We’re here to help you see the way forward in a complex world—offering specialty insight, practical guidance, and customized insurance solutions supported by a broad network of Property & Casualty experts.
As a faith‑driven insurance brokerage, we take a different approach. We look at your ministry holistically, think strategically, and bring deep specialty knowledge so you can face the future with confidence. We love the work God has called us to, and we believe that passion shows in how we serve.
We also share current 2026 market trends to help you stay informed. Please keep in mind that this information is general in nature, provided for educational purposes only, and does not guarantee that your church or ministry will experience the same results.
We wanted to share our 2026 Insurance and Risk Trends for Houses of Worship with you. We hope this resource serves as both helpful and educational for the ministries under your care.
Today’s environment asks churches to navigate an insurance landscape where underwriting discipline is tightening and carriers are making strategic decisions rooted in long‑term sustainability and risk tolerance. Our mission is to help ministries understand these shifts and walk with them through the process with clarity, stewardship, and faithful advocacy.
The commercial property market is beginning to soften in early 2026, with increased carrier capacity, stronger competition, and more stable—often declining—premiums. A mild 2025 hurricane season and renewed capital inflows have encouraged insurers to compete for business, offering meaningful relief after several years of hard‑market pressure.
Challenges Amidst the Shift:
- Casualty Risks Remain Hard: While property softens, casualty risks (liability) remain challenging, expensive, and difficult to place like Sexual Misconduct Liability, Directors & Officers Liability and Excess Liability
- Regional Variances: Despite a generally softer market, specific regions or highly exposed assets may still see tighter terms. Deferred maintenance and lack of upgrades or updates to the building(s) continues to be a challenge within the church niche marketplace.
- Long-Term Uncertainty: It is uncertain how long this softening will last or how deeply rates will fall
Global commercial insurance rates declined 4% in Q4 2025 — the sixth consecutive quarter of decreases.
Beneath that headline, the real story is how uneven the market remains:
• Property: down 9% globally
• Cyber: down 7% globally
• Casualty: up 4% globally, driven by the U.S. where casualty rose 9% (12% excluding workers’ comp)
• U.S. overall: flat rates, with property down 8% and casualty still climbing
When some lines ease and others tighten, renewal outcomes hinge on program design, terms, and where you deploy your marketing leverage — not luck.
Use property relief to strengthen recovery, not just reduce premium
Softening property rates offer real savings, but they also create an opportunity to correct years of quiet term erosion. Now is the time to reassess:
• Business interruption assumptions
• Extra expense coverage
• Catastrophe deductibles
• Sub‑limits and coverage triggers
Improving these areas increases predictability and speed of recovery after a loss.
Benchmark the lines where one event can define the year
Severity-driven coverages — umbrella/excess liability, cyber business interruption, and D&O — often lag behind organizational growth and today’s litigation environment.
A favorable market window allows you to validate:
• Whether limits still match exposure, footprint, and risk
• Whether attachment points leave unintended gaps
• Whether wording performs as leadership expects under stress
This isn’t about automatically buying more limit — it’s about ensuring alignment with today’s exposures.
Pressure-test liability drivers before they pressure you
Casualty remains challenging. Social inflation, litigation funding, and expanding liability theories continue to push severity upward.
Key questions include:
• Where are we most likely to see a large claim?
• How strong is our contractual risk transfer?
• How strong is our child protection policy, when was our child protection policy last updated?
• Are retentions aligned with actual loss behavior?
Even if casualty pricing doesn’t soften, these insights help you redeploy leverage from property savings more strategically.
A window to be deliberate
Soft markets don’t last. With pricing easing and capacity returning, organizations have a rare chance to be intentional rather than reactive — building programs that absorb volatility, protect cash flow, and support continuity when something goes wrong.
As part of our commitment to equipping churches for wise stewardship and long‑term ministry sustainability, I’ve included our 2026 Risk and Insurance Trends for Houses of Worship below for your review.
2026 Insurance & Risk Trends for Houses of Worship: A Supportive Guide for Church Boards Navigating a Challenging Market
As churches look ahead to 2026, many are encountering a more difficult insurance environment than in years past. Across the country, congregations of every size and denomination are seeing higher premiums, tighter underwriting, and more complex coverage requirements—all at a time when ministries are working hard to care for their people and serve their communities.
While these changes can feel overwhelming, they are manageable with the right understanding and support. The goal of our guide is simple: to help church leaders make informed, confident decisions and avoid unnecessary financial strain.
What Church Leaders Are Experiencing
Many boards are seeing renewal increases in the 15–25% range, with some even higher. For a church with a $50,000 insurance budget, that can mean an unexpected increase of $7,500 to $12,500 or more. These increases are not the result of any one church doing something wrong—they reflect broader, nationwide insurance trends. At the same time, churches are expanding outreach efforts, launching new ministries, and finding creative ways to stay connected in a changing world. These good and necessary initiatives sometimes bring new risks that aren’t always obvious at first.
