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III. Risk Management

A. Minimum Insurance Levels for Covenant Congregations | B. Managing Risk, Safety, & Insurance in the Congregation | C. Sexual Harassment and Abuse

INDEX     

B. Managing Risk, Safety and Insurance in the Congregation

This information is for trustees or property chairpersons and Christian education committees.

INTRODUCTION
Managing risk in your congregation involves several important steps of protection and prevention.

Protection involves:

• Making certain that the church is incorporated to help prevent individual church members from being liable for accidents or debts.
• Purchasing adequate insurance.

• Training people in safety precautions.
• Awareness of the potential for sexual abuse and preventive measures.
• Establishing a pattern and habit of mutual accountability in the congregation.

1. Incorporation - The first step in managing risk is for the congregation to be incorporated so that individual members are not jointly liable for debts or accidents. New Covenant churches are incorporated prior to joining the denomination. Some older churches may never have incorporated. In many states churches must file an annual report with the state or their incorporation can lapse. You may check on your church's status as a corporation in good standing or obtain a certificate of good standing by calling the “corporation bureau” in your state capital. (See section on “Incorporating Your Church” for more information.)
   You should keep a copy of the church's incorporation documents in the church files.
   To protect your church's standing as a corporation it is important to maintain a membership roster, and keep minutes of congregational meetings and the meetings of the church's executive board or council. Minutes of other boards and committees showing financial, property and safety decisions can also be important for legal purposes.
   
   
2. Insurance - Every congregation should maintain insurance for property damage and liability. This should include sexual misconduct insurance. 'There should also be insurance for theft including theft by employees, volunteers or financial officers. In many jurisdictions, workers compensation insurance is required. If the church owns or rents vehicles, auto insurance is necessary. Churches are usually exempt from having to pay unemployment insurance.
   The Covenant recommends that congregations obtain property liability insurance from the denomination's designated carrier. Currently this is Guide One of Des Moines, Iowa, 800- 321-5754. This insurance provides several benefits including:
• Group buying clout for rates and coverage
• Group clout in processing claims so that the insurance company is less likely to unfairly try to “beat” claims.
• Alignment of denomination, regional conference and local church in cases where there may be joint liability. This prevents conflicts among insurance companies that may make it appear that congregation, conference and denomination are at odds.
  This alignment has been particularly helpful in claims of sexual misconduct by a church employee. The church's insurance coverage should be reviewed annually by a board or committee.
  
  
3. Safety Precautions - Congregations should train employees and volunteers in good safety practices. This is a particular responsibility for trustees, property committees and Christian education committees. Training is usually more valuable than written policies which are often ignored or forgotten.
   Congregations should be cautious about adopting written policies and keep them to a minimum. Volunteer-based organizations have difficulty following written policies. If a congregation adopts a safety policy and fails to follow it, it creates a dangerous situation where the congregation may have greater liability than if they never adopted a policy. The best approach is to plan to continuously train for safety awareness.
   Suggestions for safety practices can be obtained free from Guide One whether or not you insure with them, by calling 1-800-321-5754. Safety procedures are available in pamphlets covering such subjects as preventing slips and falls, youth program safety, preventing sexual abuse, fire prevention, handling money and other topics.
   
   
4. Preventing Sexual Abuse - For preventing sexual abuse it often helps to do employee or volunteer screening. Excellent material is available about screening employees and volunteers including forms for written screening. See the Child Safety Packer from the Covenant Resource Center (I-800-338-IDEA). Also, a complete program is available in Richard Hammar's book, Reducing the Risk of Child Abuse in Your Church, published by Christian Ministry Resources from Covenant Bookstore (800-621-1290).
   A church should consider implementing two important controls about who teaches or works with children and youth:
   
   • Every volunteer should be approved for service by an appropriate board or committee before beginning service. Some churches require the approval of the Christian education committee for members and the church council or executive board for non-members. This prevents an uncontrolled situation where unauthorized persons begin working with children or teaching.
   • Every volunteer may be required to have an interview with a responsible leader who may be the pastor, youth pastor or Sunday school superintendent. This interview includes screening questions, review of spiritual pilgrimage, goals and expectations for the program and plans for ongoing training and accountability.
     
     
5. Accountability - An excellent review of accountability in the congregation is available in Accountable Leadership (1993), by Paul Chaffee published by Church Care Publishing, also available from Covenant Bookstore.