The benefits of having golfing insurance

Golf is a popular sport in the UK but also an expensive hobby to begin. Once you take into consideration your golf club membership fees, travel expenses and golfing equipment, including suitable clothing, the figure can quickly run into the thousands when setting out to play for the first time. Unless you have friends who are willing to offer assistance you will also probably require some lessons to help get you started and the price of high-end golf clubs can range from ?00 to ?00 for drivers and ?00 to ?000 for irons. Even if you are prepared to hire your clubs when you play this will add to your overall costs.

In all golf is an expensive sport so any opportunity to reduce the risk of adding to these costs should not be overlooked. This is where golf insurance can offer some peace of mind. The first thing to assess is the value of the equipment you have purchased and whether or not it is covered under your general household insurance. The chances are it will not be included because most household insurance policies don't cover sports equipment. Even if you think your equipment may be covered it is worth checking the fine print of your policy to ensure there is no cap on the value or hefty excess to pay if you do put in a claim. Often it is more cost-effective to take out a separate policy to protect your golf equipment.

Another aspect to consider is medical insurance. Although golf may not seem like a particularly dangerous sport when compared to say rock climbing or snowboarding there are still real risks to yourself and others that must not be ignored. Naturally you will want to ensure that your game is always played in the safest way possible but this does not mean accidents won't happen and in the unfortunate event that you should injure yourself or a fellow player you will want to ensure that you are covered for any medical costs or personal injury claims that may be incurred.

In all your golf insurance should include new for old insurance in the event that your clubs should become lost, stolen or damaged. Often clubs that are more than a couple of years old will be covered to a value that takes into account depreciation so make sure you check the figures before purchasing your new policy. Good golf insurance will provide you with adequate medical insurance that covers you for playing games abroad as well as at home in the UK.