Why Insurance Costs Are Rising
Several factors are influencing the 2026 insurance market:
- More severe weather and property losses, especially affecting larger and older church buildings
- Higher construction and repair costs, increasing the cost of rebuilding after a loss
- Rising legal, medical, and claims expenses driven by inflation
- Greater focus on abuse prevention and accountability, leading to stricter underwriting standards
- Increased claim frequency, from property losses to everyday liability incidents
Together, these forces have created what many refer to as a “hard market.” The good news is that churches can still take meaningful steps to soften the impact.
Why Taking Action Matters
Auto‑renewing a policy without review is one of the most expensive choices a church can make in this market. Churches that actively review their coverage, shop the market, and make a few targeted improvements often experience significantly lower increases—sometimes saving thousands of dollars in a single year.
Just as important, an annual review helps ensure that coverage keeps pace with:
- Updated property values
- New ministries or programs
- Data security and cyber risks
- Liability exposures tied to staff, volunteers, and outreach activities
Coverage Areas Seeing the Most Change
- Abuse & Molestation Coverage: Greater scrutiny and higher expectations for screening and policies
- Property Insurance: Increased attention to geographic and weather-related risk
- Workers’ Compensation: Generally stable, but states continue updating requirements
- Cyber Liability: Now considered essential for churches using digital giving and storing personal data
Practical Steps Churches Can Take
Even in a challenging market, churches have options. The most effective strategies include:
- Implementing a few visible risk‑management practices, such as regular inspections, background checks, and safety planning
- Reviewing deductibles and coverage limits to align with the church’s financial comfort level
- Working with the professionals at Republic Insurance Group, who are insurance specialists who understand church ministries, volunteers, historic buildings, and outreach activities
These steps not only help control premiums but also strengthen the church’s long‑term resilience.
A Reassuring Perspective
This market is difficult—but it is navigable. Churches that take a proactive approach often find they regain a sense of control, clarity, and confidence. More importantly, they can protect their people, their property, and their mission without sacrificing ministry impact.
You don’t have to solve everything at once. Even one or two improvements can make a meaningful difference.
A window to be deliberate
Soft markets don’t last. With pricing easing and capacity returning, organizations have a rare chance to be intentional rather than reactive — building programs that absorb volatility, protect cash flow, and support continuity when something goes wrong.
Recent earnings calls from W.R. Berkley and Chubb highlight:
• Standard carriers are suddenly expanding appetite, targeting marginal property and casualty business—sometimes discounting 30% when 10% would have won the account.
• MGAs and delegated-authority platforms are accelerating softening by pushing volume‑driven pricing backed by reinsurance and alternative capital.
• Chubb reports steep declines in large-account shared-and-layered property pricing—down 30–40% in the market—prompting the company to walk away from half its E&S property volume.
• Reinsurers are leading the downturn, with property-cat pricing eroding faster than expected and casualty reinsurance remaining highly competitive.
• AI and digitalization are expected to eventually reduce the “excessive” cost of intermediation across multiple layers of brokers, fronting carriers, and underwriting facilities.
• Market data confirms the trend: Marsh reports global property rates down 9% in Q1, with U.S. and U.K. down 10%.
Executives warn that irrational pricing will correct quickly, especially in property, where loss costs continue rising and inadequate rates reveal themselves fast.
How We Can Help
At Republic Insurance Group, we specialize in insurance solutions tailored to your congregation and answer any questions you may have along to help steward resources wisely – so ministries can stay focused on what matters the most.
If your board is facing renewal questions, uncertainty about coverage, or concerns about rising premiums, a review can bring clarity and peace of mind.
You are not alone—and with the right support, 2026 can be navigated with confidence. We pray this information equips you and your ministry you serve with insight and confidence as you steward your ministries’ resources.
For additional information, blogs, and helpful resources, please visit our website at www.republicinsurancegroup.com.
Explore is our centralized gateway to specialized safety and risk‑management tools—carefully curated through our trusted agency partners. Whether you’re looking for guidance on loss prevention, workplace safety, or claims preparedness, these resources are designed to support you in building a safer, stronger, and more resilient organization.
Discover more at https://www.republicinsurancegroup.com/explore.
Please let us know how we may best serve you and your ministry. We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with you in strengthening and protecting the ministries entrusted to your care. To learn more about how Republic Insurance Group, LLC. can be your trusted insurance advisor, connect with a member of our team today.
Disclaimer: The material on this Website is for general information purposes only. Nothing should be construed as legal, financial, or insurance advice. Please consult your individual legal, financial, or insurance advisors for advice tailored to your needs.