Non-Profit Insurance Ontario

Insurance For Non-Profit Organizations In Ontario

The non-profit industry is filled with people who are passionate about what they do. The nonprofit sector is filled with people who want to change the world around them for the better. Whether they're trying to improve the lives of people in less privileged countries, save the environment around them, or assist those in their local community in building a better life, the non-profit is filled with people who put others before themselves. 

However, non-profits are still susceptible to potential lawsuits or claims.  For this reason, it is important that any non-profit directors protect their organization from possible legal issues associated with a non-profit insurance policy.

What Is Non-Profit Insurance?

Non-profit insurance is a form of business insurance that protects your non-profit organization or charity from liability, bodily injury and property damage. It's possible that while you host a fundraiser, one of the attendees trips and falls over a piece of your equipment and decides to hold you legally responsible. Maybe information on some of your vulnerable clients is stored in an online data system, and some cybercriminals are able to get their hands on it. Perhaps the organization's vehicle is involved in a collision and needs repair. Any of these potential risks could end up costing your organization immensely. Getting the extra layer of coverage that non-profit insurance provides is critical to ensure that your organization can achieve its goals of making the world a better place.

Who Should Have Non-Profit Insurance in Ontario?

Every non-profit organization or charity in Ontario should have non-profit insurance. You can take every reasonable precaution in the book, and although doing so will drastically lower the odds of an accident happening, it's impossible to lower the odds of an incident to zero. For this reason, it is important that any non-profit organization protects it with non-profit insurance in the event of a claim.

Why Do I Need Non-Profit Insurance In Ontario?

Non-profit insurance provides peace of mind that even in a worst-case scenario, you are financially protected. While you might play fair in the business world, accidents sometimes happen.

Maybe someone feels like they were harmed by you or your organization in some way, and they feel you should reimburse them, or one of your most valuable pieces of equipment breaks, and you can’t afford to replace it out of pocket. Non-profit insurance can help cover these costs, ensuring you don't end up in the red for something you couldn't have prevented.

What Does Non-Profit Insurance Cover?

There are plenty of ways that non-profit insurance can provide protection to those who have a policy. The common coverages that non-profit insurance offers include many of those listed below. Additional coverage options are available to ensure that your non-profit is properly covered. If you would like to know which would be a good fit for you, your Morison Insurance broker would be happy to let you know, as well as provide you with a non-profit insurance quote.

Commercial General Liability Coverage

Commercial general liability coverage protects you from financial losses that come about from being held legally responsible for bodily injury or property damage to a third party. Whether it be from a slip-and-fall, damage to someone's prized possession, or some other event that ends up injuring someone who is on your premises, these kinds of potential claims can be expensive to fight, even if the accusation against you is unfounded. Commercial general liability coverage protects your business from plenty of legal expenses, letting you continue running even if a claim is filed against you.

Commercial Auto Insurance

Commercial auto insurance protects your organization's vehicle against a wide variety of perils. This not only protects it from the cost of physical damage and repairs but also many possible legal costs if you or your driver are found responsible for specified damages. Please note that if you have a vehicle associated with your non-profit, this type of coverage is legally mandatory to protect it.

Commercial Property Insurance

Just like the name suggests, commercial property insurance protects the physical property that your organization operates from. This would include things like potential water damage in the case of a local flood, damage from fire and other similar threats. While you can take reasonable precautions against these things, like installing a sump pump or having a fire alarm sprinkler system, it's possible that a flood might be too overwhelming or a fire comes from a neighbour's property and spreads to yours.

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance, protects an organization from having single errors take down their business. This includes allegations of negligence and similar allegations from clients who were harmed by your actions. If a client of yours suffers from a physical injury or property damage as a result of some advice that you gave them, you could be in some legal hot water and face heavy fines. Personal liability insurance protects you in such cases and ensures that a single mistake like this isn't enough to stop you from helping with the cause you are passionate about.

Product Liability Insurance

Even non-profits often either sell or otherwise distribute products to potential clients and customers. If this is the case, it is possible, however unlikely, that one of the products might be defective. To be on the safe side, it is recommended that you add product liability insurance to your non-profit insurance policy. Product liability insurance gives you financial protection in the case that you face a lawsuit as a result of faulty products that you released.

Equipment Breakdown Insurance

Does contributing to your cause require that you use expensive, high-tech equipment? If so, it's very likely that if this equipment unexpectedly breaks down, you will be in a very precarious position, as you may have to choose between needing to continue without this very important equipment or having to pay out of pocket to replace something quite expensive. You can, however, avoid this by adding equipment breakdown insurance to your non-profit insurance plan. Equipment breakdown insurance provides protection against this by providing reimbursement for sudden, unexpected breakdowns of expensive equipment, allowing you to replace it without needing to cover it yourself and allowing you to continue even in the event of a breakdown.

