Commercial Insurance Blog

Volunteers in Insurance Programs

How volunteers are handled differs with different types of insurance. The general liability policy does include protection for the actions of volunteers; Worker's Compensation on the other hand does not include volunteers.

In the standard general liability policy that most businesses use, "volunteers" are included in the definition of who is an insured.  This definition is important because it delineates who the insurance company will defend in a lawsuit or other legal action.  

Workers Compensation is more nuanced, but seems to have been well established by the courts. Coverage begins with the definition in Massachusetts law.  Chapter 152 addresses Worker's Compensation definitions and other features.  Section 4 of that law defines employees as those persons under contract or hire, with exceptions for certain categories such as real estate agents, consumer products sales people, cab drivers, and others specifically excluded.  Further clarification can be found in the "contract for hire" section, in Lowery v. Klemm, 446 Mass 572, 580 (2006), where the Massachusetts Supreme Court wrote that "Worker's Compensation statute does not apply to volunteers... "

Coverage for those ordinarily excluded as mentioned above, such as real estate agents, cabdrivers, and consumer products sales people, is available with a specific endorsement.  But this does not apply to volunteers.

These categories notwithstanding, it's easy to get conflicting interpretations from the state. The Department of Health and Human Services posts an on-line brochure stating that volunteers do have Workers Compensation coverage, but the Department of Industrial Accidents and the Worker's Compensation Bureau disagree.  Given that the departments that directly oversee Workers Compensation lie on the "no coverage" side of this equation, we expect claims made by volunteers would not be honored.

To discuss this topic with a Gordon Atlantic Insurance professional, please call us toll free at 800-649-3252.  Prefer to type versus talk?  Click below.

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