Ontario Underwater Council

The Minor Indemnity Agreement, officially known as “OUC Acknowledgement of Risk and Indemnity Agreement for Minor Child Participant, hereinafter referred to as Indemnity Agreement,” has the following instructions for Ontario Underwater Council participants:

  • Both Parents of a Minor Child participating in OUC activities must correctly complete the Indemnity Agreement for each of their Minor Child/ren at least 24 hours prior to the start of the OUC activities to benefit from OUC’s second level of protection.

This requirement was thoroughly discussed and adopted during the OUC Board meeting in October 2024.

Input from a board member with extensive experience working with Minor participants significantly influenced the decision. The primary objective is to ensure that both parents are fully informed of the wide range of known and unknown risks their Minor child may face while participating in scuba diving activities, as well as the potential financial implications in the event of liability.

The requirement for signatures from both living parents helps mitigate legal risks for clubs, instructors, and OUC. If only one parent provides consent, and the other later disputes their lack of involvement or understanding, it could result in significant legal and financial liability for all parties involved, potentially amounting to millions.

Following the Board’s decision, the updated release and indemnity agreements were shared with club presidents for review November 12, 2024, ahead of its official launch on December 4, 2024.

To ensure compliance:

  • Instructors are encouraged to validate the authenticity of agreements by directly confirming signatures with the parents.
  • Instructors may delegate this verification to club executives but retain ultimate responsibility.

While OUC strongly recommends compliance with this requirement as a proactive measure, the final decision to enforce the requirement lies with individual clubs and instructors. Clubs and instructors who choose not to follow the guideline must accept the associated risks and liabilities.

We understand there may be concerns or suggestions regarding this policy. To maintain consistency and respect for parents who have already completed the 2025 agreements, we cannot make changes to the current legally binding release. Feedback from clubs will be reviewed and considered for the next policy update, anticipated in November 2025 for use in 2026.

Definition of Minors:

  • Minors are defined as being under the age of majority.
  • In Canada, the age of majority is based on location where the legal issue or event takes place, not solely on the person’s province of residence.
  • The age of majority is 18 in six provinces: Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.
  • The age of majority is 19 in four provinces and the three territories: British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, and Yukon.

Membership in OUC for Minors:

  • Minors joining an OUC club must declare their Date of Birth when they join your club.
  • Clubs sending an Excel Membership Submission Spreadsheet to OUC must include the Date of Birth of Minors on the spreadsheet (Column K).
  • Clubs are strongly recommended to request both parents of Minors to sign the Indemnity Agreement for Parents of Minors to ensure adequate liability insurance coverage.
  • To avoid being asked to correct/re-sign the Indemnity Agreement, parents are asked to use full legal names in all name fields (including the Minor’s full legal name, and the parents’ exact same legal name and format in all the parents’ name fields.) Do not use “Yes” or “Agreed”, but use the full legal name, no other words.

We hope this explanation provides clarity on the requirement’s rationale and implementation.

See also: Three Levels of Protection.

 

Ontario Underwater Council