Skip to content
Contact us
  • There are no suggestions because the search field is empty.

ViCoverage and Team Liability Insurance; What's the difference?

Overview

Playbook365 supports two distinct types of insurance documentation. Understanding the difference helps event operators know what to require from teams, what ViCoverage covers, and how to avoid confusion when teams ask questions about their coverage obligations.

Team Liability Insurance (also called a Certificate of Liability Insurance) is a policy that teams purchase independently — outside of Playbook — from a third-party insurance provider. Operators can require teams to upload this certificate as a condition of participation.

ViCoverage products are optional, registration-based coverages offered directly inside the Playbook checkout experience, powered by Vertical Insure. These are purchased by team admins or individual families during (or after) registration.

These two types of insurance serve completely different purposes and are not interchangeable.

Side-by-Side Comparison

| | Team Liability Insurance | ViCoverage Products | | --- | --- | --- | | What it covers | Third-party bodily injury and property damage claims against the team | Registration fee refunds, medical expenses, or weather cancellation losses | | Who it protects | The event operator and venue from liability claims | The team admin or family (their financial investment) | | Who purchases it | The team, independently, from a third-party insurer | Team admins or families during Playbook registration checkout | | Where it's purchased | Outside of Playbook (e.g., through USA Volleyball, USSSA, or a private broker) | Inside Playbook at checkout, or via the customer dashboard after registration | | How it appears in Playbook | Uploaded by the team as a PDF document (Certificate of Liability) | Managed through the Vertical Insure toggle in event and global settings | | Required by operators? | Often yes — operators can require upload and approve via the Insurance menu | No — always optional for teams and families | | Claims filed through | The issuing insurance carrier (outside Playbook) | customers.vicoverage.com | | Managed in Playbook by | Operator, via Insurance → Certificates in the left navigation menu | Operator, via the Vertical Insure menu item in the left navigation |

Team Liability Insurance – What It Is

A Certificate of Liability Insurance (sometimes called a COI or ACORD certificate) is a standard document that proves a team carries general liability insurance. This type of policy is typically required by event operators or venues to protect against claims arising from injuries or property damage caused by the team.

This certificate is issued by a third-party insurance carrier — not Playbook, and not ViCoverage. Common providers include sports governing bodies like USA Volleyball, USSSA, and USYS, as well as private brokers. Teams generally carry this coverage as part of their club membership or purchase it separately each year.

What a Certificate of Liability Insurance typically includes:

  • General Liability coverage (e.g., $2,000,000 per occurrence / $4,000,000 aggregate)
  • Damage to rented premises coverage
  • Medical expense coverage (per person)
  • Personal and advertising injury coverage
  • The event operator or venue listed as an additional insured (when required by written contract)
  • A defined policy period (e.g., 06/03/2026 – 06/03/2027)

This coverage protects the event operator and venue — not the team's registration fees, players' medical costs, or families' financial investment.

ViCoverage – What It Is

ViCoverage products are optional, add-on coverages that protect the financial interests of teams and families. They are purchased during the Playbook registration process and managed through the Vertical Insure integration.

ViCoverage does not replace Team Liability Insurance and does not provide general liability protection for event operators or venues.

The three ViCoverage products available in Playbook are:

  • Event Cancellation Team Coverage — refunds team registration fees if the event is cancelled due to weather
  • Player Registration Protection — refunds individual registration fees if a player cannot participate due to injury, illness, job loss, relocation, or military duty
  • Accident & Injury Insurance — helps cover out-of-pocket medical expenses when an athlete is injured during practices, games, or tournaments

How Each Is Managed in Playbook

Team Liability Insurance (Certificate of Liability)

How teams upload their certificate:

Teams are prompted to submit their certificate of liability insurance through a checklist that appears in their customer dashboard for each upcoming event they are registered in. The checklist includes an insurance upload option. Teams can complete this directly from the checklist, or by navigating to their team management area within the customer dashboard and uploading the certificate there.

If a team admin is unable to upload the certificate themselves, they can contact the event operator and ask them to upload it on their behalf. In that case, the operator would log in to the team's customer account and upload the certificate from within that customer's dashboard.

How operators review and approve certificates:

  1. In the left navigation menu, click Insurance
  2. Select Certificates

This opens the Certificates page, which displays all insurance certificates that have been uploaded by teams in your system. Each certificate will show one of the following statuses:

  • Waiting Approval — the certificate has been uploaded and is pending operator review
  • Approved — the certificate has been reviewed and accepted
  • Rejected — the certificate was not accepted (e.g., expired, incorrect coverage, missing additional insured)

From this page, operators can review each certificate and either approve it or follow up with the team to request a corrected document.

ViCoverage Products

ViCoverage is managed through the Vertical Insure integration in your Playbook dashboard.

To enable ViCoverage for an event:

  1. Navigate to Event Management → Events
  2. Open the event edit pages
  3. On the Details tab, locate the Vertical Insure toggle and turn it on

To manage which products are available globally:

  1. Click the gear icon in the left navigation menu to open Global Settings
  2. Scroll down and click Vertical Insure
  3. Toggle individual products on or off as needed

To view ViCoverage reports and account information:

  • Click Vertical Insure in the left navigation menu (just above the Store Front icon)

Common Questions

"A team uploaded a Certificate of Liability Insurance. Does that mean they have ViCoverage?" No. A Certificate of Liability Insurance is a separate document from a third-party insurer. It covers the operator and venue against liability claims. ViCoverage is purchased separately inside Playbook and covers the team's or family's financial investment. A team can have one, both, or neither.

"Do I need to require both types of insurance?" That depends on your organization's requirements. Team Liability Insurance is commonly required by event operators and venues to protect against liability claims. ViCoverage products are always optional and are never a participation requirement — they are a financial protection option offered to teams and families.

"Can ViCoverage replace the Certificate of Liability Insurance requirement?" No. ViCoverage products do not provide general liability coverage. They cannot be used in place of a Certificate of Liability Insurance when that certificate is required by your event or venue.

"A team is asking if their ViCoverage covers them for liability at the event." No. ViCoverage products cover registration fee refunds and medical expenses. Liability coverage for the event operator and venue must come from a separate Certificate of Liability Insurance obtained outside of Playbook.

"Where does a team get a Certificate of Liability Insurance?" Teams typically obtain this through their sports governing body membership (e.g., USA Volleyball, USSSA, USYS) or from a private insurance broker. This is handled entirely outside of Playbook.

"A team says they uploaded their certificate but I can't find it." Navigate to Insurance → Certificates in the left menu. Use the status filter to locate certificates in Waiting Approval status. If it still doesn't appear, confirm with the team that their upload completed successfully and ask them to re-upload if needed.

"Can I upload a team's certificate on their behalf?" Yes. Log in to the team's customer account and upload the certificate from within their customer dashboard, in the team management area.