Consider this before lending church facilities

It is common practice to lend out church facilities to approved groups - however, to be a good steward of those grounds, it would be wise to consider the potential risks.

Some risks of lending church facilities to outside organizations include:
  • Physical injury incurred during user group's activities, while no fault of the church, could result in a lawsuit
  • Injury incurred as a result of physical defects of the church grounds
  • Misconduct by a member of the user group or staff
  • Loss of property due to theft or damage inflicted by user group
With these risks in mind, Brotherhood Mutual, our insurance carrier, listed a few considerations a church leader ought to consider before loaning church property:

Obtain liability insurance
Ideally, coverage limits should equal or exceed your church policy's limits (Ex.: $5,000 medical payments and $1 million liability).


Name your church as an additional insured on its policy
This will cover any liability damages arising from its activities on your property. Note: Being named a certificate holder doesn't provide any protection.

Indemnify, defend, and hold your church harmless
Be prepared to defend your church against any liability claim arising from the group's activities on your property.


Provide a certificate of insurance
Make sure that it shows that your church has become an additional insured on the group's insurance policy.


Taking these precautions will place accountability on the shoulders of the groups using the facilities, rather than the church itself. Additionally, it would be wise have the groups sign a Facilities Use Agreement, which you can download by clicking here.

For questions regarding the content in this post, or any other concerns related to your church's insurance program, please click on the link below to get connected with a member of our team.

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