Apart from talking through associated risk areas and ensuring that adequate risk management measures are in place (visit our website www.baptistinsurance.com.au or refer to our Risk Management Guide for Churches for more information on risk), we will ask a few questions:
- Is this ministry endorsed by the church leadership/council/board?
- Is this ministry directly accountable to the church? The ministry may involve people from the community or other churches, but leaders must be attendees of the church and accountable to the church.
- Does the leadership of this ministry/body/group constitute at least 51% from the church, ie the majority in terms of decision-making? Is it noted in the church’s constitution? This line of questioning will be applied to incorporated ministries.
- If the ministry receives a fee for service, does the money go back into the church? If the ministry has its own bank account and does not give its profit to the church, then the ministry could be seen as a separate body and may require their own insurance cover.
- Does the ministry involve qualified contractors/practitioners? If it does and they are paid direct for their services, eg counsellor or electrician, then they will need to operate under their own specific insurance covers. If money is donated back to the church, then cover can extend to them. We do ask that you contact your local BIS office for further clarification.
With regards to combined church events where a number of churches work together, cover will only extend to the church who is covered under our scheme. Other churches and third party organisations will be required to have their own insurance.
If you are unsure about cover for an event or ministry, we encourage you to call us so that we can assist, not only around advice on risk management, but also advice on policy terms and conditions.
Baptist Insurance Services serves to protect the local Baptist church and its ministries. We do this by developing, educating and providing a comprehensive range of insurance and risk management programmes.
For further information on Baptist Insurance Services and what we provide, please visit our website www.baptistinsurance.com.au
By Baptist Insurance Services
Source: BUV News