Allowing a riding club, a 4-H group or a charity to use your arena is a generous thing to do. It is also an organized event on your property, which is not what a personal policy was written for.
An organized event is different from a guest. Numbers, structure and any fee all change the analysis.
Three things about hosting a group.
A handful of friends riding is social. Thirty people, a schedule and an organization behind it is an event, and insurers look at it differently. Numbers alone change the realistic claim, and the presence of minors changes it again.
Established clubs and youth organizations generally hold liability insurance and can name you as an additional insured for the day. Asking for that certificate is normal, free and the single most useful thing a host can do. A group without cover is a group whose exposure lands on you.
A signed release is worth having and it is not a complete defense, particularly for minors or for a failure to maintain the facilities. It reduces claims rather than eliminating them, and the insurance sits behind it for the ones it does not stop.
Groups, frequency and paperwork.
Occasional and regular are different exposures.
Ask for the certificate and to be named on it.
A fee can make it a business pursuit and exclude it.
Tell us who uses the arena, how often and whether anybody pays for it.
