HOW TO HIRE · HEALTH & WELLBEING

How to hire a mobile personal trainer in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

There is no statutory register of mobile personal trainers anywhere in the UK. Here are the checks, the questions and what the price should include.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a mobile personal trainer in five steps

  1. Check the qualificationLevel, awarding body and date — confirm with the body.
  2. Ask whether insurance covers your home or parkPublic liability for training away from a gym.
  3. Clear a spaceOr agree a park spot; ask what kit the trainer brings.
  4. Agree price and travelSession fee, travel charge, cancellation for bad weather.
  5. Share your healthInjuries and conditions before the first session.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No licence or statutory register applies to mobile personal trainers in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, and the title is not protected. A qualification is something to ask for and verify with the awarding body.

Ask the mobile personal trainer for the qualification, the awarding body and the date, then check with that body yourself.

Protected health titles

A mobile personal trainer may not call themselves a physiotherapist, physical therapist, dietitian or sport and exercise psychologist unless they are on the HCPC Register — using one of those titles, or implying it, without registration is an offence under the Health Professions Order 2001.

If the mobile personal trainer offers injury treatment or diet plans under one of those titles, search them on the HCPC Register. hcpc-uk.org →

Criminal record check for sessions with under-18s

Training children is regulated activity when a mobile personal trainer does it on more than three days out of any thirty, or overnight; from 1 September 2026 being supervised no longer takes it outside. England and Wales: the enhanced DBS check with the children's barred list. Scotland: PVG scheme membership. Northern Ireland: an enhanced AccessNI check. No check is needed to train adults.

For a child's sessions, ask to see the certificate or PVG proof and read the issue date. gov.uk →

First aid

The 1981 first-aid regulations cover a self-employed mobile personal trainer's own needs; no law makes them provide first aid for clients, but HSE strongly recommends planning for the public. Public liability insurance is the cover that pays if you are injured in a mobile personal trainer's session; HSE says a business with employees will probably need employers' liability insurance too.

Ask whether the mobile personal trainer holds a current first-aid certificate and what they do if someone collapses — including where the nearest defibrillator is. Ask the mobile personal trainer for the insurer's name and the policy dates. hse.gov.uk →

VAT

Personal training at home is standard-rated at 20%; the sports exemption covers only non-profit eligible bodies, not a mobile trainer. A trainer with VAT taxable turnover over £90,000 must charge VAT and show it as a separate line; a sole trader under it charges none.

Ask the mobile personal trainer whether VAT is in the session price, and for the VAT number if it is. gov.uk →

“What is your personal trainer qualification, and who awarded it?”

A good answer: A named level and body you can check.

“Does your insurance cover training in my home or a public park?”

A good answer: Yes, with the insurer named — mobile work should be covered.

“What equipment do you bring?”

A good answer: Weights, bands, mats — and what the mobile personal trainer expects you to provide.

“What happens to an outdoor personal training session if it rains?”

A good answer: Indoor plan, rescheduling or your rule in writing.

“How far do you travel, and what does it add?”

A good answer: Area covered and any travel charge.

“How will you assess me?”

A good answer: Health questions and a movement check at the first visit.

“What if I am injured?”

A good answer: Stop and see a physiotherapist or GP.

Getting the quote right

  • Who actually attends — the mobile personal trainer you booked or a stand-in, employed or subcontracted
  • Session price and length
  • Travel charge outside the trainer's area
  • Kit included, or what you need to buy
  • The VAT number, and VAT at 20% as its own line — there is no sports exemption for a commercial trainer
  • Cancellation terms written down — a class or session booked for a fixed date is a leisure service, which the 14-day cancellation right does not cover (regulation 28), so the mobile personal trainer's own terms decide
  • Block terms and unused sessions

Walk away if

  • No insurance for mobile work
  • No health questions first
  • Uses a protected health title without HCPC registration
  • Asks for a large block before a trial
  • Brings worn or unsafe kit
  • No first aid or emergency plan
LOW
£55
TYPICAL
£105
HIGH
£132

What a mobile personal trainer costs: £55–£132 per session

Mobile personal trainers charge per session, with travel built in or added; blocks lower the rate. Mobile Personal Trainer price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Mobile personal trainers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Home fitness checkGoals, health and a movement assessment.
  2. Setting upSpace cleared, kit laid out.
  3. Coached sessionFull workout at home or in the park.
  4. Cool-downStretching and notes.
  5. Plan between sessionsWhat to do alone.

Mobile PT
A trainer who comes to you.
Travel charge
Extra for distance beyond the usual area.
PAR-Q
Pre-exercise health questionnaire.
Resistance bands
Elastic bands used for strength work.
Public liability insurance
Cover if you are injured.
Block booking
Several sessions bought together.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the planExercises to do between visits.
Track progressStarting measures against later ones.
Check the kit you boughtOnly what you need for the plan.
Close the booking with a reviewReviews on Locufy come from real bookings like yours with this mobile personal trainer. The make-it-right step is there first if something went wrong.

STEP 1Start with a message to the mobile personal trainerSet out the facts and the outcome you want, and keep a copy. Reasonable care and skill is implied into every service contract by section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015; if the sessions fell short, the mobile personal trainer must redo it or reduce the bill under section 54.
STEP 2Use Locufy's make-it-right stepRate a booked mobile personal trainer below four stars and you are asked whether to send it to them first; we follow it through. Then you review.
STEP 3Trading Standards, through the helplineNo regulator oversees a mobile personal trainer, so a mobile personal trainer who will not engage can be referred to Trading Standards through Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales (0808 223 1144 in Welsh), Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Small claims, if money is still owedIf the mobile personal trainer will not refund or put it right, a small claim needs no solicitor: up to £10,000 in England and Wales, £5,000 under simple procedure in Scotland, and £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a mobile personal trainer: questions people ask

No. No licence or register applies in any UK nation.

Ask — public liability insurance should cover training at your address or in a park.

Not to train adults. For children's sessions, ask for DBS, PVG or AccessNI depending on your nation.

£55 to £132 a session, typically around £105. Travel time is built into the price, so mobile sessions cost more than gym sessions. See the mobile personal trainer price guide for what moves the figure, or search your town above to compare mobile personal trainers nearby.

At 20% if the trainer is VAT-registered.

Tell the trainer in writing; one in business owes reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in health & wellbeing

How to hire: Personal TrainerHow to hire: Strength & Conditioning CoachHow to hire: Fitness InstructorHow to hire: Boxing TrainerHow to hire: Running CoachHow to hire: Bootcamp InstructorHow to hire: Group Fitness ClassesHow to hire: NutritionistAll 701 hiring guides →

Mobile personal trainers near you

Mobile personal trainers in LondonMobile personal trainers in ManchesterMobile personal trainers in BirminghamMobile personal trainers in GlasgowMobile personal trainers in BelfastAll mobile personal trainers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. HCPC — professions and protected titles
  2. HCPC — misuse of title
  3. gov.uk (DBS) — regulated activity with children
  4. gov.uk — change to the definition of regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026
  5. mygov.scot — who needs PVG scheme membership (personal employers)
  6. nidirect — AccessNI checks for the self-employed and personal employees
  7. HSE — first aid FAQs (first aid for the public)
  8. HSE — get insurance for your business
  9. gov.uk — Sport supplies that are VAT exempt (VAT Notice 701/45)
  10. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — exceptions to the right to cancel
  11. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — cancellation period
  12. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36 — services started in the cancellation period
  13. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — consumer's rights for services
  14. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  15. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  16. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register