Charlie Cutler is the Managing Partner of ChurchWest Insurance Services and works with over 3,000 churches. He offers these thoughts from the perspective of an insurance agent. As ChurchWest says, “A good agent will provide clients with the best possible insurance coverage, while keeping the ministry’s budget in mind, never losing sight of the best possible coverage.”1

Churches are regulated retrospectively after something happens. Should an incident occur, your church leaders are asked what they did to prevent it from happening. At that point, the church is held to the same standard of care as other organizations. In this way, churches are held to a high standard of care both in a court of law and in the court of public opinion.

As believers in the United States, we cherish the First Amendment where it states ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.’ This allows for freedom to worship without regulation by the government. It means that, for the most part, the government leaves it up to the church board, elders, deacons, and staff to run things appropriately. There are some exceptions, such as fire safety, preschools, and food service. So, churches are exempt from most laws but not from the courts.

Churches are regulated retrospectively after something happens. Should an incident occur, your church leaders are asked what they did to prevent it from happening. At that point, the church is held to the same standard of care as other organizations. In this way, churches are held to a high standard of care both in a court of law and in the court of public opinion.

The government does not check to see if your church has a child protection program. It does not send someone out on Sunday morning to see if you have a team ready to respond to a medical or security event. The police will not check to see that your volunteer drivers are appropriately qualified to drive your youth to camp. How do you protect your youth? You are held to the same standard of care as other youth serving organizations in the community, such as the YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs of America and schools.

  • How do you protect those transported in vehicles for a church event? You must do the same things as other churches and groups that transport people.
  • How do you prevent an assault or an active shooter? You must do the same things as other places where there are gatherings of people, such as malls, theaters, concerts, and auditoriums.

In the event of an incident, your policies will be reviewed. You will be held accountable as a church and individually for meeting the same standard of care as other organizations with similar activities.

This should not scare you from ministry! You must know that there are those that are here for you! Lean on those that are available to support you in your work. Moses was holding his arms up as the Israelites battled with the Amalekites and grew tired, like many in ministry do. Aaron and Hur were there to hold his hands up! Those insurance companies and agents who are committed to serving God’s church have been called to a profession to serve and support you in ministry.

Have the conversation with your insurance agent about new ministries or challenges that you are facing. It is rare that they will say, ‘Sorry, no coverage for that.’ The right agents will get excited about your ministry with you, come alongside, and support you with guidance from their experience serving other churches. The best insurance agents will guide you in meeting the high standard of care while supporting your arms through the ‘free exercise of religion.’

1 ChurchWest Insurance Services, Meet the Team (Redlands, CA: ChurchWest Insurance Services) available from https://www.churchwest.com/the-family.

This Tool is from XPastor’s course Predators in the Church.

To learn more about preventing financial fraud, child sexual abuse and physical security issues at your church, see the Predators course.