American Church Group - Ohio

Responding to Mission Issues

The modern-day risks of mission abound, but you’re not on your own. A recent study by Missio Nexus and Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company found that 63% of mission volunteers and workers will go anywhere, regardless of the risk.* They also want to know that there is a plan in place to protect them. One way to provide protection is through insurance.

Having insurance coverage specifically designed for long-term international missions helps protect your people and organization from the financial impact caused by injuries, lawsuits, property damage, and more.

The mission specialists at Brotherhood Mutual revealed how ministries can respond to five mission issues to protect their people and organizations, furthering mission work for decades to come:

• Communicate the Reality of Risk – Ministry leaders often understand the risks of serving in missions, but a ministry can run into trouble if they don’t fully convey those risks to their employees and volunteers. If an incident occurs, volunteer travelers or ministry workers could sue your ministry, claiming negligence.
• Watch Out for Surprise Liability – Counseling activities, leadership issues, accusations of misconduct, and many more issues in the field can derail ministry efforts. As a leader, you’ll want to make sure your insurance carries over to long-term foreign operations.
• Be Prepared for Accidents – The risk of getting injured increases the longer a worker is in the field. Without appropriate care, even minor injuries from a fall or cut can become life-threatening, requiring medical evacuation or hospitalization. Accident insurance helps cover medical expenses like hospital bills, emergency room treatment, medical or surgical treatment, and more.
• Protect Against Abuse – Whenever a ministry is working with children or youth in a foreign country, there is a risk of a claim of abuse. And if the worker is arrested, it only complicates the situation. Make sure any long-term operations involving children or youth have a child protection plan in place.
• Protect Your People and Your Mission – Having insurance coverage specifically designed for long-term international missions can help protect your people and organization from the financial impact caused by injuries, lawsuits, property damage, and more. Ministries should consider additional coverages like kidnap and ransom, workers’ compensation, and medical evacuation coverage for any worker serving overseas.

Download the Mission Edition of the Deacon’s Bench for critical updates on topics like virtual kidnapping, juice jacking, injuries and illness, and mission insurance from the specialists at Brotherhood Mutual. Contact your local agent for more information.

*Missio Nexus. Global Missions and Risk. https://missionexus.org/global-missions-and-risk. Accessed October 27, 2022.

Coverage decisions are made at the time of an actual claim, subject to all policy terms and conditions.