Cover for summer events

With the summer now upon us, there will be many events and exhibitions taking place and, while it can often just be an afterthought, insurance cover is essential for organisers. Injury to participants in events or to members of the public can very easily run in to £10,000s.

It is also important that organisers consider public liability (which covers members of the public attending the event) and employers’ liability (which will include volunteers, stewards, casual workers and all permanent and temporary employees).

It is also worth considering extending the policy to include damage to property owned, hired or borrowed for the event, as well as damage to the venue itself.

If an annual liability policy is not in place, an event policy can be found relatively easily via an internet search but in either case it is really important to check the small print. Many policies will specifically exclude motorised rides, bouncy castles and the like and it will be important to make sure that if you have these at your event that you use professionals who have the right cover (and supervision) in place.

An Event Safety Plan needs to be considered to cover many things such as crowd management measures, parking arrangements, welfare facilities, first aid arrangements and details of the nearest hospital and/or fire station, including vehicle emergency access and exit points.

Despite all of this, it is important to remember that 99 per cent of events pass by safely with no incidents or calamities and everyone has a great time.

Bill Canal is Commercial Account Handler at D E Ford Insurance Brokers, offering insurance solutions to commercial and charitable organisations.