This page provides a summary of the Clubs Injury Policy and Procedures.  All players are advised to read the Sarsfields GAA Club Injury Policy in full to ensure they are familiar with all procedures, exclusions and benefits.

Our Club's Player Injury Policy and best practices are outlined below.

·         All members are treated equally and fairly if an injury occurs.

·         Our Club makes the best use of compensation schemes outside of club finances. This includes the GAA Injury Benefit Fund, LGFA Injury Fund, Camogie Claims via Allianz and the player's private health insurance.

·         Efforts to safeguard players against financial burdens after injuries. 

·         Injured players can make a timely recovery without delay.

Our Club Injury Policy:

·         Every player needs to be a fully paid-up registered member of Sarsfields GAA/LGFA/Camogie Club to avail of the GAA/LGFA/Camogie Injury Schemes.

·         Following the vote at 2025 GAA Congress to change the GAA membership year to April 1st – March 31st, the 2025 GAA Injury Benefit Fund (for GAA football and Hurling) will run from June 1st, 2025 – March 31st, 2026. From April 1st, 2026, the GAA membership year and the GAA Injury Benefit Fund cover period will both run from April 1st, 2026 - March 31st, 2027. It is a requirement as per the official guide that all members must be registered, to be considered covered by GAA Injury Benefit Fund.

·         Membership MUST be paid before participation in any Training, Official Fixtures or Challenge Matches.

·         ALL INJURIES requiring medical treatment require a Player Injury Report form to be completed. This form is automatically routed to the Club Secretary.

·         Then you can register a GAA injury benefit fund claim on Foireann (see video and more information below).

The injury policy does not extend to the following exclusions:

·         Injuries with County Teams
·         Late Claims
·         Non-sanctioned matches or training

·         The player needs to inform the team management during or after the match/training session that he got injured.

·         Team Management must email the Club Secretary within 48 hours, as the Club Secretary will need to validate any Injury Claim notified by a player/coach or complete the online Player Injury Report form.

·         Team managers please report the injury to your team physio, Club Secretary and Club Player Injury officer as soon as possible after the training session or match.

·         In addition, if a Player gets injured at a match or challenge game, team managers need to ensure that the referee is informed of the injury after the match and that the referee is advised to note this in his report.

Link to a YouTube video showing how to register the claim on Foireann.

NOTE: A player injury report form must be completed online by either the player or team management  click here 

 

The GAA Injury Benefit Fund is not insurance. The Injury Fund is a benefit cover funded entirely from Club and Central Council contributions. The Injury Benefit Fund is not an Insurance Scheme and is therefore not regulated by the Central Bank.

The Fund provides cover for registered members participating in an Official Fixture or Official supervised training session as part of a team registered with the fund. DWF Claims are the appointed Administrators of the fund and they administer the fund on behalf of the GAA.

There is no legal obligation on the GAA to provide an Injury Fund. Risk is an inherent factor in sport, as in life. When members voluntarily take part in Club activities they accept the risks that such participation may bring.

The Injury Fund does not seek to fully compensate but to supplement other covers such as Private Health Insurance, National Health Insurance, Personal Accident Cover, Employment benefit covers, Income Payment protection covers etc.

Under the terms of the fund:
There is a €100 excess deduction if the player does not have private health insurance.
€100 excess is waived for players with private health insurance.

RECEIPTS COVERED/TREATMENT:

·         Otherwise, unrecoverable inpatient and outpatient medical expenses up to a maximum of €5,500.  Excludes the first €100.00

·         Includes cover for MRI scans up to a limit of €300 per scan

·         Includes post-operative physiotherapy/treatments up to a maximum limit of €320 –  NOTE: Only post-surgery physio covered, pre-operative physio not covered

·         Otherwise unrecoverable dental expenses up to a maximum of €4,500 – Excludes the first €100.00

·         In-patient hospital stays for a minimum of ten days to a maximum of 15 days, up to €400 per day. 

·         Loss of wages to those in full-time employment (more than 16 hours a week) up to 26 weeks (up to €300.00 per week). Does not include the first week, does not include overtime, bonuses, commission, allowances, etc. )

·         Consultations with Medical Attendant

·         X-rays

·         Surgery

·         CT Scan(Maximum €300 per scan)

·         MRI(Maximum €300 per scan)

·         Prescription

·         Dental: Root Canal, X-rays, Fillings, Extraction, Capping etc.

·         Biomechanics/Chiropractor – Considered to be  Physio so will be allowed if post-operative.

·         Private medical insurance Excess

·         Cast – Covered as it is considered treatment from a medical consultant.

 RECEIPTS NOT COVERED EXCLUSIONS:

·         Knee Brace/Walking boot/Crutches – No cover – Not considered treatment under the fund

·         Doctor Certs/Filling out forms/Doctors’ letter – No Cover

·         Any cryogenic treatment – No Cover

·         Holistic Medicine – No Cover  

Payment of GAA Injury claims are now paid directly to the player by the GAA once the Injury Claim has been completed, processed and closed by the GAA. 

The GAA Injury Benefit Fund does not cover general Physio treatment. The LGFA covers 90% of up to 6 visits once approved in advance (see https://ladiesgaelic.ie/resources/injury-fund/)
The Clubs GAA appointed Physio’s are MDC (https://www.mdcphysiotherapy.ie/ ) and Able Bodies (045 435480) and must only be used. Fees must be paid upfront by the injured player. The player/coach must indicate at the time of booking that they are a Sarsfields member to avail themselves of the Club Rate.

The Club appointed Physio is for the benefit of players & coaches ONLY.

Treatment is for injuries sustained ONLY while playing for or coaching with Sarsfields.
·         Players/Coaches must get Manager and Club Secretary approval prior to the physiotherapy treatment. This should be with a Club approved Physiotherapist. NO Physio costs will be reimbursed unless first approved by the Club.
·         Player/Coach pays physiotherapy fees upfront.
·         Receipts must be provided to the Club Secretary within 1 month of finishing treatment.
·         The club will reimburse 40% of the cost, Health insurance will cover 50% of costs and the remaining 10% can be claimed via Annual Tax returns. (Health expenses are claimed through your Income Tax Return. If you are a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) taxpayer, you also have the option to claim relief in real time during the year. Claiming Health Expenses)
·         All Players/Coaches are limited to 5 sessions for an injury. The Club Secretary must be notified where further sessions are required to seek approval.  

How players make claims for Camogie and LGFA injuries are detailed in the Club Injury Policy

GAA website - https://www.gaa.ie/my-gaa/administrators/gaa-injury-benefit-fund