Religious Institutions
Churches and Other Religious Institutions
Do churches need insurance? Churches and other religious institutions may be tax-exempt, but they still need insurance. Unfortunately, unforeseen events can befall religious institutions just as easily as any other person or organization. If you’re responsible for a church or other religious institution, you must take steps to protect that institution. As a church you can face significant disruption from regulatory requirements, data breach, investigative activities, and other legal expenditures.
In New York State, insurance for religious institutions is one of the services Capital Gate Insurance Group is well-equipped to bind coverage for you.
Types of Insurance for Churches and Religious Institutions
All churches and other houses of worship will require certain types of insurance coverage. For example, you’ll want property coverage to protect you if anything happens to your building or the valuables inside. You’ll also want liability coverage to cover the institution if an accident should injure someone on your grounds. However, different churches and religious institutions may have other special insurance needs for valuables, etc., as well.
Churches Affiliated With Day Care
If your church offers day care, the law may require you to carry separate day care liability insurance. No matter the legal insurance requirements, you should also ensure the facility is covered for issues such as:
- General Liability: The self-preservation instincts of children are not finely-honed, and they frequently get into accidents. This will protect you should a child get into an accident so severe they require medical attention.
- Premises Liability: Premises liability protects you if children or visitors sustain injuries in play areas or parking lots.
- Professional Liability: Professional liability protects you should a child be harmed due to the negligence of someone on your staff.
- Corporal Punishment and Abuse Liability: In the unfortunate circumstance when someone you hire abuses one of the children under your care, this type of policy will protect your church from this liability. This coverage also provides for additional injuries and defense cost that goes beyond just sexual abuse and sexual misconduct.
- Other coverage you may need can include cemetery liability, cyber liability, key employee replacement coverage, and directors and officers coverage. Capital Gate Insurance can help your organization procure the right coverage for you!
Churches Affiliated With Faith-Based School Operations
If you run a faith-based school, you need to protect it with insurance coverage, just like any other school. You need much of the same types of coverage as you would need in a day care center, such as general liability, premises liability, professional liability and abuse liability.
You may also need commercial vehicle coverage if you’re responsible for transporting students to and from your institution. Greater property coverage is also a smart idea since you’ll have to cover the church property in addition to the school and all the educational materials inside.