Church Insurance: Cost, Coverage & Top Companies

The church insurance industry has been around since the early 1800s, with a few major companies taking up most of the market. This is about to change as blockchain technology opens up new doors for innovation and competition in this niche financial sector. Not only will it bring down costs, but increase coverage options at an all-time low cost.

Church insurance is a type of insurance that covers churches and religious organizations. It is not offered by most commercial insurers, but rather by nonprofit entities like the National Council of Churches. The cost of church insurance varies depending on the size and location of the church, as well as its type of coverage.

Churches, like any other company, must safeguard their assets. However, obtaining coverage is more complicated than just asking an agent for church insurance. Instead, you’ll need a number of policies, each tailored to a certain risk. For example, most churches need Insurance for General Liability in the event that a member of the congregation is injured. The cost of this coverage is usually between $500 and $1,500 per year.

Churches, mosques, and other religious institutions may easily get insurance via online brokers like CoverWallet. All you have to do is give some basic information, and CoverWallet will match you with a carrier that can offer adequate and inexpensive coverage for your company.

Top Insurance Companies for Churches

We focused mostly on specialist carriers since churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious institutions confront a unique set of risks, ranging from equipment malfunction to charges of pastoral misconduct. These church insurance firms have experience in the market, which means they can usually provide enough coverage at a reasonable price.

CoverWallet

Church insurance is difficult to acquire due to common dangers in the business, such as older structures, high-value antiques, and high expectations among congregations, therefore we propose filing an application with online broker CoverWallet. The application is simple to complete, and it often results in many offers that can be compared in minutes. This allows candidates to choose the option that best suits their requirements.

State Farm

Religious groups may get a lot of coverage from State Farm, especially when it comes to church property insurance. Churches are covered for a variety of risks, including sewage backups, equipment malfunction, and employee dishonesty, in addition to commercial property. There’s also optional coverage for burial liability, data breaches, and rental cars.

Mutual Brotherhood

Mutual Brotherhood has been in the business of insuring Christian churches for more than 100 years. Its 350 independent agents, representing 47 states, are trained to evaluate ministry structures, liabilities, and risks so they can find churches with the appropriate coverage. One unique option from Mutual Brotherhood is insurance for overseas missions, which offers coverage for liability lawsuits, ministry-owned properties and vehicles, medical payments for injured workers, and political evacuations.

Church Mutual Insurance

Church Mutual covers more religious organizations than any other insurer in the United States, and it provides a variety of property and liability insurance products tailored to prevalent church risks. However, Church Mutual’s CM Sensors Program and MinistrySafe provide a library of safety options that vary from water sensors to background checks to abuse awareness training. These tools are great for churches that want to save expenses by lowering claims.

Gateway Specialty Insurance

Gateway Specialty Insurance is a Berkshire Hathaway-owned brokerage that partners with 17 insurance carriers to provide quality insurance to niche markets. Its relationships with specialty insurers mean Gateway Specialty can tailor your church insurance to meet your specific needs. On top of the common insurance policies for churches, you can add coverage for equipment breakdown, business income, and special events.

Is Church Insurance Necessary?

It’s important to note that we’re referring to “church insurance” in a wide sense. Church insurance, in practice, covers all types of religious groups, including mosques, temples, and synagogues. It may also be suitable for certain non-traditional procedures. Religious organizations, in general, need insurance since they deal with people and often possess property, and thus must safeguard their assets.

Here are a few lesser-known spiritual traditions that may need coverage:

• Preachers who travel between places will very certainly need the coverage indicated below, as well as inland marine insurance, which protects property while in transit.
• Home churches: A casual prayer circle is normally covered by homeowners insurance, but home churches that accept money or are affiliated with a bigger organization need church insurance.
• Spiritual pursuits such as yoga, tai-chi, and meditation are likely to need business insurance.

How Does Church Insurance Work?

