Customer Terms And Waivers For Kids Activities

Running kids' classes, camps or holiday programmes can be incredibly rewarding, but it also comes with a lot of moving parts. Parents are trusting you with their children, your team is managing energy and risk, and bookings often change at the last minute.

That's exactly where clear customer terms and a well-written parent consent form help. They set expectations before a child arrives, explain what parents are agreeing to, and give your staff the information they need to run the activity safely.

If you're looking for a kids activity waiver in NZ, the key is to treat it as one part of your wider booking terms and conditions - not a magic document that removes every risk.

Do You Need Customer Terms For Children's Activities?

Yes, you should have written customer terms if you run children's classes, camps, parties, after school programmes or holiday activities. Even if parents book online and everything feels casual, you're still providing a paid service and taking responsibility for a child's experience while they're with you.

Your customer terms are the rules of the booking. They help parents understand things like:

• what the programme includes and doesn't include
• who can attend, including age, ability and behaviour requirements
• how drop-off and pick-up work
• what parents need to tell you about medical conditions, allergies or extra support needs
• how cancellations, refunds, credits and missed sessions work
• when you can refuse participation or remove a child for safety reasons

For example, say Hana runs a school holiday science camp in Wellington. Parents book online for a 5-day programme at $75 per day. On day one, a parent arrives 25 minutes late for pick-up, another child has an undisclosed peanut allergy, and a third parent asks for a full refund because their child changed their mind after lunch.

If Hana's terms cover pick-up fees, medical information and change-of-mind cancellations, she has a much easier conversation with each parent. Without written terms, she may still have legal rights, but she may struggle to explain them clearly or apply them consistently.

Your terms also need to work alongside New Zealand consumer law. The Fair Trading Act 1986 says you can't mislead parents about your services, prices or policies. The Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 gives parents certain guarantees when they buy services for personal or household use, including that you'll provide the service with reasonable care and skill.

Can A Kids Activity Waiver Protect Your Business?

Yes, a waiver can help protect your business, but it can't remove all of your legal responsibilities. A parent consent and risk acknowledgement is useful because it shows that parents were told about the nature of the activity and agreed to their child taking part.

A good waiver for children's activities usually does three practical things:

• it explains the normal risks of the activity in plain English
• it confirms the parent or guardian consents to the child participating
• it records key information, such as emergency contacts and medical details

For higher risk activities, this is especially important. Think gymnastics, climbing, martial arts, swimming, horse riding, outdoor camps, trampoline sessions, skateboarding, cooking classes or science activities using equipment. You don't want vague wording like "all risks are accepted". Parents need to know what kinds of risks they're acknowledging.

At the same time, you can't use a waiver to contract out of everything. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, your business may be a PCBU and owe duties to manage health and safety risks so far as is reasonably practicable. You can't sign those duties away.

You also can't use a waiver to avoid core consumer guarantees for services provided to families. If your instructor doesn't take reasonable care, or your programme is materially different from what you advertised, a waiver won't fix that.

In New Zealand, ACC also means personal injury claims work differently from some overseas countries. Even so, an incident can still lead to complaints, refund requests, regulator attention, reputational damage and costs that aren't covered by ACC. So the better way to think about a waiver is this: it supports good risk communication and consent, but it doesn't replace safe systems, trained staff and accurate advertising.

What Should Your Parent Consent Form Cover?

Your parent consent form should cover the child's participation, health needs, emergency arrangements and the rules parents agree to follow. It should be written for a busy parent who is filling it out on their phone, not for a courtroom.

Start with the basics. You want the child's full name, date of birth, the parent or guardian's contact details, emergency contacts and details of anyone authorised to collect the child. If pick-up is sensitive, for example where one parent isn't authorised to collect, ask the parent to give you clear written instructions and supporting information where appropriate.

Then cover participation consent. This is where the parent confirms that:

• they're the child's parent or legal guardian, or have authority to enrol the child
• they have read the activity description and understand what the child will be doing
• they consent to the child taking part in the programme
• they have told you about relevant medical, behavioural, allergy or support needs
• they will update you if anything changes before or during the programme

Medical information needs extra care. Ask for information you genuinely need to keep children safe, such as allergies, asthma plans, medication instructions, dietary restrictions and emergency treatment permissions. Don't collect sensitive information just because it might be interesting or useful later.

If your staff may need to administer medication, your consent wording should be much more specific. You may need parents to provide the medication in its original packaging, written dosage instructions, timing, storage requirements and emergency steps. Your internal policy should also say who can administer medication and how it will be recorded.

If your programme involves transport, off-site activities, water, animals, overnight stays or specialist equipment, don't rely on a generic consent line. Add clear consent for that part of the programme, including what supervision will look like and what parents need to provide.

How Should You Handle Photos, Medical Details And Privacy?

You should handle photos, medical details and parent contact information under the Privacy Act 2020, because you're collecting personal information about children and families. In practice, that means being clear about what you collect, why you collect it, who sees it and how long you keep it.

