SRINAGAR: An event can involve a venue, temporary installations, hired equipment, contractors, performers, staff, and guests, with several arrangements taking place before and during the event. This combination can make it difficult to identify which risks should be considered when arranging insurance. You may also come across different types of policies while planning the event, particularly when construction work or heavy machinery is involved. This is where event insurance requires closer attention. Before choosing a policy, it helps to understand what to check, what each section may address, and where separate forms of insurance may apply.
What Should You Assess About the Event Setup?
The venue, temporary structures, equipment, contractors, and public access can all affect the type of insurance considerations involved. Instead of treating the event as one single exposure, separate these elements and check what responsibility you have for each one.
For example, consider:
● Venue: Check whether the venue has its own insurance requirements and what responsibilities remain with you.
● Temporary structures: If stages, seating arrangements, lighting structures, or similar installations are being put up for the event, identify who is responsible for their installation and use.
● Equipment: List equipment that you own, hire, or receive from another party, and check how the relevant policy treats such property.
● Contractors: Review the work being carried out by contractors and check whether their activities require separate insurance arrangements.
● Public access: Consider whether members of the public will attend and whether third-party liability is relevant to the event.
● Event activities: Note any performances, demonstrations, competitions, or other activities that may have specific insurance requirements.
This gives you a clearer basis for reviewing the relevant sections of an event insurance policy and identifying areas where another form of insurance may need to be considered.
Does Your Event Involve Construction or Heavy Equipment?
Some events involve temporary structures, staging, installation work, generators, or specialist machinery. That does not automatically make construction insurance and event insurance interchangeable.
For example, a contractor’s all risk policy is associated with construction projects and can address specified risks relating to works, subject to its own terms. Similarly, contractor’s plant and machinery insurance contractor’s plant and machinery insurance relates to specified construction plant and machinery. These forms of insurance should not be treated as substitutes for event insurance simply because similar equipment is used at an event.
If contractors are involved in setting up your venue or equipment, check the contractual arrangements and the insurance requirements applicable to that work. Keep those arrangements separate from your assessment of the event policy itself.
What Should You Check Before Finalising the Policy?
Once you know what your event involves, go through the policy details and check each relevant section:
● Check the event details: Make sure the event description, venue, dates, and other submitted information are accurate.
● Review the selected sections: Identify which areas of cover have actually been included.
● Check the limits: Look at the applicable limits and excess for each relevant section.
● Read the exclusions: Pay attention to circumstances that are specifically excluded.
● Review the conditions: Check requirements that apply before, during, or after the event.
● Check changes: If the venue, date, activities, or arrangements change, refer to the policy wording for the applicable requirements.
What Should You Know About Cancellation Cover?
Cancellation cover needs a closer look because it does not necessarily apply to every reason an event cannot go ahead. The policy may specify particular circumstances in which cancellation cover operates, along with exclusions, limits, and other conditions.
For example, specified events such as fire, flood, storm, or earthquake may be addressed under the applicable cancellation cover, subject to the policy wording. If your event is affected by bad weather or another unforeseen circumstance, check whether that specific situation falls within the cover selected under the policy.
Conclusion
An event may involve several types of work, property, and people, but that does not mean one insurance policy applies to everything happening at the venue. Event insurance should be considered in the context of the event itself, while construction work, machinery, or other specialist activities may call for separate insurance arrangements. If construction work forms part of the setup, a contractor’s all risk policy may be relevant to that work, subject to its own terms. Before finalising your insurance, look at the activities taking place and the responsibilities involved, so you can distinguish the cover you are arranging from insurance that may sit outside it.
