The Role of Liability Insurance in Educational Settings: Ensuring Safety and SecurityEducational facilities should be safe environments that encourage learning. In reality, though, dangerous situations may occur anywhere – and educational settings are particularly vulnerable to certain types of risks. Liability insurance in educational settings can support your commitment to safety and security while protecting your organization.
How Liability Insurance Protects Schools and Their Students
In its simplest form, the purpose of insurance is to provide a payout that will make the insured whole again after a loss. In the case of liability insurance, coverage can protect schools from litigation defense costs and any resulting settlements, while also ensuring victims receive compensation.
In many cases, an insurance program will also help schools prevent losses from occurring in the first place. Many insurers provide loss prevention resources and training to help policyholders avoid cyberattacks, crashes, and other common claims.
What Type of Liability Insurance Do Educational Institutions Need?
Liability takes many forms, and no single insurance policy covers every type of risk. Depending on the nature of your organization and your risks, you will likely need multiple types of liability insurance coverage.
Educational organizations should consider the following coverage types:
- Abuse and molestation insurance
- Educators professional liability insurance
- Directors and officers liability insurance
- Employment practices liability insurance
- Workers’ compensation insurance
- General liability insurance
- Auto liability insurance
- Cyber liability insurance
Abuse and Molestation Liability
Statute of limitations reform has made it easier for victims of child sexual abuse to file lawsuits years after the alleged abuse occurred. While this is a win for victims, it also exposes schools and other organizations to lawsuits stemming from events that took place decades ago.
AP News says Los Angeles County approved a $4 billion payout to settle 7,000 claims of sexual abuse in juvenile facilities. According to Los Angeles Times, this may have triggered more lawsuits. The surge in sexual abuse litigation has left schools struggling to pay settlements since. One recent case involved five women who sued the Fresno County school system for allegedly dismissing claims that they were being assaulted by a teacher who was later convicted.
Does your school have coverage? Regular policies may not adequately cover these risks, creating the need for abuse and molestation coverage.
Educators Liability
Providing an education isn’t always straightforward. Teachers, board members, and administrators can be caught in the middle of political conflicts over preferred pronouns, LGBT rights, religion, and other highly-controversial issues. They also have to navigate special needs, bullying, and poor academic performance.
Lawsuits are common:
- According to WSAZ, a high school graduate is suing her school for negligence because she graduated with honors despite never learning to read or write. In a similar case, a former student is suing his school, alleging that he graduated with a 3.4 GPA even though he couldn’t read or even spell his own name, according to Action 5 News.
- A California school district is being sued for using a student’s preferred pronouns without telling a parent. According to Courthouse News Service, a lower court dismissed the complaint, but the Ninth Circuit reversed the decision.
- A former middle school student won a $1 million verdict against a California school district over claims that the school failed to protect her from bullying that allegedly took place on school property and school-supervised trips, according to People. The district’s appeal was unsuccessful.
Does your school have coverage? Depending on the nature of the lawsuit and who’s named, educators professional liability insurance and directors and officers insurance may provide protection.
Employment Liability
Controversial issues may also lead to employment liability, particularly when teachers are fired over the way they handle issues in the classroom. Consider these recent lawsuits:
- A former teacher is suing his school for alleged religious discrimination, according to the Palo Alto Daily Post. He says he was fired after the biblical story of Adam and Eve came up in a classroom discussion on the origins of human life.
- A former kindergarten teacher is suing the Oakland Unified School District for violating her First Amendment and religious freedom rights by firing her because she refused to use a student’s preferred pronouns according to FOX KTVU.
Does your school have coverage? Employment practices liability insurance provides coverage for wrongful termination lawsuits and many other employment-related claims.
Work Comp, General Liability, and Auto Liability Insurance
Although teaching is normally a fairly safe occupation, there are still work comp risks. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, teachers experience illnesses or injuries requiring days away from work, job restriction, or transfer at a rate of 85.0 per 10,000 full-time workers. Compared to all occupations, teachers were twice as likely to experience violence.
Students and guests are also vulnerable to injuries, which may occur on school grounds or while riding school buses. There’s also a risk of damage to property owned by students, staff, or community members. If teachers or other employees drive in course of their work, you may also have commercial auto liability insurance exposures.
Does your school have coverage? Depending on the nature of the claim, workers’ compensation, general liability, or auto liability insurance may provide coverage.
Cyber Liability
Educational organizations possess sensitive personal data that may make them targets for cyberattacks. In a recent example, NBC News says multiple school districts have been hit with extortion attempts after a software company that serves schools experienced a data breach. The software company paid hackers to prevent them from publishing children’s personal information. Months later, though, the hackers are still going after school districts.
Does your school have coverage? Cyberattacks are often expensive, but cyber liability insurance can help schools recover.
Heffernan Insurance Brokers offers insurance and risk management solutions for educational organizations, including K-12 schools, colleges, universities, vocational and trade schools, tutoring programs, and online programs. Our clients have access to specialty programs designed for the educational sector. Learn more.
