Hi , I have found a local practice area , but the land owner requires personal liability insurance, I have tried my insurance broker but no luck. has anyone obtained P: L insurance and from where thanks Dave

i *think* you mean "public liability insurance"

locktons motorsport - 0161 828 3300

doodson motorsport - 0161 419 3000

the first insure the ACU, the latter the AMCA and others. i can't recall who MCF are with off the top of my head.

other brokers like MSM insurance, etc may be able to help.

on the bigger picture i'm not really sure how one could hope for the traditional image of a trials practice ground (here the key, go enjoy yourself - ie no supervision) to comply with the conditions one would expect of such a policy - but it may be possible.

in addition to public liability there are many other conceivable insurance components you might require, think carefully!

Thanks for the info ,Yes it would be public liability I require to use there woodland area, I have tried locktons motorsport, no joy they only cover club events, but I will try the others tomorrow.

The land owner could get this through the NFU. Each case will attract a different premium depending on the variable factors.

Where abouts are you in Devon? There's a great practice area on the north coast, in heartland. Their website is www.bikersrest.com they have all you need for trials. Hills, rocks, streams, quarry, man made etc... Give them a call, you can ride most days and its only £5 for the day.

Based near Plymouth, thanks for the info I will check it out as I dont mind traveling ,

let me phrase the answer differently, in mx, if anyone is offering a practice track for under £20 a rider then they *tend* not to have the correct form of public liability insurance. now the risk in trials is a lot less so the premium shouldn't be as high.

re NFU - i'm not aware they do motorsport public liability (this is a really specialised field). my club deals extensively with the NFU for various things that the ACU's policies don't cover (but i could be wrong).

re Locktons - who did you speak to?

btw - if you run out of leads just try asking any practice venue owner where they buy theirs from

I have tried, locktons motorsport - they only cover clubs and not individuals .

- waiting for Doodson to get back to me .they are asking there under writers

normally it would be an entity eg "devo8 trials park" applying for public liability, rather than an individual. i'm pretty sure that locktons insure one of our local enduro practice tracks.

_{Firstly you need to establish exactly what the farmer wants. There are at least 2 possibilities}

_{1) Personal liability insurance - this is "normal insurance"You take out 3rd party insurance so that if you injure someone or damage their or the farmers property your insurance pays out. I was once asked for this as a condition of being given permision to shoot.}

_{If you look at a typical motorcycle policy it will exclude taking part in speed events or trials, or not apply once you are off the public highway. I was insured with Norwich Union (now Aviva) and once inquired how much it would be to upgrade my policy to cover off road use and trials - it resulted in an approximate doubling of the premium.}

_{2) Public liability insurance - this will indemnify the landowner against any claim you or anyone else may make as a result of him allowing you to use his land for practice.}

_{Public liability is likely to be expensive and will come with a host of conditions attached. Since 9/11 public liability premiums have increased significantly, in some cases events no longer run because the premium exceeds event income, or as in the case of some country shows the organisers take a risk and run without insurance.}

_{Public liability insurance and the conditions attached is one of the reasons why local councils are reluctant to provide practice areas for motorcycle or other activities.}

_{You are going to have to do a lot of research - perhaps contact ACU / AMCA for advice}

_Cheers

one way around it would be to start your own club under any federation and get a permit (ie insurance for the day) and only have you (and you mates) riding - but this is complex and expensive.

another way would be to set up an entity eg "devo8 trials park" and buy the public liability from the usual suspect like a mx practice track - i suspect this will cost thousands of pounds, but might be less for just trials, and for a only a handful of riders

Thanks for your input Guys, I have tried ACU / AMCA they only cover clubs , I have also tried they brokers again clubs only .