Insurance Position Update – right hand side of 3rd hole
A reminder and clarity about Golf Insurance coverage particularly relating to the area along the right of the 3rd fairway now the new housing development is well underway and some houses are occupied.
The Council did not put any restrictions on the developers with regard to protecting the golfers or public using the road or houses along the right side of the 3rd fairway.
However, the Developers agreed to put some netting up at their cost which is now being erected in order to prevent this as much as possible and any balls hitting vehicles, pedestrians, or house owners would now in the first instance be considered a stray golf ball / wayward shot and therefore an accident.
The Developers will also be putting posts with warning signs to ‘keep off private property’ at their cost at regular intervals down the rest of the edge of the 3rd fairway but this is to purely to prevent people wandering onto the golf course. We will review this regularly to see if further action is required.
We have had various discussions with our Insurers and meetings with the developers and our stance and position is as follows.
Golfers are covered by the Clubs insurance policy in the event of damage caused by a golf ball through “negligence”, however the onus is on the claimant to prove negligence by the golfer.
We have made it very clear in writing to the developers and the council that we will not be accepting liability if negligence on the golfer’s part cannot be proved by the claimant.
Each instance will be considered on its specific conditions / merits at the time of the incident so please let the club manager know of the incident and any details at your earliest convenience.
If the public do wander onto the course, we advise that you take a photo and report it to the club manager or a club representative and we will follow this up, we do not encourage engaging with the individual(s). If you are approached simply state that you will report it to a club representative as soon as possible.
We trust this clarifies the position but hope that no such incidents occur and we can enjoy our golf and the 3rd hole as always.