Injuries on Church Mission Trips – Lessons from $5.9 million jury verdict against Central Christian Church of the East Valley
The Arizona Court of Appeals recently upheld $5.9 million judgment against Central Christian Church, located in Mesa and Gilbert, Arizona, and Amor Ministries, of California. The verdict arose out of an accident on a mission trip to build a church in Mexico, coordinated by Central Christian and Amor. While constructing the roof of the building, a trip participant stepped on an unsheathed rafter, fell through the unfinished roof and sustained multiple injuries.
The case demonstrates why churches should consider the risks presented by a mission trip and confirm that appropriate means are in place to fairly deal with an injury claim from a church member that may arise out of such a trip. Several procedures should be considered.
First, the church should obtain a certificate of insurance from the mission agency to confirm that a valid insurance policy is in place and effective during the period of the trip. The church should request that it be named as an additional insured on the mission agency’s policy, and if the trip is in another country, confirm that the policy covers events outside of the US. The church should also consider obtaining a specific endorsement to its own insurance policy, or a separate policy, for out-of-country trips.
Second, the church should be sure that the mission agency provides adequate training, materials and supervision of the activities on the trip. The church and the mission agency should document in advance what the agency will provide, and what the church is expected to provide.
Churches and mission agencies often require trip participants to sign liability waivers to participate in trips. Any such waivers should provide that the participant is only waiving damages that exceed the amount of applicable church and agency insurance coverage. This will allow the participant to benefit from any insurance coverage of the church or agency that applies to his or her loss.
Churches and mission agencies should also consider including in any waivers mandatory arbitration and mediation provisions, to prevent the dispute from being resolved by a secular jury. Such terms can require that disputes be resolved in a process administered by a faith-based organization that assists parties that share common religious values that may impact their views on how a dispute between members of the same faith should be addressed.
If you would like assistance in developing an appropriate set of policies to fairly deal with injury claims that may arise out of mission trips, contact Scott Wakefield at , or 602-254-9900.