Tools, Equipment And Inventory Coverage

It's not just large bulking equipment that you might need to protect. There's also the possibility that some of the smaller but more specialized equipment that you use could be quite expensive to replace in the event of something going wrong. This is where tools, equipment and inventory coverage will come in. Tools, equipment and inventory coverage can be added to your non-profit insurance coverage to give financial protection to your organization and ensure that there is no need to panic if some of your expensive equipment gets damaged or stolen.

Cyber Liability Coverage

Technology has done a lot to make everyone's lives easier. We now have email instead of snail mail, spreadsheets instead of mounds of paperwork, and online databases instead of giant booklets. However, to get all of these conveniences, there was a layer of security that has been given up.

Plenty of tech-savvy criminals have learned that an organization's confidential information is highly valuable. Cyber liability coverage, also known as commercial cyber insurance, protects you in the case of a breach like this. Although there are several things you can do to prevent Things like notifying your clients, protecting against future attacks, and restoring software are all covered. In this age of data security breaches, you can't afford to have your data unprotected.

Directors And Officers Insurance

Also known as D&O insurance, directors and officers insurance covers the defence cost faced by members of your organization's board of directors against certain claims. In the case of non-profits, it's likely that most, if not all, of your board of directors are unpaid volunteers. Given that they are already giving their spare time to help your cause, it's unfair to expect them to risk their financial well-being to further assist you. By adding directors' and officers' insurance to your non-profit insurance plan, you will protect those who make the most important decisions for your organization and ensure that they don't take on unneeded risks to help you achieve your goals.

Does Non-Profit Insurance Cover Volunteers?

Your volunteers are often essential to being able to run your organization and have it deliver on its goals. However, insuring them can be very complicated. Sometimes, they are covered by default, while other times, they require their own separate coverage. If you would like to know which situation you are in, how to best take action, or would like a non-profit insurance quote, please contact your Morison Insurance broker with any questions you may have.

How Much Does Non-Profit Insurance Cost In Ontario?

There is no set cost to non-profit insurance in Ontario. This is due to the fact that each non-profit organization, as well as each organization's founder, is different. Each has varying needs, and there is a large variety of situations where non-profit insurance would be needed. To further complicate things, two different insurance companies will likely charge different insurance premiums. If you have any questions about the cost of your non-profit insurance or would like a non-profit quote, we recommend that you ask your Morison Insurance broker, as they will gladly answer any questions you have.

Which Factors Impact The Cost Of Non-Profit Insurance?

There are several factors that could potentially impact the cost of non-profit insurance that you choose to pursue. Please keep in mind that each of these factors will be weighed differently by each insurance company, meaning that you will likely receive different costs from different companies. Some of the factors that impact the final cost include:

• The number of employees and volunteers in the organization and their responsibilities
• The risks faced by that specific organization
• The size of the deductible
• The location(s) the non-profit is situated in
• The level of coverage desired by the policyholder
• The claims history of the organization
• The experience level of the head of the organization
• The safety precautions taken by the organization and its staff and volunteers

Please note that this is not a complete list of factors. If you would like a non-profit insurance quote, your Morison Insurance broker would be happy to give you one.

How Can I Lower The Cost Of Non-Profit Insurance?

Given the large number of factors that are involved in the price of non-profit insurance, it would make sense to think that some of these factors are within your control. It turns out you're right. There are a few things you can do to lower the cost of insurance and allow more funding to go to the cause you fight for. These include:

• Increasing your deductible
• Not making claims on very small losses to help keep your claims record clean
• Improving workplace safety and other forms of risk management at your organization

Please keep in mind that there are also other actions you can take to decrease the cost of your non-profit insurance. If you would like to know more or would like a non-profit insurance quote, it is recommended that you take a moment to call your Morison Insurance broker.

Where Can I Get A Non-Profit Insurance Quote?

You can get a non-profit insurance quote from the fine brokers at Morison Insurance. Morison Insurance is a brokerage that has over 100 years of family history and treats its clients as an extension of that family. We have been able to maintain a 5-star rating and are able to cover all of your insurance needs. Call us today at 1-800-463-807 or fill out the form on this page to get started.

This content is written by our Morison Insurance team. It is provided for general information only. Insurance needs differ from person to person, and this article is therefore not a substitute for professional advice about your individual insurance needs which can be obtained by speaking to one of our brokers.