Personal Trainers Eagerly Adopt Digital Liability Waivers

Being cooped up by the pandemic may mean copping out on exercise. But spring brings the urge to take our bodies to task once again. A cadre of personal trainers stands ready to help with corporeal renovations.

For example, a team of seven personal trainers serves up to 40 clients daily at Wattage, a personal training facility in Chicago. Manager Maria Candia explains that training here is appointment-based, semi-private, or one-on-one.

“People want to move for an hour under the guidance of an experienced and certified trainer, someone who knows exactly what to do to help, even when outside of the gym,” she says.

Along with so many other businesses, Wattage was closed for a period of time in 2020, re-opening in June after establishing COVID-19 protocols to protect clients and staff. Among its protocols was the implementation of WaiverSign that provides a paperless path to obtaining signed online liability waivers from clients.

WaiverSign was an upgrade from the center’s traditional way of handing out paper waivers for clients to sign before they used the workout equipment. Now clients sign workout-related waivers, digitally produced, before coming to the center or affix their signatures at a kiosk right at the center. And they are asked to sign a COVID-19-related Code of Conduct, also digital, that pledges them to adhere to the center’s protocols.

“The team at WaiverSign has been good at answering questions and helping us after we established the legal language,” notes Candia. “The WaiverSign system is organized by type of waiver and all in one place. This is so much better than juggling and storing multiple paper waivers.”

With protocols and waivers in place, Candia is looking forward to the fair-weather days when clients can enjoy the fresh air coming in from the open garage-size doors.

“We have a great team who keep the gym super clean and organized. The fresh air makes clients and trainers more relaxed,” she says.

Waivers are long associated with such high-risk pursuits as sky diving, river rafting, and bungee jumping. But as reported in Money, June 9, 2020, “As Americans return to their favorite gyms, salons, and restaurants, waivers will be part and parcel of the experience…”

By requiring signed waivers, businesses want clients to commit by signature, their understanding that this pandemic puts at risk all who choose to enter a locale. By acknowledging in advance the risks, the participant assumes responsibility for a decision to partake; and businesses adhering to disease-mitigation protocols may steer clear of liability for illness-related claims.

WaiverSign has experienced a massive spike in signups for its digital liability waiver application services. In the first quarter 2021, WaiverSign saw a 32% increase in the number of online waiver accounts signing up compared to the same time period in 2020.