Why do village halls and community centres need insurance?
A burst pipe
When your business model is based around letting a space for events, problems with your property can lead to cancellations. You might arrive at the village hall before a preschool performance to discover a flood. Though you initiate investigations to find the source, you need to cancel the event. There’s also a bill for the forensic work – when it turns out an underground pipe is to blame, this figure grows. Buildings and property insurance can help the owner of a village hall or community centre manage these costs.
Injured visitors
A local charity uses your village hall to host a pet meet and greet with residents of a local nursing home. It’s a concept you adore, but even such a heart-warming event can come with risks. When a loose section of carpet catches the mobility aid of a guest, it causes a fall. The visitor sustains a broken hip and their relative launches a claim for damages. Including public liability insurance in your village hall policy can help offer financial reassurance, helping you to put things right.
Trouble with trespassers
Over several weeks, you notice recurring problems at your community centre, including smashed windows, broken locks and litter. Knowing what’s happening is one thing – to take action against the trespassers, you may need to go to court for an Order of Possession. When you rely on your premises to work, it’s good to know legal protection insurance can help with civil action expenses.
What insurance is available for village halls and community centres?
Property insurance
For many community centre leaders, getting village hall insurance means securing cover for the buildings you own. Commercial buildings insurance does just this – it’s there to help with investigations and repair costs if an event such as a fire, flood or storm causes damage. This cover also helps if there’s accidental damage to the building and can help pay for emergency services charges. You might decide to tailor your policy with other relevant covers, such as contents insurance if you store valuable items inside your village hall.
Public liability insurance
Public liability insurance is designed to support businesses and organisations that work with people, so it might help to protect your village hall against the risk of claims. No matter how small your set-up, your work comes with certain responsibilities – including liabilities to the public if you accidentally cause injury or property damage. An event attendee, a third-party craft class teacher or a delivery driver might fall or sustain broken equipment at your village hall or community centre. If so, this insurance product could help to pay legal fees and assist with compensation.
Employers' liability insurance
Adding employers’ liability insurance to your village hall and community centre policy can help financially if a current or former employee says they suffered a work-related illness or injury. A part-time receptionist might say they injured their neck after stacking chairs without proper training, or someone could be burned by cleaning products while sprucing the hall for a fitness class. This type of insurance may be required under UK law (external link) for any business, charity or organisation with staff – if you need it and don’t have it, you could be fined.
Other types of insurance may also be added to a tailored village hall or community centre insurance policy. Legal protection insurance could offer reassurance if you needed support negotiating your rights.
These are just some of the types of business insurance we can offer for village halls and community centres. We can provide other cover types and build them into a policy that’s tailored to the requirements of your business.
Get your quoteInsurance for village halls and community centres: FAQs
What insurance do I need if my village hall is set up as a charity?
Some village hall and community centre enterprises are set up as limited companies and others as charities or non-profits – this doesn’t normally affect the insurance you need. If your charity owns the centre, buildings insurance may prove useful, while public liability insurance can help if you deal with people from outside your organisation.
You don’t need to be a registered charity to get cover, however – your community organisation might be a small club that’s just starting out. In fact, insurance might be beneficial even if you don’t yet have a set location. This is because injury and property damage can occur when you’re out and about.
For more, read our FAQ guide to types of insurance for charities.
Does village hall insurance cover volunteers?
Yes – employers’ liability insurance for village halls and community centres can cover several types of staff, including volunteers who carry out work for you. This type of cover might be necessary for firms who employ full-time employees, regular volunteers and casual helpers.
It’s worth noting that employers’ liability insurance covers your business for risks to its own direct staff. If other businesses, charities or groups use volunteers at your community centre, then public liability insurance is a more relevant cover. In such a case, the third-party organisation would need to source their own insurance for employment risks.
Can I get insurance for events at my village hall or community centre?
Yes, it’s possible to take out insurance for specific events at your village hall with Hiscox –this is separate from your business insurance. It offers additional cover for the risks you might face when planning an event, such as cancellation and cash theft.
Some aspects of your tailored business insurance policy might also help against event risks. For instance, public liability insurance can support your business if an attendee trips on a fundraising bucket. In other cases, you might find additional cover is required for your village hall event – such as if you need to employ staff on a one-off basis.
Learn more about event insurance with Hiscox.
Related articles and guides
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In this guide to event marketing for small businesses, digital marketing expert Andreas Pouros explores the power of events for raising awareness and pushing up sales.
A guide to the Employers’ Liability Certificate
Some village halls and community centres may need to display an employers’ liability certificate to show they adhere to insurance rules. Learn more with this guide.
The ultimate guide to managing business risk
Read this guide to risk management in business to start creating a plan for your village hall or community centre that goes beyond insurance.