Defense and Coverage for Claims against KBF, KBF Partners, and Members
KBF is a member of the North American Tournament Association, LLC (NATA), which promotes the operation of safe, financially responsible freshwater fishing tournaments in the US.
NATA is an association made up of fishing clubs and circuits that host tournaments. Because KBF is a member of that association, it is covered by NATA's Event Liability Insurance Policy. That policy is issued and administered by K&K Insurance of Fort Wayne.
KBF Partner Organization will receive a Certificate of Membership specifically naming their organization and Certificate of Insurance (COI) for events when required for naming a third party.
Claims resulting from personal injury or property damage to a third party (not claims by members).
This policy provides coverage for Kayak Bass Fishing, LLC, including the organization and its officers and staff. It covers KBF Partners' organizers, officers, and directors and also their members whose names have been submitted to KBF.
KBF Partners are kayak fishing clubs, organizations and events that affiliate with Kayak Bass Fishing, LLC by complying with the terms of a KBF Partnership Agreement, and the events they hold are KBF-sanctioned. As long as they are under the KBF umbrella, they are included with KBF under NATA's Event Liability Insurance Policy.
This policy can be extended to include a venue host. If a park or facility manager requires to be included as a named insured in order for a KBF-sanctioned event to be held, NATA can obtain that. Requests to include venue hosts as "additionally insured," must be submitted to Joe Haubenreich at KBF, who will coordinate with NATA to email, fax, or mail the certificate to the venue host and provide a copy to the KBF Partner forwarding the request.
Nothing, directly. The cost is spread out among all KBF Members and competitors in KBF TRAIL and OPEN Series Tournaments. KBF applies a portion of KBF membership dues toward payment of its annual NATA Association fee.
Since KBF is paying out Membership Dues the insurance premium for all the KBF Partners' members, we encourage them to promote KBF Membership within their groups. Basically, $8.50 from every KBF Member's dues pays for insurance coverage for that participant. Obviously, the more KBF Members there are in each KBF Partner organization, the more financially feasible this benefit remains.
In December of each year, KBF conducts a feasibility study to determine how best to fund coverage for the next year. In the future, it may need to adopt a policy where insurance is provided at no cost to KBF Partners with a certain percentage of active KBF Members and at a per-person cost to those with fewer KBF Members.
This policy applies to claims from third parties against KBF and KBF Partners, their officers and staffs, KBF Members, and either KBF Partners' members or active participants. It does not apply to claims brought by any of those people against each other or against KBF or a KBF Partner. Those fall under each individual's personal liability coverage, which is included with homeowners' and renters' insurance. So if a competitor in a KBF-sanctioned event loses his kayak and gear or experiences other material loss and believes the event's organizers are responsible, any claims he brings against the director(s), officers, and organization(s) are not covered. This policy is for claims against KBF, KBF Partners, and all our officers, staffs, and members/participants brought by people outside that circle.
Basically, one million dollars per occurrence with no aggregate limit. For example, suppose a KBF Partner holds a tournament, and it hosts a cook-out during the awards ceremony. A gust of wind carries sparks from the cooking fire to a nearby brushy area, starting a fire that destroys or damages property. Each property owner may file a claim for negligence against the club and its officers and the cook who let the fire get away from him. NATA's Event Liability Insurance Policy provides $1,000,000 of coverage for each claim, as many as there are - with no aggregate limit.
This applies to any KBF-sanctioned event, including Tournaments and Challenges but also club meetings, banquets, picnics, and other social events, recruiting events at fishing and tackle shows, Rendezvous and KBF-sanctioned demo days or product showcases. It does not apply to individuals en route to and from those events, nor to claims against individuals when they are not specifically engaged in a KBF-sanctioned event.
This coverage does not apply for salt water tournaments; only to freshwater events. Organizations that conduct saltwater tournaments are advised to seek separate liability insurance coverage for those events.
It applies for night tournaments only when certain safety precautions are observed, which are incorporated in the KBF Competition Rules Standards and outlined on the NATA website.
Every individual has liability coverage as part of his homeowners or renters insurance. Whenever a claim is made against an individual, that's the primary insurance that provides protection and coverage. Should a KBF Partner obtain its own Liability Insurance Policy or offer a per-event liability insurance policy to its members? If you have extra money that you need to spend and don't care if you get anything for it, sure. We're not going to tell you not to, but it's pretty much like putting a Band-aid on top of another Band-aid, or double-bagging your sandwich. It adds cost with little to no benefit. Review the terms, condition and coverage of the policies you're considering, and review the Event Liability Insurance Policy that KBF obtains through NATA, and then do what seems best for you and your organization.
KBF classifies Eligible Water as fishing areas meeting four criteria: (a.) Open - that is, in-season and during access hours; (b.) within boundaries established for the competitive event; (c.) Unrestricted - equally accessible by everyone with non-discriminatory user requirements; and (d.) able to launch from an unrestricted, "equal-opportunity" public-access point.
Public-Use Waters
It must be public-use waters, where the general public is permitted to fish by the controlling authority (e.g., state, county, municipality, business, private individual, residential development association or property management group). Water posted "KEEP OUT," "Off Limits" or "No Fishing" by the property owner or by municipal, state or federal agencies is most likely ineligible. However, if permission to fish a body of water is granted, without prejudice or bias, to anyone who meets the controlling authority's terms and conditions, then the water is considered "public use" and is, therefore, eligible. If the controlling authority for a pay-to-fish lake does not discriminate so that any member of the public may pay the user fee to fish it, that's considered eligible water, too.
Within Event Boundaries
It must be within the event's competition area boundaries established for each event by the Tournament Director. That may be state boundaries, or a certain number of nautical miles up- and down-river from a fixed point, or a set radius from a fixed point, or water up to a landmark. An event may also include as eligible water any sloughs, coves, backwaters, or adjoining ponds that are contiguous to the main body of water and that can be reached by paddling and floating. Or, for another event, a Tournament Director may define eligible water to include smaller bodies of water temporarily or permanently separated from the main body by a gravel bar, swamp, levy, berm, road bed or other land form, that can be reached by dragging or portage.
Publicly Accessible
It must be publicly accessible. Competitors may not cross restricted property to reach it but must be able to access the water from or across publicly-accessible areas or right-of-ways. If a community pond is posted and reserved for residents only so that one must trespass in order to reach it, then it is not publicly-accessible and is, therefore, ineligible. For example, if a community or homeowner's association provides an unrestricted, public access launch area for its public-use lake, even though it's otherwise surrounded by private property, then it's eligible. The requirement to pay a launch fee makes no difference; if anyone may pay the launch fee and thereby gain access to the public water, then it's publicly accessible.
Not Restricted by Date or Time
It must not be restricted by date or time. If a lake has posted use or access times or fishing is allowed only during certain seasons, it is considered eligible only during the dates and hours permitted by the controlling authority.
Water that does not meet those four conditions is ineligible, even if one is not physically prevented from driving to it and launching. Permission by a home-owner for a kayak angler or even a small group of them to use private lakes or ponds or cross private property does not make that water eligible.