Data

Charity serious incident statistics

Reviewed by the Apex broking team · Last reviewed 2026-10-30

The Charity Commission assessed 3,072 new serious incident reports from charities in 2025-26, compared with 3,132 in 2024-25, according to its latest annual report. Its quarterly data shows 933 reports opened in April to June 2026.

Part of: Commercial insurance

Latest charity serious incident figures

These figures come from the Charity Commission for England and Wales: its Annual Report and Accounts 2025-26, published on 9 July 2026, its casework and registrations data for 2025-26, published on 30 July 2026, and the April to June 2026 casework data, published on 8 September 2026. The Commission regulates charities in England and Wales only.

The annual report counts 3,072 new serious incident reports assessed, while the casework data records 3,599 serious incident reports opened in the same year. The two publications use different measures, so it is worth naming which one you quote. The casework data’s own quarterly figures add up to 3,541 opened and 3,077 closed, slightly below its stated annual totals of 3,599 and 3,090, and the source does not explain the difference. The 2024-25 comparisons for concluded cases come from the 2024-25 annual report.

Figures checked 30 October 2026.

Serious incident reports by quarter

Trustees must report a serious incident to the Commission promptly. The casework data defines a serious incident as an adverse event, actual or alleged, which results in or risks significant harm to beneficiaries, staff, volunteers or others; loss of money or assets; damage to property; or harm to the charity's work or reputation. The Commission says reports are not necessarily an indication of wrongdoing.

Sources: casework data January to March 2026 and April to June 2026. As a simple comparison, 933 reports opened in April to June 2026 is 150 more than the 783 opened in April to June 2025.

By incident type

Neither the 2025-26 annual report nor the quarterly casework data gives a breakdown of serious incidents by category such as safeguarding, theft or data breach. The most recent category figures we could verify are older: in a release of 27 November 2024, the Commission said that between November 2023 and October 2024 it opened 603 cases relating to fraud and 99 relating to cyber crime, and received 264 serious incident reports relating to fraud.

Regulatory cases, inquiries and powers

Serious incident reports are counted separately from regulatory concern cases, which mostly start from complaints, whistleblowing and the Commission's own monitoring.

The Chief Executive's foreword to the annual report refers to increases of 23% year on year in regulatory compliance cases and complaints about charities. Activity has kept rising: in April to June 2026 the Commission opened 1,552 regulatory concern cases and had 2,415 active at the end of the quarter, while it opened 5 new statutory inquiries and had 171 ongoing.

What this means for trustee and charity insurance

A serious incident report or a regulatory case is usually where a trustee's personal exposure begins. Some practical points, which are our reading rather than anything in the statistics:

• Inquiry and investigation costs. Many trustee indemnity policies include cover for legal costs of responding to a regulator, sometimes with a sub-limit. See Charity Commission inquiries and trustee insurance.
• Fraud and theft. Trustee indemnity covers claims against trustees; it does not usually reimburse the charity's own lost money. That is the role of crime or fidelity cover. Our UK business fraud statistics give wider context.
• Cyber and data. Data loss and cyber incidents are reportable, and cyber insurance is usually separate from a charity package. See also ICO data breach statistics.
• Safeguarding. Abuse claims can arrive many years later and some policies restrict or exclude them; see a historic abuse scenario.
• Notify early. Trustee indemnity is usually written on a claims made basis, so circumstances often need notifying to insurers as well as to the Commission. Read what to do after a claim against trustees.

Cover depends on the wording. For larger or incorporated charities, compare D&O for charities and trustee PI versus trustee indemnity, or start with our charity insurance guide.

How Apex helps: as an independent broker we can review trustee indemnity, crime and cyber wordings for regulatory costs, notification terms and exclusions, and place cover for charities across England and Wales.

Sources

• Charity Commission annual report and accounts 2025 to 2026 (GOV.UK)
• Charity Commission: Casework and registrations data, January to March 2026 (GOV.UK)
• Charity Commission: Casework and registrations data, April to June 2026 (GOV.UK)
• Charity Commission annual report and accounts 2024 to 2025 (GOV.UK)
• Charity Commission: Regulator refreshes guidance as it reveals 600 cases related to fraud in the last year (GOV.UK)

Frequently asked

Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.