Insurance For Your Mission Travelers

Many churches, schools, and related ministries send teams of mission travelers on trips annually. This is the time of year when ministries typically begin to plan their mission trips for the spring and summer. Have you ever considered getting insurance coverage for your mission travelers? According to Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company, one out of every five ministries that have this kind of coverage end up filing a claim. Faith Ventures Travel Services coverage is an exclusive insurance coverage that we can offer through Brotherhood Mutual, to provide protection for your mission travelers.  If you would like additional information about this coverage, please feel welcome to contact our office

For many churches, schools, and related ministries, the annual mission trip is a cornerstone of outreach and service. As planning begins for the busy spring and summer travel seasons, the safety and well-being of your travelers- staff, volunteers, and students- must be addressed through a formal risk management strategy.

Mission travel introduces unique and elevated risks that standard domestic health insurance and general liability policies simply do not cover. Failing to secure specialized mission travel insurance is a critical gap in your organization’s duty of care.

1. The Elevated Risk Profile of Mission Travel

The statistics are sobering: According to Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company, one out of every five ministries that carry specialized mission travel insurance ends up filing a claim. This high claim rate reflects the challenges of international and cross-cultural travel:

• Access to Care: Domestic U.S. health insurance rarely covers medical care outside the country, forcing travelers to pay cash upfront for treatment.

• Medical Quality and Cost: Medical care in developing regions can be substandard, yet unexpected medical procedures in stable regions can be exorbitantly expensive.

• Evacuation: In the event of a severe illness, political unrest, or natural disaster, the cost of medical evacuation (often required to transport a traveler to a high-quality facility) can easily exceed $50,000, creating a catastrophic financial burden for the family or the ministry.

• Trip Interruption: Unexpected events—from lost passports to family emergencies back home—can force premature trip termination, leaving the traveler stranded or personally liable for thousands in last-minute flights and fees.

2. Specialized Protection: What Faith Ventures Provides

Generic travel insurance often lacks the specific coverage needed for mission work. Specialized coverage, like Faith Ventures Travel Services (exclusive through carriers like Brotherhood Mutual), is designed to fill these critical gaps.

Key protections often include:

• Emergency Medical Expenses: Immediate coverage for unexpected illness or injury abroad, allowing travelers to seek care without worrying about upfront payment.

• Emergency Medical Evacuation: Coverage for the logistics and immense cost of transporting an injured or seriously ill person to the nearest adequate medical facility or back home.

• Political Evacuation: Coverage to help the team safely exit a region due to civil unrest, terrorism, or natural disasters.

• Trip Interruption/Cancellation: Reimbursement for pre-paid, non-refundable expenses if the trip is interrupted or canceled due to covered reasons (e.g., severe illness, death in the family).

• Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D): Lump-sum benefits in the event of a covered fatal accident.

3. Fulfilling the Ministry’s Duty of Care

The safety of your people is always a priority. Securing specialized travel coverage demonstrates that your ministry has exercised due diligence and taken all reasonable steps to protect its participants.

• Risk Transfer: The insurance policy transfers a portion of the highest-stakes financial risk (e.g., emergency evacuation) from the individual traveler and the ministry to a specialized carrier.

• Peace of Mind: Providing this coverage gives mission travelers and their families confidence that, in the event of an emergency, professional resources and financial support are instantly available.

.Prioritize travel insurance this mission trip and keep your travelers safe!