24 JULY, 2025

Growing a Pickleball Business? Don’t Overlook Insurance

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Asia is the world's racquet sport hub, a region where badminton, table tennis, tennis and pickleball rule. Experts say pickleball in Asia will grow by almost 25% a year until 2029. 2025's G.O.A.T Pickleball Tournament's RM50,000 prize pool attracted more than 350 players. New pickleball courts and clubs are already springing up across India, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia and, like all businesses, insurance matters. Here's what you'll need to think about whether you already own a recreational pickleball venue, are building a new pickleball facility, or are an SME landlord of one.

Pickleball insurance for recreational venue owners and SME landlords

As a new operator, it's easy to overlook the risks in all the excitement, but like any other sporting business you face liability risks, property risks, business interruption risks and more, and it can cost a fortune if something goes wrong.

General liability insurance covers you against the costs of unexpected third-party bodily injury, for example if someone slips and falls on the court, in the changing rooms or anywhere else on the premises. A policy will protect your finances against the costs of medical expenses, legal fees, and legal settlements if someone sues you. Umbrella insurance might also come in handy, giving you extra liability cover above and beyond your general liability policy's limits, just in case you're ever faced with major legal action.

Accidents happen fast — liability coverage keeps you protected.

Commercial property insurance protects the physical aspects of the facility, everything from the contents — the courts, equipment, nets, fencing, lighting and so on — to the building or clubhouse itself, against the cost of damage by fire, storms, vandalism and theft.

Business interruption insurance is an add-on to a property insurance policy, a must for every business, especially in today's climate change world. It'll pay out to compensate you for lost income if an insured disaster like a fire, flood or other natural catastrophe forces you to close temporarily.

Event insurance provides essential financial protection for a pickleball facility wanting to hold competitions or tournaments. It pays out to cover the expenses involved in accidents, injuries and event cancellations.

Pickleball courts are booming across Asia — are yours covered?

Professional liability (Errors & Omissions) insurance is important when you or an employee provides pickleball training, coaching or team management. It pays out for negligence claims, for injuries that happen because the instruction provided wasn't good enough or put people in danger.

Workers’ compensation insurance is a must if you employ people, whether it's cleaners, trainers, referees, coaches or maintenance workers. The policy pays out to cover medical bills and lost wages if an employee is injured while doing their job.

Commercial auto insurance might be relevant too, it depends whether you use a vehicle to transport players and equipment, perhaps to tournaments or competitions. If so, it covers the cost of accidents and liability.

Building your dream pickleball facility? Don’t forget property and business interruption coverage.

Some pickleball clubs are big enough to have a Board of Directors. If so you'll want to protect the club's finances with Directors and Officers insurance or 'D&O', just in case a director, officer or manager incurs losses because of claims made against them.

Last but not least, there are cyber-risks to think about. Digital payment systems and databases holding customer information and payment details contain very sensitive data, which means pickleball club cyber liability insurance is a wise choice.

We'll help you structure the perfect protection from the start

Our experts can advise you about on structuring the best, most relevant financial protection right from the start, with a collection of reliable, good-value policies to protect your finances from every angle.