As your organization works to advance its mission, the focus on safeguarding personnel is of paramount importance. We aim to partner with you to navigate the intricacies of risks that your employees and organization face across the globe.
For International NGOs, it’s essential to understand the intersection of safety and security plans and procedures, insurance policies, and assistance services to help personnel respond to critical incidents and provide leaders with the confidence that insurance will be there when they need it most.
By working closely with our international risk management team, we’ll help you understand key risks and recommend insurance coverages to consider that will help safeguard your operations, ensure compliance, and enable programs.
Examples of essential insurance coverages include:
Business Travel Accident (BTA) – Protects short-term travelers related to accident, injury or illness for things such as medical expense, medical evacuation, accidental death and dismemberment and security evacuation. One of the primary policies which enables global mobility. Works in tandem with the services of a medical and security assistance company which provides 24/7 support to personnel in distress including helping identify medical appropriate medical facilities, overseeing care and, where necessary, coordinating evacuation to a higher level of medical care.
Example: A headquarters staff member is in a severe road traffic crash while conducting a program assessment outside of Kampala, and needs a medical evacuation back to the U.S.
Foreign Package: Includes coverage for worker’s compensation, auto liability, property, and general liability. A key policy for safeguarding an organization’s assets and liabilities overseas.
Example: A warehouse storing pharmaceuticals in Haiti catches fire and the building is damaged and contents are lost. The property coverage in a foreign package may respond and pay the loss.
Defense Base Act (DBA): Federal law requires all U.S. government contractors and subcontractors to have workers’ compensation insurance for their employees working overseas. Known as DBA insurance this type of coverage provides the necessary workers’ compensation benefits for civilian employees working outside the United States on such a contract and is critically important for organizations funded by USAID.
Example: A USAID funded expat assigned in Kyiv is injured as a result of a missile strike in Ukraine and needs urgent medical treatment.
Medical and Health: International health insurance provides a broader level of coverage than a standard travel health insurance policy. It helps to ensure internationally assigned employees and their dependents have access to the desired level of medical care, including emergency care, medical evacuation, treatment for ongoing conditions, and repatriation, if necessary.
Example: The dependent of an assignee in Cambodia suffers acute appendicitis and needs urgent medical care. The assistance provider deems the nearest center of medical excellence is in Singapore and the dependent is evacuated.
Management and Liability (Directors and Officers): Both types of liability insurance are meant to protect the organization from lawsuits and associated costs due to work-related injury or illness and exposures faced by directors, officers, managers, and business entities.
Example: After a critical incident where a headquarters staff member is seriously injured, allegations of negligence related to “failure to meet duty of care” are brought against the management team of your organization. The Director’s and Officers policy has a duty to defend and indemnify the organization, it’s directors and officers.
Kidnap and Ransom: Employees operating in perilous regions of the world face the risk of kidnapping for ransom demands, as well as threat, and extortion When kidnap and ransom insurance is activated, crisis management and negotiation commence, along with ransom payment, evacuation, and medical care support.
Example: Your civil society organization in Zimbabwe receives a telephone call threating violence against the local field office team. The security consultant in your policy deploys local expertise and it is determined that a disgruntled driver terminated in the last month made the threat.
Cyber: With global operations, cyber threats can come from multiple sources. Cyber insurance provides protection against costs associated with a cyber incident, including legal costs, public relations management, and donor notifications.
Example: Bad actors infiltrate an e-mail conversation with a long-term Yemeni sub-recipient and manage to alter the banking information for the annual subgrant and the funds are lost. The policy pays a $200,000 loss based on the social engineering coverage grant.
Political Risk and/or Political Violence: If your organization operates in politically volatile regions, this insurance protects against losses stemming from adverse actions – or inactions – of governments, like civil unrest, war, terrorism, or changes in law that negatively impact your operations.
The environment in which your organization operates is often complicated and uncertain, much like the risk exposures it faces. Partner with our trusted team of experts with dedicated international expertise to understand your legal, contractual, and duty of care obligations. Let’s review your needs to help protect your mission.
