Large Church Insurance Programs: Large Churches and Religious Organizations Insurance Coverage
As a large church, you have many unique risks that need to be adequately covered by a large church insurance program. You also have a congregation and staff that count on you to be there for them, no matter what.
That’s why it’s crucial to work with an experienced team of church insurance consultants who understand the specific needs of large churches and can tailor an insurance program to fit those needs.
At Integrity Now Insurance Brokers, we have over 20 years of experience insuring churches of all sizes, from small country church insurance programs to large urban congregations. We understand large churches’ unique risks and have the experience and expertise to design an insurance program to protect your church and its members.
Contact one of our church insurance agents today to request a quote.
What Are The Benefits Of Having A Large Church Insurance Program?
1. Broader protection from liability claims and lawsuits
A large church insurance program can help protect against liability claims and lawsuits by providing coverage for various potential hazards. This coverage includes the following coverages:
- General liability for third-party claims of bodily injury, property damage, and personal injury from libel or slander
- Commercial property insurance for a church-owned property
- Workers’ compensation for medical bills and lost wages for work-related accidents and illnesses of an employee
- Pastoral professional liability for allegations of professional negligence
- D&O insurance for board members‘ legal defense when they are sued for actions they take for your organization
- Special event insurance for liability coverage for special events
- Commercial business auto insurance for damage to the vehicles, damage to the property, and injuries from a loss
- Employment practice liability covering churches for wrongful termination and discrimination suits
- Religious expression insurance protects religious organizations from their traditional biblical beliefs
- Abuse and molestation coverage
- Mission trip coverage to protect your short-term mission trips from emergency health conditions
- Umbrella insurance policy capable of covering all lines of church insurance coverage and not just a couple
2. Blanket property coverage limits for property damage
The blanket property coverage limits protect large church institutions from catastrophic fire loss. All building insurance coverage amounts are pooled together to equal more insurance protection.
When purchasing church insurance coverage covering multiple church buildings, the total insured value is accessible for a single building. Here is an example of a blanket policy:
- Main Church Building: Insured Amount $108,000,000
- Fellowship Hall: Insured Amount $32,000,000
- Private School Classrooms: Insured Amount $55,000,000
- Parsonage: Insured Amount: $1,600,000
- Total Blanket Amount: $196,00,000
In the event of a total fire loss (assuming each building was insured to 100% of its replacement cost at the start of the policy term), the fellowship hall burns down. Due to high inflation, material, and labor costs skyrocket, causing the cost to replace the fellowship hall to cost $48,000,000.
Instead of having a shortfall of church property insurance coverage totaling $16,000,000, the blanket property insurance endorsement would cover the total cost of rebuilding minus the property deductible. Your church insurance quote must include a blanket insurance enhancement.
3. Church insurance coverage for bodily injury
A large church insurance program typically provides coverage for bodily injury through General Liability insurance. This coverage protects third-party claims of bodily injury, property damage, and personal injury from libel or slander.
15-passenger vans are known for causing catastrophic loss of life and incurring substantial legal costs for churches.
Large churches and ministries are viewed as having deep pockets. You must have superior church insurance coverage limits when an automobile accident causes the most severe bodily injury or property damage losses.
4. Standalone abuse and molestation. insurance coverage
Church Mutual insurance company, GuideOne Insurance, and Brotherhood Mutual are well known for writing churches of all sizes. However, their insurance policies pool all liability insurance coverage limits together into a single bucket of liability protection.
These policies are great for smaller church insurance programs to contain costs related to insurance premiums but not for larger churches which can be exposed to more significant losses.
Large church insurance programs with A-Rated insurance companies offer standalone Abuse or Molestation insurance coverage that is not shared across all lines of insurance coverage. This means if you exhaust your General Liability limit, it will not also exhaust your abuse and molestation policy as it is self-contained.
5. Standalone directors and officers liability insurance coverage
The purpose of having standalone Directors and Officers (D&O) Liability insurance coverage for a large church is to protect the board of directors and officers from personal legal expenses if they are sued for any decision made on behalf of the church, which leads to financial loss.
