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Housing associations
Housing association board insurance is directors’ and officers’ (D&O) or trustee liability cover that protects the people on a registered provider’s board against personal claims and investigation costs. It matters because board members carry the regulator’s governance and tenant safety expectations, and the provider’s legal form decides how the cover can be bought and what it must leave out.
Part of: D&O insurance for charities
In short
Registered providers of social housing in England are regulated by the Regulator of Social Housing under the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008. Boards must meet the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and, since 1 April 2024, the revised consumer standards. The regulator can fine the provider and, on grounds set out in the Act, remove officers. A D&O or trustee liability policy usually pays defence costs and damages for alleged wrongful acts, subject to its terms. For charitable providers, section 189 of the Charities Act 2011 lets trustees buy cover from charity funds but requires it to exclude criminal fines, regulatory penalties and certain dishonest conduct.
Last reviewed 12 October 2026 by the Apex professional indemnity team.
A registered provider is a body listed on the register of providers of social housing kept under Part 2 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008. Section 80 says those that are not local authorities are “private registered providers”, which is where housing associations sit.
The register is kept by the Regulator of Social Housing, established under section 80A of the Act (inserted from 1 October 2018). The regulator sets standards under its powers in the Act and expects every landlord it registers to deliver their outcomes.
Legal form. Section 269(1A) of the Act recognises three forms of private provider with a board: a registered charity whose board members are charity trustees, a registered society under the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 whose board is its committee, and a registered company whose board members are directors. Section 115 also requires the register entry of every provider other than a local authority to designate it as profit-making or non-profit.
The Charity Commission’s guidance on exempt charities (CC23) notes that charitable community benefit societies are registered with the FCA and currently have no principal regulator, and that many are social housing providers registered with the Regulator of Social Housing.
The regulator publishes economic and consumer standards. GOV.UK says the Rent Standard applies to all registered landlords, while the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and the Value for Money Standard apply to housing associations and other private registered providers.
| Standard or power | What it means for board members |
|---|---|
| Governance and Financial Viability Standard (2015) | Adhere to all relevant law, adopt a code of governance, keep an effective risk and control framework, stress test, comply with funders’ covenants, and certify compliance in the annual accounts (para 2.8) |
| Consumer standards (from 1 April 2024) | The Safety and Quality Standard requires providers to take all reasonable steps to ensure tenants’ health and safety in their homes and communal areas, and to meet all legal health and safety requirements |
| Health and safety lead (s.126A) | Since 1 April 2024, each provider must designate an individual as its health and safety lead |
| Performance improvement plans (s.218A) and penalties (s.227) | The regulator can require a plan, or fine the provider for failing a standard, mismanagement or not complying with an enforcement notice |
| Removal of officers (s.266) | The regulator can remove an officer of a private registered provider on set grounds, including bankruptcy, disqualification, absence or failure to act that impedes proper management, and obstructing or not co-operating with the regulator |
The regulator publishes governance grades from G1 to G4, viability grades from V1 to V4 and consumer grades from C1 to C4. A downgrade is public, and it is often the point at which board conduct comes under scrutiny.
The examples below are illustrative, not real cases.
Under section 10A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, Awaab’s Law requirements are enforced through a tenant’s action for breach of an implied covenant against the landlord, with a defence of having used all reasonable endeavours. The claim is against the provider, not the board, but the governance questions that follow often land on board members.
D&O cover, called trustee indemnity insurance in charities, protects individuals. The provider’s own liabilities, such as a tenant’s disrepair claim, sit under its property owners’ liability, PI or legal expenses policies. How any of these responds depends on the policy terms.
| Exposure | Usually within D&O or trustee cover | Commonly excluded or limited |
|---|---|---|
| Regulatory inquiry or removal proceedings | Legal costs of representing board members, if the wording covers investigations | Costs before a formal notice; the provider’s own costs of an inquiry |
| Regulatory penalty on the provider | Defence costs, where the wording extends to them | The penalty itself; fines and penalties are commonly excluded |
| Tenant injury or illness | Claims alleging board mismanagement, subject to terms | Bodily injury and property damage, which belong under liability policies |
| Building and fire safety | Some wordings give defence costs for health and safety prosecutions | Cladding, fire safety or pollution exclusions in some wordings |
| Employment claims | Employment practices extension, if bought | Contractual pay, notice and redundancy sums |
| Dishonesty | Defence costs until a final finding, often | Fraud or deliberate wrongdoing once established |
Other common exclusions include prior and pending claims, known circumstances not disclosed at inception, and claims between board members of the same provider (the “insured versus insured” exclusion), which may carve back some claims.
Charitable providers. Section 189 of the Charities Act 2011 lets charity trustees buy trustee liability insurance from charity funds if they decide it is in the charity’s best interests, unless the trusts expressly prohibit it. The cover must exclude criminal fines, regulatory penalties, defence costs where a trustee is finally convicted of an offence of fraud, dishonesty or wilful or reckless misconduct, and liability to the charity for conduct the trustee knew was not in its interests. The Commission’s guidance on charities and insurance (CC49) says the cost must be reasonable.
Companies. Section 233 of the Companies Act 2006 allows a company to buy and maintain insurance for its directors against the liabilities that section 232(2) otherwise stops it indemnifying.
Non-charitable societies. Check the society’s rules for a power to buy cover for committee members, and take advice if they are silent.
These points are general information, not legal advice. Your provider’s governing document and legal adviser are the place to confirm the position.
If this affects your business, these are the points a broker will ask about:
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Housing board D&O, reviewed by a named broker
Start the online proposal and save it as you go, or leave your number and a named broker will call you back, usually the same working day.
Apex Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance broker based in Bristol, established in 2009 and authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We are not tied to one insurer: we work with over 30 markets, including Lloyd’s syndicates through wholesale brokers, and every client has a named broker who handles the placement, mid-term changes, certificates for clients and the renewal.
It usually covers personal legal costs and damages when board members are accused of breach of duty, mismanagement or negligence. That includes regulatory inquiry and removal proceedings, claims by lenders or successor bodies, employment claims naming individuals, and allegations about tenant safety oversight, all subject to the policy terms and exclusions.
Look at fines and penalties, fraud and deliberate acts, prior and known circumstances, bodily injury and property damage, pollution, cladding or fire safety, and insured versus insured claims. For charitable providers, section 189 of the Charities Act 2011 requires certain exclusions; check the wording goes no further than it needs to.
We do not quote figures on this page, because premium depends on the facts. Insurers look at the number of homes, turnover and borrowing, the limit chosen, regulatory grades and history, building safety and damp and mould exposure, development activity, employee numbers and claims history. A complete proposal usually gives the clearest answer.
Yes, usually. Section 189 of the Charities Act 2011 lets trustees buy it from charity funds if they decide it is in the charity’s best interests, unless the charity’s trusts expressly prohibit it. The Charity Commission’s CC49 guidance says the cost must be reasonable.
Awaab’s Law requirements are enforced through a tenant’s claim against the landlord for breach of an implied covenant, under section 10A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. The landlord is the provider, not its board. Board members may still face scrutiny over how the provider oversaw compliance.
Yes, on set grounds. Section 266 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 lets the regulator remove an officer of a private registered provider who, for example, is bankrupt or disqualified, whose absence or failure to act is impeding proper management, or who is obstructing or not co-operating with the regulator. D&O cover may pay representation costs, subject to the policy terms.
Complete the online D&O proposal and a named Apex broker will review it, ask any follow-up questions and take your board’s cover to market. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Start your D&O proposal Call 0117 325 0027Apex 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. Cover is always subject to the insurer’s acceptance and the policy terms, and this page does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
