PTO Insurance: What You Should Know
School parent groups and booster clubs need PTO insurance to protect their groups and their officers. Whether you already have insurance or you’re new to the conversation, we’ll make sure you’re covered.
When you’re buying insurance for your parent group or booster club, you want to make a smart purchase—one that provides your group with just the right coverage and support it needs. PTO Today has insurance options and information to give you peace of mind and help you make the best choices for protecting your group.
Insurance Packages That Make Things Easy
PTO Today works with a best-in-class PTO insurance partner to offer parent groups like yours the right coverage for your group. We have affordable, easy-to-choose insurance packages specifically designed for the needs of PTOs, PTAs, booster clubs, and other parent group. Our policy options cover property, accidents, injury, and theft. By choosing from bundles of different kinds of insurance, you can skip the guesswork that comes with a la carte insurance offerings (Should we get this? What about that?).
Plus—Lots of Other Benefits
PTO Today insurance purchases include membership in PTO Today Plus, our premier leader community ($336 annual value). Our Leader Support team—many of whom are current or former PTO leaders themselves—are available to answer your questions not only about insurance but also about all other aspects of running your parent group: planning events, fundraising, questions about bylaws and 501(c)(3), and more. You also get instant access to digital issues of PTO Today magazine, expert guides, and exclusive printables, first dibs on sampling programs, and discounts on products and programs.
Join the PTO Today community (it's free) for access to resources, giveaways and more
Time Your Coverage To Start When You Need It
If you have insurance coverage from another provider right now, you don’t need to worry about a lapse in coverage or paying for two policies at the same time—you can schedule your PTO Today insurance to start when your current coverage expires.
Do Parent Groups Really Need Insurance?
The answer is easy: PTO insurance matters. No matter how well you plan, bad things can happen to good groups. Here’s how some of those issues break down:
Accidents: An accident that results in injury is so commonplace that many venues—including school and municipal facilities—won’t allow your group to hold a sponsored event without coverage. General Liability insurance protects your group and volunteers against mishaps like someone tripping at an event and sustaining a minor injury. (And for those not-so-minor injuries, General Liability coverage comes along with Excess Accident Medical).
Embezzlement: It’s hard to think about, but unfortunately embezzlement happens regularly—chances are you’ve even seen some of these stories in the news. One recent case in Arizona resulted in an $18,000 loss for the parent group. While the trust involved can take time to rebuild, having insurance that includes Crime coverage means that even a large financial loss like this one is taken care of.
Damage and theft: Imagine the stress of having to replace 900 rolls of fundraiser wrapping paper if a pipe bursts in the room where the paper is stored, or shelling out if the projector is stolen from the AV room. With Property insurance, these types of mishaps are covered so your group knows it’ll be taken care of should these kinds of circumstances occur.
Questions To Ask Before Buying (or Switching) Insurance
Before you commit to a PTO insurance provider, do your research—among other things, find out whether the policies cover the types of events you’ll be doing, what kind of support is offered, and how long until your coverage takes effect. We’ve answered a few of the most important questions below, or you can see the entire list in our insurance FAQs.
What kind of events are covered (and can we hold them off school grounds)?
General Liability insurance covers most common events that a typical parent group might hold: ice cream socials, auctions, jogathons, and many more (even cow bingo!); check our list of covered events for more details.
Our policies cover parent groups anywhere within the United States; you can even hold events away from your school (with the exception of private homes) and you’re still covered.
Can we serve alcohol at an event?
We offer a one-day Liquor Liability policy that protects your group for the duration of an event, which can be added to any insurance package.
When does our policy go into effect?
Right away! Your policy can start as soon as the day after your payment is processed and your application is approved. Your certificate of coverage will be emailed within one week of payment.
How do we know which policies we really need?
All of the packages offered by PTO Today are designed specifically for school parent groups, to support the specific work you do. The Recommended package is what most groups purchase, and it includes General Liability, Excess Accident Medical, Directors & Officers, and Crime coverage; our Leader Support team can help you determine whether that package or another rone suits your group best.
Do you have customer support if we have questions?
Absolutely! Our Leader Support team is made up of current and former PTO, PTA, and booster club leaders. They can help with your insurance questions or give advice on any other parent group issue you might be struggling with.
Learn More
Visit our insurance page to learn more about PTO Today insurance coverage and pricing. Leader Support team members are available to answer your insurance questions or help you choose the right package. Call 800-557-2670 or email
Originally posted in 2004 and updated regularly.