Multiple insurances are available for churches and other religious organizations. You assess the hazards that your company faces and select policies to address them. Most churches begin with a business owner’s policy (BOP), which typically costs between $1,000 and $2,600 a year and covers both third-party lawsuits and damage to church property.

While church BOPs are vital, they aren’t the only sort of insurance that religious groups need. Which ones your church or temple need is mostly determined by the kind of exposure you have. Exposure is the risk of loss that your company faces, which is typically caused by its activities.

Let’s assume your clergy members provide spiritual therapy. While this may be a vital aspect of your work, it may also expose your organization to liability issues. You may purchase professional liability insurance to pay your defense expenses and secure your church’s assets.

Costs of Church Insurance

Because no two religious institutions are identical, religious organizations’ insurance prices vary widely. Small churches, on the other hand, may typically save money by working with a religious-specific insurer or a broker that provides a church insurance package. Brokers may occasionally secure reasonable coverage for groups that would otherwise be turned down by insurers because of their size.

Costs of Church Insurance & Deductibles by Coverage Type

A deductible isn’t normally required for general liability coverage. However, you may be able to get one if you ask nicely.

Your liability insurance rate is influenced not just by the size of your congregation, but also by:

• The size of your board: Having a larger board means you’ll need more insurance since you’re more likely to face a lawsuit.
• Your previous claims history: When determining your premium, insurers take into account how often you’ve filed claims in the past. Insurance waivers and other risk management measures may help you decrease your claims.
• Your services include: Other ministries such as food pantries, childcare, and mission trips, as well as group and individual therapy, which might raise your premium.
• Conditions of your policy: Your premium will go up if you request larger limitations. Requesting a reduced deductible, on the other hand, frequently results in a lower deductible.
• The worth of your building: A synagogue that owns the physical building and has significant artifacts would pay more for Property Insurance for Businesses than one that merely leases a storefront.

Church Insurance: The Most Common Types

Insurance for General Liability

Insurance for General Liability pays for third-party claims of property damage and physical injury. Third parties are people who don’t work for your organization. The most common example may be congregants, but anyone who visits your church can be a third party, including delivery people and event attendees.

If you have general liability insurance, it pays out if:

• A churchgoer stumbles over your faulty stairwell.
• In a leased worship area, your candles cause a fire.
• A volunteer spills a council member’s laptop by mistake.

Volunteers may pose a number of challenges in terms of coverage. The majority of the incidents they create are covered by your general liability insurance, so if your volunteer causes property damage or physical harm to someone else, your insurer will reimburse the expenses. Injuries that your volunteer sustains, on the other hand, are not covered. Some states allow you to add volunteer coverage to your workers’ compensation policy as a rider.

Volunteers are automatically recognized as covered on general liability plans. This implies that although they are covered for the harm they inflict, they are not covered for the injuries they sustain. Some states allow you to add volunteer coverage to your workers’ compensation policy as a rider. You might want to discuss a volunteer accident medical expense policy with your agent.

Property Insurance for Businesses

Property Insurance for Businesses covers church-owned buildings and their contents, including furnishings, fixtures, and equipment. When these items are damaged in a covered event, property insurance pays the insured value―minus your deductible―so you can have the items repaired.

Most Property Insurance for Businesses covers damage caused by:

• Fire
• Vandalism
• Theft
• Hail
• Windstorms
• Pipes burst

Churches may have additional property exposures to consider like outdoor signs, valuable art, and landscaping. Property Insurance for Businesses usually includes these, but you may want to put the appropriate value on them so you know you have sufficient coverage.

Churches may consider adding fine arts endorsements to their property coverage for high-value items. The bulk of ordinary commercial property plans do not cover these things for replacement cost value, and they often ignore dangers that artifacts are prone to, such as temperature fluctuations and fungus.

Professional Liability Insurance for Pastors

Professional Liability Insurance for Pastors is a type of professional liability coverage designed specifically for ordained clergy to cover accusations of negligence in pastoral care. Policies can include one-on-one and small group counseling or guidance given during a religious service.

