I loved the imagery. That is what insurance is when you get down to the bones of it. Brilliantly presented and fit for purpose on the outside but you need to look around the back and peek inside to see if it really is as desirable as originally thought.

Life insurance, car insurance, home insurance. In today’s market, only the naïve take the policy on offer on how good it looks.

The same with insurance cover for your events. Do not assume that your standard insurance cover is going to be suitable for every event that you plan. And certainly do not assume that your suppliers’ insurance policies are equally as rigorous as yours.

As an event manager, it is unlikely that you are the individual responsible for establishing the insurance levels for your business. You are the one, however, who will agree to take on insurance responsibilities at events – or share those responsibilities with your clients and suppliers. You are the one who could inadvertently agree to an insurance liability without knowing that your provider will not supply the cover without further premium payments or an increased excess.

You are the one that will appoint freelance, volunteer and other similarly contracted personnel at your event and whose liability may fall under the umbrella of your organisation’s Employers Liability insurance.

Just assuming that the appropriate cover is in place is simply not good practice. You could go through an entire career without it ever becoming an issue. Or your career could be short-lived because you did not cross the t’s and dot the i’s – and your actions cost your business tens of thousands of pounds for an uninsured claim. If that happens, who do you think will take the blame?

Here are 3 steps for better protection.

1. Do not assume that there is appropriate cover. Engage with the person in your business that is responsible for insurance. Explain your event and have them confirm you are covered.
    
2. Obtain confirmation of the exemptions and excess in your policies. Also if you are insuring an event on behalf of a client, and paying a premium for them, they must also be made aware of the exemptions and excess.
    
3. Do not assume your suppliers are appropriately insured. Your business will have minimum levels of insurance cover expected of your suppliers. Make sure you know what they are so that you can properly assess your suppliers.

Insurance is, in most cases, a necessary business expense. But like the shiny, beautifully presented apple mentioned at the beginning of this blog, it can leave a very nasty taste in the mouth if you don’t look at the whole offering.  

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