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Negligence
When providing services, running activities or managing premises, your community organisation should consider the duty of care it owes to employees, volunteers, clients, participants and members of the public.
A community organisation may be legally responsible if it breaches a duty of care and that breach causes harm, such as personal injury, property damage or financial loss. However, a number of legal requirements must be satisfied before an organisation will be liable for negligence.
Understanding negligence risks and taking practical steps to reduce them can help protect both the organisation and the people who engage with it. Appropriate insurance may also help manage the financial consequences of a claim.
If you think your organisation may have been negligent, seek legal advice about its potential liability.
Our fact sheet provides an overview of negligence, including:
- duty of care and negligence
- responsibility for the actions of employees and volunteers
- compensation and shared responsibility, and
- practical steps to reduce negligence risks
Injuries, accidents and incidents
Injuries, accidents and incidents can occur in any organisation. When they do, it is important to respond promptly, keep appropriate records and address any ongoing risks.
Our checklist outlines practical steps your organisation can take after an injury, incident or accident, including documenting what happened, preserving relevant information, making any required notifications and reviewing risk controls.
Common questions about negligence and incidents
What is duty of care?
A duty of care is a legal obligation to take reasonable care to avoid causing reasonably foreseeable harm to another person. Community organisations commonly owe duties of care to employees and may also owe duties to volunteers, clients, participants, visitors and others affected by their activities.
For more information, see our fact sheet on negligence.
Is our organisation liable if someone is injured?
An injury does not automatically mean an organisation is legally responsible. Generally, a negligence claim requires proof that the organisation owed a duty of care, breached that duty, and caused the harm suffered. Whether an organisation is liable depends on the circumstances.
For more information, see our fact sheet on negligence.
What should we do after an incident?
Organisations should respond promptly, address any immediate safety concerns and keep appropriate records. Depending on the circumstances, this may include preparing an incident report, preserving relevant evidence, notifying insurers or regulators, reviewing risks and seeking legal advice.
For more information, see our checklist on responding to injuries incidents and accidents.
Does insurance cover negligence claims?
Insurance may help manage the financial consequences of a negligence claim, but cover depends on the terms of the policy. Organisations should review their insurance arrangements regularly and notify their insurer promptly if circumstances arise that could lead to a claim.
Accidents and incidents are sometimes unavoidable (but sometimes they could have been avoided if a proper risk assessment had been done, discussed in our risk management and insurance guide).
More related information, see our:
The content on this webpage was last updated in October 2026 and is not legal advice. See full disclaimer and copyright notice.
