within the Massage Therapy industry

Mar 12, 2015

Do you need public liability insurance?

Some think not, however the number of claims are both surprising and increasing, so if you have no public liability insurance you are taking a huge risk, even if you only do gentle relaxation massage. People sue you for anything and everything these days. It’s much better having the peace of mind by being insured.

What are you insured for?

As a massage therapist you are insured and covered for any modality or treatment for which you have had instruction. You are not covered for any manipulation unless you are a manipulative therapist who has the qualifications to do so. So in short you must always work within the boundaries of what you have been taught, have evidence you have received instruction for the treatment you perform, and you will be covered. Should you go outside the boundaries or not have evidence of instruction, you run the risk of causing injury as well as not being covered.

If you want to be professional you must do everything in a professional manner. By joining the Massage Association of Australia and having your membership certificate on your wall gives your clients the peace of mind that you belong to a recognised body, and also gives you the opportunity of taking advantage of the very affordable public liability insurance. Even if you do mobile massage you should have a folder you can show your client before the massage begins. You would put your membership certificate on the first page, followed by your massage certificates or copies of. We recommend you fill the rest of the folder information such as the Unregistered Practitioners Code of Conduct that you must adhere to,testimonials from happy customers. This goes a long way to making the person feel comfortable way before the massage begins.

For more information on the MAA membership and Insurance please go the MAA website www.maa.org.au

Cameron Aubrey

Cameron Aubrey has over 20 years experience in the massage industry, and leads the team as Course Director at Discover Massage Australia. Cameron holds a Diploma in Remedial Massage, and his expertise runs across a large range of massage techniques, particularly sports, Swedish and whole body massage.