For instance, professional liability insurance may be required if:

• A couple argues that their divorce was caused by your refusal to give spiritual counseling.
• A churchgoer claims that your sermon’s counsel led them to make a disastrous investment.
• Your statements allegedly caused emotional harm to a member of a prayer group.

Professional Liability Insurance for Pastors covers these events by paying for your legal defense, including lawyer’s fees, court costs, and court-ordered awards or settlements.

D&O Insurance

D&O insurance covers your board members’ legal defense if they are sued for actions that they took on behalf of your church. These claims might include accusations of mismanagement, unfair hiring practices, and defamation and can come from current and former employees, vendors who work with your organization, donors, and even members of your congregation.

Other policies don’t cover your board’s actions, and that leaves members exposed to lawsuits. That can make sitting on a board unattractive, so church leaders often purchase D&O to encourage people to join. However, policies also protect the church’s assets because they reduce the likelihood of board members turning around and suing the church should things go south. Since board members aren’t covered by either the churches’ general or professional liability policies, it makes sense to get D&O insurance. Without D&O, your board will be stuck paying all of their legal fees if faced with a lawsuit over their duties as board members.

Churches’ Commercial Auto Insurance

Church-owned automobiles, trucks, and vans are covered by commercial auto insurance. Most states require companies to have at least liability insurance to cover the costs of damages they cause in the event of an accident. You may, however, add other coverages, such as:

• Medical payments: Covers medical bills for you, your insured driver, and any passengers, regardless of who is at fault.
• Accidental damage to your church-owned cars is covered by collision insurance.
• Uninsured/underinsured motorists coverage: Covers medical bills and property damage caused by a driver who either does not have insurance or has insufficient coverage.
• Comprehensive coverage pays for repairs to your church’s cars that are damaged in ways other than collisions.
• Roadside help: Covers the cost of towing and other roadside assistance.
• Auto liability (hired and non-owned): Covers you if you lease, hire, or borrow an automobile.

Commercial auto insurance covers your vehicles even if they cross state boundaries, however driving while on a mission trip abroad may not be protected by regular coverage. Inquire about alternatives for the cars your church owns or uses in other countries with your agent.

Insurance for Workers’ Compensation

Insurance for Workers’ Compensation is a state-mandated insurance policy that covers an employee’s doctors’ bills and partial lost wages after an on-the-job illness or injury. A few states exempt clergy from the requirement, but for those who need it, policies typically cover:

• Injuries sustained while decorating the synagogue, such as falling from a ladder.
• Carpal tunnel syndrome is a kind of repetitive strain injury.
• Occupational illnesses such as lung disease caused by asbestos exposure

Many religious groups should be concerned about two aspects of workers’ compensation:

• Overseas employees: These employees usually aren’t covered by Insurance for Workers’ Compensation, so churches with foreign ministries may need foreign voluntary workers’ compensation for overseas staff.
• Volunteers: While state laws differ, generally regulations exclude volunteers. As a result, you may wish to inquire about volunteer accident medical insurance with your representative.

Abuse & Molestation Insurance for Churches

Accusations of sexual misbehavior by church workers are covered by abuse and molestation insurance. The criminal side of these plans is seldom covered, but they do safeguard your church by paying the expense of civil litigation.

Some plans cover a civil trial regardless of whether the charges are genuine or not. Others may cover your church as an employer but not the accused offender, or the insurance may force you to reimburse legal expenses if the perpetrator is proved guilty. Because there are so many variances in coverage, it’s crucial to ask questions before purchasing insurance.

Religious organizations and spiritual practices may be charities, but they are companies just like any other, and they need insurance just like any other.

Conclusion

Religious organizations, like any other company, confront hazards. Because of the high expectations of the general public, they may be more likely to be sued. Most churches would struggle to withstand a costly lawsuit, which is why churches, synagogues, and other religious organizations must have insurance.

Obtaining estimates from CoverWallet is one approach to keeping expenses under control. CoverWallet, as a broker, may send information about your religious group to different carriers so you can compare costs and policy details.