Ministry leaders serving as board members must be protected from a management liability policy that is fully funded when disaster tricks. No board member wants their insurance protection shared across a single package policy coverage limit.
6. Standalone employment practice liability insurance (EPLI)
Standalone Employment Practices Liability Insurance for churches helps protect churches from financial losses due to employee claims of discrimination, wrongful termination, or other violations of employee rights. With EPLI, churches can cover legal costs associated with employee lawsuits and reduce their financial risks.
Churches, particularly larger ones with more extensive staff, require higher EPLI insurance limits. With more employees, there is an increased risk of conflicts or misunderstandings that could lead to employee lawsuits.
Having EPLI in place will help churches cover the costs of legal settlements or judgments arising from employee claims. We’ve never had a client say I wish my coverage were lower when involved in an insurance claim.
7. Umbrella policy that sits over all layers of insurance
When comparing your umbrella policy, many church insurance companies exclude abuse and molestation insurance and employment practice liability coverage from the excess policy. Your large church insurance program must be allowed to include all lines of coverage, especially these must-have policies.
Great American Insurance Group offers property and liability insurance and may allow churches and religious organizations with the property policies and procedures being enforced to include all lines of business insurance under the umbrella policy.
Why Small Church Insurance Carriers Should Not Be Utilized For Large Churches
A small church insurance carrier may not be suitable for a larger church due to its limited coverage (such as pooling coverage limits). Since larger churches require greater care, coverage, and more complex policies, it is critical to work with an independent church insurance agency that has access to the best church insurance companies.
As independent agents, we work hard to find solutions for churches that province comprehensive coverage and include coverage for large religious groups that may not be suitable for a small or standard-size church.
Small church insurance carriers may not provide the coverage and services larger churches need. Integrity Now Insurance Brokers offers insurance and risk management services to our policyholders.
Your large place of worship needs our church insurance solutions!
Risk Management Programs Required For Mega Church Insurance Programs
Mega churches have become more than a religious institutions, with significant financial operations and assets. Due to their scale, these churches require specific insurance programs to cover their liabilities and risks.
Risk management is essential for these programs to prevent financial loss and mitigate any potential harm to the members, staff, or the community. A risk management program designed specifically for Mega churches aims at identifying, evaluating, monitoring, and controlling risks that could harm their operations.
These programs are tailored to meet the unique needs of each church, and they must cover a range of risks such as property damage, personal injury, professional malpractice, sexual misconduct, cyber liability, and more. Risk management programs also encourage churches to have policies and procedures in place to prevent risks, and they may provide training and support to the staff and the members.
Implementing robust risk management programs is vital in ensuring that Mega churches are prepared for potential risks, including legal, reputational, or financial risks.
Importance Of A Risk Manager Position For Large Churches
Having a risk manager position for large churches is essential for ensuring church members’ and workers’ safety and security. Risk management helps to minimize the risk of disruption, loss of resources, and financial or legal liability.
A risk manager can help churches proactively address risk areas, such as establishing a church safety and security team, financial protection, emergency preparedness, and liability coverages. Risk managers can also assist in obtaining the necessary insurance policies and coverage at competitive rates.
A risk manager helps to build trust between the church and its members and the insurance agent obtaining the required insurance. A risk manager is responsible for ensuring that the church is following proper safety protocols and informing church members of any risks that could affect them.
Risk managers can also help establish medical insurance policies, workers’ compensation insurance, and commercial auto insurance for religious nonprofit organizations. They work with the best insurance providers and understand how to read insurance coverage options and policies.
Many types of insurance products and loss prevention measures fall under a risk manager. Large churches should consider adding a risk manager to their team of employees and watch their workers’ compensation coverage claims fall.
Obtain Large Church Insurance Program Quotes: Integrity Now Insurance Brokers
Call Integrity Now Insurance Brokers at (877) 854-7396 to discuss any questions or concerns regarding your large church insurance program. We will help you compare multiple church insurance quotes from top carriers with one application.
Integrity Now Insurance brokers partner with trusted A-rated insurance companies to provide churches and other Houses of Worship with the proper coverage. Our team of church insurance agents will review your current insurance coverage for religious organizations and let you know how it stacks up.
Contact us today for a free insurance evaluation.
