Liability waiver template
A liability waiver is a participant's signed promise that they understand the risks of an activity and won't sue you for the ordinary ones. This general template works for classes, events, rentals, volunteer days and outdoor activities, with blanks to describe your activity and its particular risks. Read it below, then open it in SignMaster and collect signatures by link, QR code or tablet.
Updated November 5, 2026 · 4 min read
The contract
Gray blanks are yours to fill in before you send. Each signer fills in the blanks in their color.
- You, before sending
- Participant
Release of Liability and Assumption of Risk
Organizer: Organizer name (the "Organizer"). Activity: Activity (the "Activity"), at Activity location, on or starting Activity date.
Please read this whole document before signing. By signing it, you give up the right to sue the Organizer for many injuries, including some caused by its negligence.
1. The participant
- Participant's full name: Participant name
- Date of birth: Participant date of birth
- If the participant is under 18, the parent or legal guardian signing for them: Parent or guardian name
2. The activity and its risks
The Activity involves: Activity description. Risks particular to it include: Activity risks.
Like any physical activity, it also carries general risks: slips, trips and falls; collisions with people, objects or the ground; equipment that breaks or is used wrongly; heat, cold, sun and storms; strain, exhaustion, dehydration and heart problems brought on by exertion; and the careless acts of other participants. These can cause minor injuries, serious injuries, permanent disability or death. Initials: Initials after the risks
3. Assumption of risk
The participant takes part voluntarily. Knowing the risks described above, as well as risks no one can foresee, the participant accepts all of them and takes responsibility for their own safety and choices during the Activity. Initials: Assumption of risk initials
4. Health
The participant has no illness, injury or condition that makes the Activity unsafe for them, or has asked a doctor and been told it is safe. They will tell staff before starting about anything that could affect them: Medical notes. They will stop and tell staff if they feel unwell or unsafe.
5. Rules
The participant will follow the Organizer's safety rules and staff instructions and use any safety equipment provided. The Organizer may stop anyone from taking part, without a refund, if they ignore the rules, appear impaired or put others at risk.
6. Release of liability
To the fullest extent the law allows, the participant releases the Organizer and its owners, employees, volunteers and contractors from every claim for injury, illness, death or damage to property arising out of the Activity, including claims based on their negligence. This release does not cover gross negligence or intentional misconduct. It binds the participant and their heirs and anyone claiming on their behalf. Initials: Initials after the release
7. Responsibility for your own conduct
The participant will cover the Organizer's reasonable costs, including legal fees, for any claim by someone else that results from the participant's own careless or deliberate acts during the Activity.
8. Medical treatment
If the participant is hurt or ill and can't decide for themselves, the Organizer may arrange first aid and emergency medical care and transport. The participant is responsible for the cost. Emergency contact: Emergency contact.
9. Photos
The Organizer may take photos and video during the Activity and use them to promote its programs. Tick here to opt out: .
10. General
This document is governed by the laws of the state of State. If a court finds any part of it unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. It is the whole agreement about the participant's risks and the Organizer's liability. If the participant is under 18, the parent or guardian signing confirms they have the authority to sign for the participant and agrees to its terms on the participant's behalf as far as the law permits. Electronic signatures count as original signatures.
Phone: Participant phone Email: Participant email
I have read this release, I understand that it gives up substantial legal rights, and I sign it voluntarily.
Participant, or parent or guardian if under 18
Opens it in SignMaster as a template you can edit and send.
A starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review it for your state and situation.
On this page
How a waiver works
A good waiver has three parts. The assumption of risk shows the participant knew what could go wrong and chose to take part anyway. The release gives up the right to sue for injuries from those risks, including your ordinary negligence where the law allows it. The indemnity makes the participant responsible for claims their own conduct causes. Courts read waivers strictly against the business that wrote them, so each part needs to be clear, specific and easy to find.
A waiver doesn't replace insurance or safe operations. It narrows the claims you'll face; it doesn't excuse you from running the activity carefully.
What the template covers
- The activity: your organization, the activity, the place and the date, with a warning at the top that the participant is giving up rights.
- The participant: name, date of birth and, for a minor, the parent or guardian signing.
- Risks: what the activity involves and its particular risks in your words, then the general risks of physical activity, initialed by the participant.
- Assumption of risk: voluntary participation and acceptance of known and unforeseeable risks, initialed.
- Health and rules: medical conditions to disclose, safety rules, and your right to stop someone who puts others at risk.
- Release: a release that names negligence in plain words and excludes gross negligence, initialed.
- Indemnity, medical care and photos: responsibility for the participant's own conduct, consent to emergency care with an emergency contact, and a photo opt-out.
- General terms: the state's law, severability and a parent's authority to sign for a minor.
Mistakes that sink waivers
- Using vague language like "any and all risks" with no description of the actual activity. Name what the participant will do and what can realistically go wrong.
- Not mentioning negligence. Many courts won't read a release as covering your own negligence unless it says so in plain words.
- Hiding the release in a registration form's fine print. Give it its own heading, its own initials and a warning at the top.
- Expecting it to cover gross negligence or deliberate harm. Almost no state allows that, and overreaching wording can make a court suspicious of the rest.
- Losing the signed copy. A minor's injury claim can often be brought years later, once they turn 18, so you may need the waiver long after the event.
State law decides how far a waiver reaches
Most states enforce clear waivers for ordinary negligence, but a few, Virginia and Louisiana among them, refuse to enforce releases of personal injury claims. States also split on whether a parent can waive a child's claim, so if most of your participants are children, look up your state's rule before you rely on section 6.
How to collect it with SignMaster
- 1
Open the template
Choose Use this template above. It opens in your SignMaster account with one signer, the participant.
- 2
Describe your activity
Fill the gray blanks: your organization, the activity, the location and date, what it involves and its particular risks. Be specific, then save.
- 3
Turn it into a link or QR code
Make a public signing link from the template and print its QR code for the check-in table, or put the link in your booking confirmation.
- 4
Participants sign on their phones
Each person enters their name and email, fills in their details, initials the risks, assumption of risk and release, and signs. Parents fill in the guardian line for a child.
- 5
Everyone gets a copy
Each signer and your team receive the signed PDF with its certificate of completion, recording who signed, when and from which IP address.
Finding the right waiver on the day
When fifty people turn up at once, nobody wants to search a stack of PDFs for one emergency contact. On a paid plan, the Responses tab lists every participant's answers to the template in one table, with names, birth dates, medical notes and emergency contacts, and exports to CSV. If someone arrives without signing, hand them your phone or iPad with Sign in person and they're done in a minute.
Questions? Answers.
Are electronically signed waivers enforceable?
The signature method isn't usually the problem. Under the federal ESIGN Act and state laws, an e-signature counts like ink. Whether the waiver holds depends on its wording and your state's rules, and SignMaster's audit trail shows who signed and when.
Is a liability waiver the same as a hold harmless agreement?
They overlap. A waiver releases you from the participant's own claims; a hold harmless or indemnity clause makes them cover claims by others caused by their conduct. This template has both, in sections 6 and 7.
Can a parent sign for a child?
Yes, the template has a line for a parent or guardian. Whether it stops the child's own claim depends on the state, which matters most when a youth program is your main business.
How long should I keep signed waivers?
At least as long as someone could bring a claim, which for minors can run years past the event. Each signed copy is emailed to you and kept with its envelope in your account; keep your own backup with your other records too.