Insure4Sport survey reports one-third of UK yoga teachers lack personal cover

An Insure4Sport survey reported by The Independent found that about one-third of 100 UK yoga teachers surveyed did not have a personal insurance policy covering their teaching activities.

According to the August 4 report, 15% of respondents said they had no insurance, 17% relied only on an employer’s or studio’s policy, and 1% were unsure of their status. The report said 39% had taught without cover at some point in their careers.

The figures are survey responses, not an official estimate of insurance coverage across the UK yoga-teaching workforce. The underlying questionnaire, recruitment method, fieldwork dates and full results for the 100-person study could not be independently verified. Insure4Sport is an insurance provider, so its findings and accompanying comments should also be understood in that commercial context.

In a separate Insure4Sport article about a broader April 2026 survey of 204 UK yoga and Pilates teachers, the company states that 49% of respondents taught only yoga, 38% taught only Pilates and 10% taught both. That article publishes findings on business costs, working patterns and classroom issues, but it does not set out the insurance-coverage result reported by The Independent. It is therefore unclear whether the 100-teacher insurance survey was a separate exercise, a subset of another survey, or research conducted with a different methodology.

The Independent reported that respondents without personal cover cited infrequent teaching, uncertainty about the need for a policy and assumptions that venue cover would apply. It also reported that 14% said a student had been injured or nearly injured in one of their classes. Those findings have not been independently corroborated.

UK government guidance distinguishes between employers’ liability insurance, which is generally required when an organization employs people, and public liability insurance, which is generally voluntary. Whether a particular yoga teacher needs personal cover can depend on employment status, contractual arrangements, the venue and the activities being taught.

The reported survey raises a question about how yoga teachers understand liability arrangements, but its limited disclosed methodology means the one-third figure should not be presented as a definitive measure of the profession as a whole.