Children's privacy deserves a careful approach. A child's image can be personal information if the child is identifiable. Medical and behavioural information can be particularly sensitive. Your booking form, privacy wording or terms of use should tell parents:

• what personal information you collect
• why you need it, such as safety, enrolment, billing or emergency contact purposes
• whether you share it with staff, contractors, venues, insurers or emergency services
• whether information is stored in booking software, email systems or other platforms
• how parents can ask to access or correct information
• how long you keep information after the programme ends

Photo and video consent should be separate from general terms. Parents may be happy for you to use a child's photo in a private class update, but not on Instagram, paid ads or your website. Give them meaningful options, such as:

• internal use only, like attendance records or learning updates
• private parent communications, like a closed group or email update
• public marketing, including your website and social media
• no photos or videos, except where needed for safety or incident records

Be especially careful with group photos. If one parent opts out, your team needs a practical system so that child's image doesn't end up in marketing material by mistake.

The Privacy Act also has a notifiable privacy breach scheme. If a privacy breach has caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm, you may need to notify the Privacy Commissioner and affected people as soon as practicable. For a kids activity provider, that could include accidentally emailing a medical spreadsheet to the wrong group or losing an unprotected device containing children's details.

What Cancellation And Refund Terms Can You Use?

You can use cancellation and refund terms, but they need to be clear, fair and consistent with New Zealand consumer law. The main point is that your policy should match the real costs and planning involved in your programme, rather than punishing parents unfairly.

For children's activities, cancellation terms often cover:

• parent cancellations before the programme starts
• missed sessions due to sickness or change of plans
• your right to cancel because of weather, low numbers, staff illness or safety concerns
• credits, make-up sessions or refunds
• late pick-up fees
• behaviour-related removal from the programme

Under the Fair Trading Act, your cancellation policy shouldn't be misleading. If your website says "flexible refunds", your terms shouldn't quietly say "no refunds in any circumstances". The Act also regulates unfair contract terms in standard form consumer contracts, so very one-sided cancellation wording can create risk.

The Consumer Guarantees Act also matters. If you cancel a programme and don't provide the service, a parent may be entitled to a refund or other remedy depending on the circumstances. If the service isn't provided with reasonable care and skill, you can't simply point to a no-refund clause and end the conversation.

A Simple Worked Example

Say your holiday programme costs $300 for the week. Your terms say parents can cancel more than 7 days before the start date for a refund, less a clearly stated $30 administration fee. Cancellations within 7 days receive a credit only if you can fill the place from a waitlist. Once the programme starts, missed days aren't refunded unless you cancel the session or another legal remedy applies.

That kind of policy is much easier to explain because it connects to your real planning costs, staffing and limited places. The exact timing and amounts should suit your business model, but the principle is the same: make the policy visible before payment, keep it fair, and don't overpromise in your marketing.

Customer Terms And Waiver Template: What To Include

A template can be a helpful starting point, but children's activity terms should be tailored before you use them. The right wording depends on your activity, risk level, booking process, staff model, venues and whether you're working with schools, councils or other organisations.

Here is a practical outline you can use when planning your document:

1. Business And Programme Details: name your business, describe the activity, dates, location and what is included in the fee.
2. Eligibility And Participation Rules: set age limits, skill requirements, behaviour expectations and when you can refuse participation for safety reasons.
3. Parent Or Guardian Authority: confirm the person booking has authority to enrol the child and agree to the terms.
4. Risk Acknowledgement: describe the ordinary risks of the activity in specific, plain language.
5. Medical And Emergency Information: ask for allergies, medication, emergency contacts and consent for emergency steps where needed.
6. Drop-Off, Pick-Up And Authorised Collectors: explain timing, sign-in processes, late pick-up charges and collection rules.
7. Fees, Cancellations And Refunds: set payment timing, cancellation cut-offs, credits, make-up sessions and what happens if you cancel.
8. Photos, Videos And Privacy: include privacy collection wording and separate photo consent options.
9. Health And Safety Rules: explain equipment, clothing, food, illness, weather, supervision and staff instructions.
10. Liability And Consumer Rights: set reasonable limits where lawful, but don't try to exclude non-excludable rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act or your health and safety duties.
11. Incident Process: say how incidents are recorded, when parents are contacted and what information may be shared with emergency services or insurers.
12. Acceptance: make sure parents actively tick or sign to accept the terms before the booking is confirmed.

You should also think about how the terms are presented. If parents book online, don't hide key online service terms behind tiny text at the bottom of a payment page. Use a clear checkbox, keep a timestamped record of acceptance, and send a copy with the booking confirmation.

If something goes wrong during an activity, start with safety first. Get medical help if needed, separate children from the risk, contact the parent or guardian, and make a written incident record while details are fresh. Record who was present, what happened, what steps staff took, any first aid given, and what follow-up is needed.

If your service falls within a regulated childcare, out-of-school care or funded setting, you may also have extra rules around police vetting, safety checking, supervision, reporting and sector standards. Those requirements can sit outside your customer terms, but your documents should still support them.

Key Takeaways

• Customer terms help parents understand the rules before they book, including fees, safety, cancellations, pick-up and participation requirements.
• A kids activity waiver can record consent and risk acknowledgement, but it can't remove your health and safety duties or core consumer law obligations.
• Parent consent forms should ask for the information you genuinely need, especially medical details, emergency contacts and authorised collectors.
• Photos, videos and children's medical information need careful handling under the Privacy Act 2020, with separate photo consent options where possible.
• Cancellation and refund terms should be clear, visible before payment and consistent with the Fair Trading Act and Consumer Guarantees Act.
• Templates work best as a starting point. Your terms should be tailored to your activity, risk level, booking process and staff systems.

If you'd like help with your children's activity terms, parent consent wording, privacy and photo consent forms, or cancellation policies, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.