Why TXSNOW Uses a $10,000,000 Commercial General Liability (CGL) Policy

  1) What this insurance is

The CGL (Commercial General Liability) policy provides coverage for third-party legal liability.

During skiing/snowboarding activities, if an accident results in bodily injury or property damage to a third party (participant, bystander, resort property, etc.), the CGL covers:
l- egal defense costs, and
- compensatory damages (within policy terms and limits).

This is the minimum professional standard for legitimate snow-sports operations.

  2) Why the limit is $10M (instead of $1M or $5M)

High loss severity in snow sports: Severe injuries, long-term disability, or dependency care can easily exceed $1–5M.

Legal costs are unpredictable: Major cases often require hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars in defense and expert-witness fees. A higher limit absorbs prolonged litigation risks.

Inflation + trend toward higher awards: Medical costs and court awards continue to rise; higher limits future-proof the protection.

One incident may involve multiple parties: A single event may impact several participants, bystanders, and resort property — aggregate losses require adequate limits.

  3) Who it protects, and in what situations

Protected parties:
- Participants
- Accompanying family members
- Third parties on or around the hill
- The resort (when listed as Additional Insured)
- TXSNOW and authorized Instructors acting within policy scope

 

Protected situations:
- Meeting and dismissing participants
-Getting on/off lifts
- Demonstrations and guided runs
- Terrain transitions
- Group spacing and control
- Break areas and supervised movement

Coverage geography:
Areas reasonably connected to a confirmed TXSNOW Lesson (per policy definitions).

  4) What the insurance does not cover (common misconceptions)

- Instructor’s own injuries / occupational injury
(requires WSIB, disability, or personal accident/medical insurance)
- Lift-ticket violations, ignoring resort rules, or refusing patrol instructions
- Loss/damage of personal equipment
- Intentional acts, criminal activity, or gross misconduct
- Activities outside TXSNOW business scope
- Personal actions unrelated to a confirmed Lesson

  5) Waiver ≠ Insurance

Signing a waiver:
- may reduce disputes
- does not prevent lawsuits
- does not eliminate legal defense requirements

Courts still evaluate whether TXSNOW and the Instructor met the standard of care (risk disclosure, group ratios, SOP execution, incident handling, documentation, etc.).

Once legal action begins, defense costs alone can be financially devastating.

This is where CGL becomes indispensable.

  6) Why this matters to families and participants

For families:
A high-limit CGL ensures a clear, enforceable source of compensation if a serious incident occurs.

For Instructors:
Prevents personal financial exposure and allows Instructors to focus on teaching and safety.

For resort partners:
Ensures structured risk sharing and supports long-term, sustainable collaboration.

  7) TXSNOW’s risk-control and compliance practices

Ratios & group design:
Children are strictly 1:1; no children’s group lessons.
Adult/Youth ratios align with terrain and visibility rules.

Full-chain SOP:
Staging → movement → command → spacing → regroup points → incident response.

Instructor qualification:
Only active, vetted, and retrained Instructors may teach; uniform identification is mandatory.

Incident reporting:
All injuries, collisions, and near-miss events follow the TXSNOW Incident Report workflow within strict timelines.

Contracts & documents:
Resorts and corporate clients receive COIs and Additional Insured endorsements as required.
 

  8) FAQ

Q1: Isn’t $5M enough?
A: Not reliably. Catastrophic injuries often exceed $5M once long-term care, lost income, and legal fees are included.

Q2: If everyone signs a waiver, why is insurance still needed?
A:
A waiver cannot prevent a lawsuit.
Even if upheld, defense costs remain.
CGL pays for the lawyer, expert witnesses, and settlement within policy terms.

 9) One-sentence summary

$10M CGL = TXSNOW’s minimum professional standard.
A serious commitment to keeping risk within a manageable and responsible range — for participants, families, Instructors, resorts, and the broader public.