This page has been produced by Tennyson Insurance, the charity insurance experts

We all buy insurance in the hope that we won’t need it. It’s not the most exciting or rewarding part of running your organisation, but it is a really important part of your structure: investing a little time in arranging your insurance will give you the security you need to cope with events which could bring your organisation to a standstill and leave the people who rely on you (your staff and your clients) in real trouble.

Ensuring that you have appropriate insurance at a sensible price is not difficult. But it does require a bit of your time so that you can be confident that you have assessed the risks you face and arranged cover to a level which you can afford.

If you do not have insurance there are three basic questions you need to answer:

1. Does your organisation have any employees? If you do, you must by law have Employer’s Liability cover. This is easily arranged and the cost is based on the type of activity your employees undertake and their annual cost (salaries).

You may need to consider other covers, depending upon the type of work undertaken; for example if staff work in a more dangerous environment, you might consider Personal Accident insurance as well, but essentially the first rule of thumb is – if you have staff, you must have Employer’s Liability cover. You may need this cover if you work with volunteers but have no paid employees. Some insurers (including us) provide cover for volunteers as part of Public Liability, but not all do

2. Does your organisation provide services to the public? If there are circumstances when members of the public rely on you and your duty of care as an organisation to protect them, you may need Public Liability insurance. This covers you against any claims that might be made against you or your organisation by members of the general public. Examples include: events such as Bring and Buy sales, fetes and coffee mornings, or simply working in an office where member of the public visit.

3. Do you own, rent or borrow equipment or property? If you do, you may need to insure against any loss or damage. You may also want to take out cover to protect you should damage to your property affect your ability to achieve your objectives and carry out tasks which you are contracted to deliver.

If you can answer ’yes’ to any of the above you really should have insurance cover in place; if you are currently in charge of a group or organisation that does not have insurance, then getting cover should be a real priority. Having no insurance could lead to financial disaster for your organisation.

Buying insurance and seeking advice

If you would like to buy insurance for your organisation, receive a quotation or simply ask us for some advice then please do contact us by calling:

08450 822 446

Please quote ‘CBUK’ when you call

Or emailing us at:

cbukenquiry@tennysoninsurance.co.uk

There are of course lots of other insurance companies, ranging from large multinationals to very small local brokers. We hope that you will buy from us:

• We have a very strong track record of saving money for our customers
• Our policies are underwritten by Zurich Insurance, a trusted brand and winner of the 2009 Charity Times ‘Insurer of the Year’ award.
• All of our staff are experts in working with charities and community groups
• In our two most recent customer satisfaction surveys (conducted in June and September 09) 260 customers rated our service as follows: 99% said that we had taken the time to understand their needs and 96% said that they would recommend us to another organisation
• Our commitment to the ethics of the sector is reflected in our leading role in developing and sponsoring Charity Builder UK

You can find out more about us as www.tennysoninsurance.co.uk