Church Vehicle Safety Information

Church vans and buses play a vital role in ministry, especially with the various summer youth trips your churches have lined up. However, they also carry significant liability. Whether churches own vehicles or borrow/rent one, here are a few key things to help promote safety in ministry: 

Insurance Checklist 

If your church owns a van, bus, or even a trailer, you must have commercial auto insurance. Personal auto insurance won’t cover ministry-related accidents, even if a volunteer is driving.

• Church-owned vehicles: Require commercial auto coverage.

• Personal vehicles used for ministry: Should be disclosed to your insurer. You will need hired and non-owned auto coverage (HNOA).

• Rented vehicles: Check if your policy covers short-term rentals or if you need to add coverage under HNOA as well.

Driver Screening

Not everyone with a license should drive for church events. Create a policy that lists approved drivers and review it regularly. Insurance Companies often require:

• A tiered scoring system where certain amounts or types of driving violations would make a driver ineligible. (Sample here)

• A minimum age requirement (usually 21 or 25).

• Proof of valid insurance (for personal vehicles).

• Background checks for those transporting minors.

Vehicle Maintenance Records

Keep vehicles well-maintained with logs of:

• Oil changes, tire checks, brakes, and lights.

• Annual inspections.

• Repairs and recalls.

A well-documented maintenance history not only reduces risk—it strengthens your case in the event of a claim.

General Transportation Safety

• Require seat belts for everyone—no exceptions.

• Never overload vehicles.

• Use a trip log to track who went, who drove, and where you went.

• Train drivers in basic safety protocols (like how to respond to an accident).

 Proper insurance and safety practices protect your members and your ministries. If you or any of your churches have questions related to best practices for auto related exposures, please don’t hesitate to send them our way!

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This content has been prepared by United Methodist Insurance Company (UMI) for informational purposes only. No article or document may accurately contemplate all possible scenarios or church resources. As such, this information is meant to foster discussion by the individual church and its members to develop a plan tailored to its own circumstances. UMI is providing this information with no warranties or guarantees of any kind and it should not be viewed as legal, financial, or other professional advice. All liability is expressly disclaimed. Any claim examples described herein are general in nature, may or may not be based on actual claims, and are for informational purposes only. Any coverage available for a claim is determined from the facts and circumstances of the claim as well as the terms and conditions of any applicable policy, including any exclusions or deductibles. In the event of a conflict with the content herein, the terms and conditions of any issued policy will control. Individual coverage may vary and may not be available in all states.

The commercial insurance coverages for United Methodist Insurance are sold and serviced directly or indirectly by Sovereign Insurance Agency (CA Lic. No. 0B01380) ("Sovereign") and underwritten by various available insurance markets. Sovereign pays United Methodist Insurance a royalty for the use of its intellectual property.