You are a retailer that sells goods nobody tested, staffed by people you do not pay.

Product liability on donated goods

Injury caused by something you sold — electricals, furniture, toys, equipment — with no manufacturer in reach.

Without it — Selling a second-hand item makes you its supplier, and the maker is usually untraceable or long gone.

General liability and property

The shop floor, the stockroom and the donation area, plus injury to customers and donors.

Without it — Cluttered floors, heavy furniture and public access are the everyday claim.

Workers compensation — including volunteers

Paid staff and the volunteers who sort, lift and move stock, elected where the state permits.

Without it — Lifting and sorting injuries are frequent, and most of the labor is volunteer.

Crime and fidelity

Till theft and cash handling losses by staff or volunteers.

Without it — Cash businesses run by rotating volunteers have almost no segregation of duties.

Business cyber

Card terminals and any customer or donor records the shop keeps.

Without it — Card data in a small retail operation with no security staff is the standard target.

Hired and non-owned auto

Volunteers collecting donations and delivering furniture in their own vehicles.

Without it — Collection and delivery is constant in charity retail, and personal policies exclude it.

Are we really liable for a second-hand item we were given?

Yes. Selling an item puts you in its chain of supply, and the injured buyer sues whoever they can reach — which is you, because the manufacturer of a twenty-year-old heater is untraceable, dissolved or overseas. Donated status does not change it and neither does a low price. The practical controls are the ones underwriters ask about: testing or refusing electrical goods, checking that upholstered furniture carries its fire labelling, refusing recalled items, cots, car seats and helmets, and keeping a written policy on what you will not accept. Those reduce both the claim and the premium.

Our nonprofit already has a policy. Does it cover the shop?

Usually not properly. A retail operation is a different class with a different rating basis — sales rather than headcount — and a nonprofit package written for a charity’s programs will not silently extend product liability to goods sold over a counter. The shop needs to be scheduled as its own location with its own exposure, and if you have several shops each needs to be on the schedule. This is one of the more common gaps we find, and it is normally found at claim time rather than at renewal.